#Yué | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

electrasev5nwrites · 2 years

Text

WolfMoon

ATLA Yue SI fic because fuck, why not? Prologue- chapter 3. The rest so far is on my patreon, where everything always gets posted first and my original writing is.

The girl was born in a fabulous palace at the center of a wealthy city, with glittering walls that hid the yellow dance of sunlight on the waves. It was pale inside, and cold. Too cold. She was in fact born in the depths of winter, days before the wolf moon.

She was a very normal child, aside from the fact that she was born dying. Her parents prayed for days until out of desperation her mother took her to the heart of their religion when the moon was full and begged the spirits there to save her.

They did. The moon gave her some of her own life. But she also let something else in.

XXXX

Yué was plagued by headaches, from a very young age. She was flighty and prone to distress about inane things and brought to tears by things that should have caused her wonder. Her parents worried she was too delicate for even the pampered life of a princess.

“I don’t like it,” Yué said, at the dinner in honor of her 5th birthday. The water bending master whose students were performing was too disciplined to scold her. But Master Pakku’s lips thinned even further.

She sunk down into her seat, feeling unhappy. Her head was bothering her despite Healer Yugoda’s ministrations.

It just seemed wrong. The whole world seemed wrong. She had the distinct feeling that this couldn’t be what life was. She wanted to run so far that she never felt that way again.

She settled for looking at the table instead of the display of water bending mastery in front of her. Three boys who were twice her age were doing acrobatic motions, weaving patterns around each other and waving long flags of icy water.

“...Will I learn to do that?” Yué asked quietly, a little intimidated.

Pakku laughed under his breath. “No, princess. You’ll heal, if you have the gift.”

She considered that. “Oh.”

Healing was very useful. If she was like Yugoda, she could make her own headaches go away.

She drifted off into thought, barely hearing her father say something about blessings. Yué jolted to awareness at the roar of approval that let out around the room. She stared with eyes as big as coins. Her mother was blushing, with a hand on her big stomach.

In retrospect, that was where things went wrong in her life. Her parents became even busier and distracted and she spent long hours alone in her pretty room, practicing stitching and writing and reciting the sprawling web of nobles and notables in the city. She might have slipped into the routine and pushed down all the whispers that told her “this isn’t normal” if things had gone to plan.

“Yué, my love, Mommy is going to be very busy.” Her mother’s face was red and she was breathing heavily, but she still had a smile for Yué. “Be a good girl until I come back, okay? I’ll have a brother for you.”

Yué nodded, face scrunched up with tears she was a little too mature to cry. She wound her fingers around her mother’s long braids and tucked her face into mama’s neck. She felt the warm, familiar hand stroking the back of her head. “My brave little girl,” Mama breathed. “Be good for Nanny. She untangled Yué’s fingers from her hair and stood. “I’ll call for you when I’m finished. Be patient, my love.”

Nanny took her away and she went about her normal day. She played in the morning after breakfast, and then she practiced her letters. They worked on making a pretty picture out of thread, and then they walked around the city and Yué named the residences of the important people. She got to help serve lunch, which was a recent big girl privilege that she was still excited about.

She felt the difference after lunch. She usually spent the afternoon with her mother. Nanny stayed a very long time, until it was time to get her son from the school he went to during the day. Yué was only alone for a little while. A guard knocked gently on her door frame and ushered in an older girl with a pink face and short dark hair. “Princess, Aunna is here to play.”

Yué nodded and smiled. She held out her inks in invitation. “I’m drawing the city. Do you remember how the fountain looks? I kind of forgot.”

Aunna did remember. Aunna knew a lot! She was 8 years old so she was already in school. Sometimes she came with her grandmother to see Yué when the headaches were particularly bad.

Yugoda didn’t come to collect Aunna, so the girls were served dinner in Yué’s room.

She even got to spend the night! Yué and Aunna stayed up very late talking.

Yué wanted to tell her mama about everything she and Aunna had done, but she remembered that she was supposed to be patient. She was patient, all day. No one came to tell her Mama wanted to see her. Father didn’t send for her either, which was unusual. She saw him almost every day, in the evening when she was called to his and Mama’s room.

Someone collected Aunna in the evening. Another girl was brought to be her companion. She hadn’t played with Kama before, and Yué was tired of hostessing. But she was a good girl. They played in the snow and then made their own hot tea, with the Cook’s supervision.

The next day was tense. No friend came over.

Once again, dinner was cancelled. But this time it felt different. The guards still smiled at Yué, but there was a heaviness to the atmosphere.

After a very long itinerary, Yugoda came to Yué. She looked exhausted, years older than she had the last time that she’d seen the healer.

“Grandmother Yugoda?” Yué asked tentatively.

The older woman dropped to her knees creakily for a hug. Yué rushed into the outstretched arms.

“Oh, brave little girl.” Yugoda’s voice was different. Thick, choked with sadness. “I have some bad news. Your mother can’t come back. She’s with your brother. Have you seen your Father?”

“Where is Mama?” Yué pulled away, eyes wide. “Where’d she go?”

Yugoda let out a trembling breath. “She… her health failed her.” The old woman looked the saddest Yué had ever seen. Impulsively, she hugged Yugoda again to try to make it better. “Oh, princess.” She stroked the back of Yue’s coat. “We have to say goodbye tonight. I’ll help you get ready.”

It didn’t make sense to Yué. Of course Mama would come back eventually. She had said so. So Yué sniffled and let her hair be braided in a new way, and changed into her formal clothes. Yugoda took her to see her Father. He was already dressed up, with dark under eyes and a trembling smile for Yué. She climbed onto his lap and waited while the room filled up.

Then they went outside. Yué gasped when she saw the boat. “Mama!” She tried to wiggle out of Father’s grip, but he held firm.

There was a strange reaction from the crowd. Yué stilled, not certain why everyone was shuffling and whispering, but she knew that she had caused it. She went still.

“Yué, hold your aunt’s hand,” father said quietly. Auntie Brinna gave Yué a smile and took her hand. Yué stood still, confused but determined to be a good girl.

Her mother was sleeping, in her best clothes, even though everyone was watching. She was in a little boat, with her arms wrapped around a blanket on her chest. The waterbenders stepped up. Master Pakku began singing something in the old tongue that she didn’t understand yet. Yué watched, blinking slowly.

The water rose under the boat. It gently lifted and then began to move away, away from the palace. Into the ocean.

Yué fidgeted. The ocean was dangerous if you weren’t a bender. Everyone said so. Why was this happening?

A lot of people joined in with Master Pakku’s singing. Mama’s boat spun around. And then the water under it began to sink. It hit the level of the water and then it kept going down, down, down, in a gentle spiral. Then the water pulled over on top of her, like a blanket being tucked up at bedtime.

And… then she didn’t see Mama again. Yué looked around at the adult faces, confused and upset and wanting an answer. She jolted in surprise when she looked at the crowd. A lot of them were crying. It was silent, but they were crying.

Horribly, she understood. Grandmother Yugoda had really meant that Mama was never coming back. Something horrible had happened and that thing was death.

It was like her whole brain stuttered. She had an instant of horrible clarity once she had the concept. She understood why everything had been eerie and upsetting when they should have been natural to her.

And then somehow, she saw herself from the outside. She understood her life. She was the only heir to leadership in patrilineal society, and she was going to die the day she turned 15. She would never leave the city. She would never get to have a relationship, to be respected, or even have the freedom to learn things she found interesting.

She went limp. It was too much of a shock for her to cope with. Her bright blue eyes were still focusing on midair and she barely heard her aunt whispering. She was hefted up against Auntie Brinna’s body. She didn’t move, still wrapping her mind around what she somehow knew.

It was stretching out in front of her, grim and somehow true. She knew it, she knew this story, this pathetic little life. When her mother was removed from the equation the similarity was complete.

Her breath was coming too fast. Yué couldn’t calm herself and she heard the adults around her getting loud and worried. She was bundled up and taken to her room. Her father was there soon after, anxiously stroking her hair.

She didn’t tell him what she’d seen. She only clung to him and cried, helpless with anger.

Somehow, she managed to get angrier every year. Asking for anything was like rattling the bars of the cage she lived in. No one would rap her fingers for it, but the disapproval choked her.

“A good girl,” Father said sternly, “doesn't make demands of her teacher.”

She shrunk back, but tried to protest. “I just want to know why those poems are bad. I think it’s fun.”

Chief Arnook let out a long, bemused sigh. “Yué, why don’t you make another pair of boots?” He suggested. “The ones you made for Aunna are so pretty.”

“She only has two feet,” Yué explained, wrinkling her nose. “She doesn’t need more boots.”

She suspected she knew why the short poems were something she was taught about but not meant to linger on. They were Fire Nation in origin. A princess needed to be cultured, but she shouldn’t be too interested in foreign cultures. Some of them, at least.

She didn’t turn out to be a water bender. Yué managed to look in on some of the lessons, citing interest and her future responsibilities to the women of her tribe. They weren’t her friends, exactly, but Ama, Kina, and the other healers and trainees were the only people she talked to outside of the few noblewomen around. She went to the sacred spring for quiet time, meditating on the eternal circling of the great spirits. She didn’t blame them. She knew she was only alive because of the moon spirit’s gift. If it came to what she’d seen, she would give the life back.

‘But I don’t want to die.’ She breathed easily, by now accustomed to pushing down that internal scream. ‘I don’t want to have to do that.’

Life meandered on like that, gray and hopeless in her glittering palace. Yué was the only person unsurprised when a strange animal flew overhead into her city.

It was the most interesting thing to happen within her lifetime, and it was the prelude to her death.

CHAPTER 2

“He’s handsome,” Aunna said under her breath. Her face was turned politely, modestly away, and she was so quiet that the two waterbenders at the back probably couldn’t hear the glee in her voice. “A southern tribesman! I’ve never met one. I heard he’s their Chief’s son.”

Yué nudged her childhood friend in the stomach, where the movement was hidden by her own robes. “Do you want to leave me and become a princess of the south?” She teased. “They don’t have Yaks to ride to your wedding, so maybe the seal-lions can pull you in a sled.”

Aunna hummed. “Well, that is extremely appealing.” she looked up thoughtfully. “It would be nice, but who would take away your migraines?”

“Your grandmother is pretty good at that,” Yué said mildly.

Her friend gave her a long-suffering look. “Grandmother Yugoda needs to rest sometimes. Don’t you prefer my company?”

Yué just hummed back. They were nearly level with the guests now. The tallest one turned and—

Yué felt her heart skip a beat. She adjusted her gaze forward, putting on her pleasant court face.

He was staring at her just as intensely as she wanted to look back. She could feel it.

Aunna was right. The boy was good-looking.

On some level, she resented the thought. She was pretty sure she was supposed to fall in love with him. She didn’t want to follow the script because there was a definite exit for her.

On the other hand…

Yué slipped off into daydreaming, lost in concepts that she’d played with before. If she lived through this, maybe he could save her. Maybe she could get away from this place, like the occasional woman who escaped to the Southern Tribe. Or maybe he and his wild sister could help her change this stagnant place enough that she could live in something other than a birdcage.

Oh.

Yes.

The cage was drawing smaller this week. A lot smaller. She’d been stalling. If she’d wanted to accept, she would already have Hahn’s necklace on her throat. She’d pushed her father to thoroughly consider the other options, but it wouldn’t buy her much more time.

She felt sick. She hadn’t even noticed traveling out of sight of the visitors, drawn into dark thoughts as she was.

Yué’s engagement was being negotiated. She didn’t like either of the contenders. But she had a heavy feeling in the center of her stomach that told her she was going to wind up with the worse option.

Hahn was a braggart, and he’d never asked her a single question that wasn’t some way to solicit praise. She knew why he viewed the world that way. His family was very influential, which made a lot of people feel confident regarding things they personally didn’t accomplish. And he’d distinguished himself from an early age as athletic and energetic, a decisive person. He was apparently the type of man you wanted to have with you when hunting on the ice.

Privately, in her heart of hearts, Yué thought that making decisions about killing animals quickly wasn’t much of a qualification for political leadership.

No one was asking her.

Soomo wasn’t much better than Hahn at thinking about the larger picture, but at least he seemed to hear her when she talked. He’d nearly withdrawn his suit when Hahn put his name in. Yué had given him the slightest reassurance that his family was just as respected as Hahn’s and he had time to accumulate battle-glory, and Soomo had decided to make a necklace to present to her father and the council of elders. Maybe she could live with him.

She grimaced and leaned into Aunna. The older girl glanced down and hummed.

“Princess, how would you like to go to the sacred cove?” Aunna asked quietly.

Yué shook her head. She didn’t need quiet contemplation, she needed a distraction from the grimness of her thoughts. “No, let’s continue,” she said. “Tea sounds very pleasant.”

They arrived at the west side of the city at a speed that a pedestrian could only dream of. Yué had to gently talk down her water bending escorts from bending them up the three flights of stairs in a spiral of ice. She needed to walk sometimes.

The tea shop had an incredible view of the sunset, which was why she’d come. When she arrived the staff genuflected and turned the “open” sign to “closed” to keep out other customers. She stared out the window and pretended she wasn’t stung by the thorough maintenance of her isolation. It was meant as a courtesy, of course, so she didn’t say anything to them. But…

She put her hand on her chin and sighed.

‘Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be a girl in a crowd? To be unnoticed, and to do whatever I want to do?’

“Princess.” Her tea was sat down with a gentle clink. The attendant backed away as the warmth wafting off the tea washed over her face. She breathed it in deeply, closing her eyes to savor the scent of herbs and citrus.

Aunna poured them each a cup. Yué gingerly touched her cup and then drew her fingers back, scalded.

“Hot things are still hot,” Aunna said. “Even in the heart of winter.” Her tone could have been interpreted as contemplative. She was definitely just teasing Yué.

Yué was just a little bit too dignified to stick her tongue out at Aunna. “Maybe they’d seem less hot if drunk in a warmer place,” she mused.

Aunna hummed. “Shall we run away to the Earth Kingdom and find out?” She sipped her tea. “I would look so good in green.”

“So good,” Yué agreed. She leaned onto her palm. “And those elaborate hairstyles- we could find someone to make us look like court portraits. And then we’d go do poetry compositions in a garden.”

“Have handsome men send us letters written on fans.” Aunna stared dreamily into the air.

“They recite poetry to woo lovers, in the Fire Nation,” Yué said quietly. She’d found so many references in the literature that it had to be a thing. “Imagine poems written for you?”

Aunna sighed. “Well…” she looked dissatisfied, and then forced a smile. “Imagine how beautiful your necklace will be!”

Yué hid her mouth behind the tea cup. “Yes,” she murmured. “I’m sure Hahn and Soomo both have something lovely prepared in case their suit is approved by the Council.”

Technically, legally. She had the right to reject a necklace.

Realistically?

They went back to the palace in a subdued mood. They were met at the door.

“Princess Yué,” said one of her Father’s guardsmen. He bowed. “Your Father would like to introduce you to the city’s guests. Please note they will be at dinner.”

She inclined her head and thanked him.

Aunna had to go home for dinner, so they parted at the door to Yue’s quarters.

She dithered, wondering if she should change clothes. Should she be more formal? She settled for changing her earrings and fixing her hair. She felt more confident after checking in her mirror. It was the closest thing to armor she had. If she was utterly pristine and perfect, she was doing things correctly.

She entered the dining room, pausing only a moment to confirm that her arrival had been noted. It was a well-practiced routine for public affairs. She was gliding into the room with perfect timing as her arrival was announced.

Her Father stood and gestured her over. “Yué, come meet the Avatar.”

She kept an even stride only because of hard practice, through the piercing headache that cropped up when she laid eyes on the Avatar up close.

‘Aang,’ she thought. ‘An airbender, who slept a hundred years.’

“This is Avatar Aang,” her father introduced. “Avatar, my daughter, Princess Yué.”

“Hi there!” He was suddenly far too close, grinning broadly. “It’s nice to meet you!”

She averted her gaze and made the correct polite noises.

“And I’m Katara, of the Southern Water Tribe.” The other girl had a very warm, comforting voice. Yué found herself relaxing against her will.

“And I’m Sokka!” The taller boy scrambled into her view, also grinning. “I, uh, I’m a chief’s son. So I guess in a way…” He pretended to polish his nails on his chest. “I’m kind of a prince.”

Katara gave him a look of disbelief. She flushed, obviously embarrassed.

“It’s nice to meet you, Katara and Sokka,” Yué said, a little more warmly than she’d managed for the Avatar. “How are you enjoying our city?”

“It’s beautiful,” Katara gushed. “The engravings in the ice- there’s so many stories!” Her eyes sparkled. “Are you a bender, Princess?”

Yué shook her head. “No, but my friend Aunna is. I’ll introduce you later.”

The southern Tribeswoman smiled with all her teeth. “I’m looking forward to it! I have so much to learn.” Yué blinked, a little stunned by the force of Katara’s beauty when it was directed at her like that.

‘She looks like some of the old families here,’ Yué thought. She smiled back and bowed in acknowledgement. ‘She could be Yuma’s sister.’

If Katara didn’t already have a betrothal necklace on, she would have been fighting off proposals with a stick.

Actually… Yué’s eyes narrowed. Katara noticed the direction of her gaze and put a hand to the necklace.

“It’s lovely,” Yué said, smiling naturally at the other girl.

‘It is very well-made, but it also looks like it’s been worn for a while. The leather strap is not new leather, it looks so soft and comfortable. Either she’s been betrothed since she was an infant, or the Southern Tribes don’t do them the same way we do. Maybe they pass down family heirlooms instead of requiring every man to make his own proposal necklace.”

Katara blushed. “Thank you, it was my grandmother’s.”

“She must have been very loved,” Yué commented. The necklace… that stone was not cheap. Katara’s grandfather must have been richer than most of the nobility in the North.

Katara’s brow furrowed in confusion.

“What are we talking about, we’re talking about jewelry?” Sokka threw his arm over his sister's shoulder. She shoved him off immediately but his mood wasn’t at all sunk. “I don’t know much about jewelry but isn’t it nice? Another thing that’s nice is this dinner, right Katara?” He didn’t wait for her to go on. “What’s your favorite dish here, Princess?”

…the southerners were a little weird, but pleasant, she decided.

“Oh…” Yué glanced down the table, thinking it over. “Probably the caribou stew.”

The Avatar glanced at her and turned a bit green. He pushed the gently steaming bowl a little further away.

Sokka snatched it up and wolfed it down. “Mmmm,” he relished. “I agree with you! This is excellent!”

Despite not wanting to like him, Yué felt a traitorous warmth in her chest. He was sweet, she thought. Guileless. He was clumsily trying to make her like him— but that meant he actually cared if she liked him. He had an impressive title too. He could have just talked to her Father if he was interested in her.

The next morning, Yué met Katara at the door of the diplomatic quarters. The door opened behind her. Without looking, Katara put her hand on her brother’s face and pushed him back inside. “Good morning, Princess,” she sang. “Let’s go!”

Sokka echoed her from the other side of the door, a bit muffled but still enthusiastic.

“Good morning, Katara,” Yué said, eyeing the struggle. Sokka gave a yelp when the door shut on his toe. “Aunna will meet us at the gate. Let’s talk over tea.”

The three girls piled into Yue’s personal boat. Katara fluttered eagerly around the two water bending apprentices who worked in tandem to move the boat along the canal system. They were bemused, but they answered her questions.

Aunna tapped at her chin. “Princess,” she asked quietly. “Do you think Lady Katara is interested in external bending?”

Yué’s mouth dropped open for a moment. “Oh,” she breathed. She watched the other girl, who was copying what the male waterbenders were doing. They seemed extremely flustered at that point, but too professional to protest Yué’s guest. “I think you’re right.”

Her stomach churned. She remembered now. Katara was going to be a battle water bender. She’d go with her brother and the avatar and… a small earth kingdom child? well. She’d go into war zones, and she’d come back alive. Because of what she learned in this city.

Yué felt a spark of pride in her chest.

‘I don’t know how she’s going to get taught. But she will. She must be very persuasive.’

CHAPTER 3

It was a particularly cold morning. Yué regretfully pulled off her waterproof mittens and then the thin, soft gloves underneath. She winced at the air. She was in the living room attached to her personal suite. No one else used the room, so it hadn’t been warmed at all yet for the day.

Her guard eyed this and stood up. “I’ll add a little more fuel.”

“Thank you,” she murmured, not watching as he crossed the room and fed the little fire.

This morning her guard was a big strong man, with multiple weapons. She knew that a water bender could be just as effective but there was something comforting about a big strong bodyguard.

‘Not that one bodyguard will be any good against an invasion. I wonder how long we have. Days? Weeks?’

Yué turned to the door. A second later, there was a knock.

“Princess Yué,” Aunna called cheerfully. “I’m here with the materials!”

At Yué’s nod, the guard let Aunna in. She had a huge basket which she deposited on the central table. She then flitted away to prepare drinks.

Yué tried not to look too glum as she began emptying the basket. There was everything she needed to make her marital wardrobe— buttery leather and fluffy fur, fine smooth silk, cottons and linen, and threads and needles.

The material was specially acquired. Yué was the only living female member of the royal family, so there wasn’t much need for purple fabric.

She liked sewing and she liked clothes. That wasn’t the source of her emotional slump.

‘I can’t possibly get through this thinking of Hahn on every stitch.’

Aunna wasn’t back with the tea yet. Yué got out the sketches she’d made and carefully didn’t glance at the guard.

Odds were very good that he was daydreaming and not paying much attention. Hopefully he wouldn’t be thinking critically about what exactly she was making.

Yué smiled mildly at her friend when Aunna sat beside her. The healer picked up the sketches and checked them over. Yué carefully watched Aunna’s face. They’d talked about this a dozen times at least, but always in the context of a joke. Always “we should run away,” never actually discussing or working on the logistics of that fantasy.

Aunna’s smile faded and she looked solemn and guarded.

It was an effort not to hold her breath. Yué’s heartbeat picked up pace.

“How lovely,” Aunna said, not looking at anything other than the sketch. “Princess, I’ll make myself something like this too!” She inserted cheer into her voice that didn’t show on her face.

Relief washed over her, along with grateful affection for her loyal friend and handmaiden.

Yué hadn’t designed a wardrobe suited for the polar winters. If she didn’t manage to find a way out of here before marrying Hahn, she was going to be awfully cold.

Instead of using the cottons in layers inside furs and leather to make single, warm garments, Yué had designed layers that could be worn as separate garments. The middle-aged spearman overseeing her probably didn’t know enough about clothing to think much of it, if he even paid attention.

Yué laid out a thin purple cotton in the darkest shade and began tracing a shape, using a thread marked with lines at each of her crucial measurements to determine the sizing. Aunna took up a different sketch and spread out on the other end of the large table, doing something similar.

‘If I get out of here, I am not going incognito. I’m probably the only white-haired girl in the world and I’m a princess. If I look the part I can be received and hosted at any court that I can get to.’

Ba Sing Se, perhaps, or Omashu. Any one of the fabulously wealthy merchants or nobles of the Earth kingdom would be thrilled to have a princess as a guest.

To that end, she had thought carefully about how to convey her station without the use of layered furs. Long trains were still essential. She was used to walking in them now, but given that the earth kingdom wouldn’t have pristine ice floors outside, she needed to have a way to keep the trains off the ground when she was outside.

The tension slowly left the room while the teenagers worked. After a few hours her guard gave her a deep, respectful bow, and his shift ended. The next guard was an anxious-looking younger axe man. Yué caught Aunna eyeing his biceps when she put down her work and stretched her hands.

“Bring some fabric for yourself tomorrow,” Yué suggested softly. “You can make that same design in blue.”

“This will take me at least another work day,” Aunna pointed out. “So I’ll finish it first and then make mine.”

Yué nodded approval. “I’ll make stockings next… it always feels better to vary projects.”

“That’s true, I’ll make something small as well. I was thinking about gloves for spring,” Aunna said, “with open fingertips for delicate work.”

Yué hummed. “This dark fabric, with white embroidery?”

Her friend made an appreciative sound. “That will be gorgeous, Princess.”

They worked into the evening, skipping lunch in favor of more tea and some cut fruit with rice cakes. Yué was ravenous by dinner time, when Aunna had to go. They packed their work back up and set the basket underneath the table, ready for tomorrow. They embraced goodbye at the door and Yué locked the door.

She was looking forward to a lively dinner with the guests. She walked into an iciness that took her aback.

Avatar Aang was staring at the tabletop bleakly. His thin shoulders were slumped forward. Sokka was tense, although his tone was friendly while he talked with Parnak, the head of the kitchen.

Katara didn’t look up when Yué entered. She was fidgeting with a length of leather cord, winding it around her fingers nimbly and unwinding it just as fast, in a dizzying pattern that probably correlated to some intricate Southern knot work.

Yué wanted to ask but she thought better of it when she saw the other girl’s face.

Katara’s blue eyes were tired, downcast at the table. The proud posture from the day before was gone. She was taking up less space.

….Yué thought she might know why.

“Good evening, Katara,” she greeted. She avoided her assigned seat next to Sokka, closer to her father, and instead slipped in next to the other girl. “You seem troubled.”

The other tribes woman gave her a wild-eyed look, eyes darting between Yué and the head of the table.

Yué didn’t have to look to know that her father and Master Pakku were in that area. Ah.

“Did you find yourself in the healer’s tent?” Yué asked gently.

Katara nodded cautiously. “Yes, I… I spent the morning and afternoon with Healer Yugoda, learning about the human body.”

“Healer Yugoda is highly regarded,” Yué commented. “Her granddaughter is my handmaiden and companion. I admire her.”

That got a slow nod. “She is impressive,” Katara acknowledged. “She knows so much. It’s just…” she trailed off, looking for a way to express her thoughts without being rude.

Yué hummed. “It isn’t what you expected from water bending training?” She gently led.

The other girl nodded. Katara glanced at Pakku again, this time with a slight scowl.

Yué didn’t have to look around to know that this was the closest to privacy she got. There was no need for a specific bodyguard to watch over her in the crowded dining hall, so no one was deliberately observing her. She kept her expression blandly polite and her tone just as inoffensive when she said, “I understand that in the Southern water tribe, it is tradition for the female benders to learn the martial aspect as well. Is this true?”

“Yes,” Katara said, a little too vehemently to be subtle. She lowered her tone, clearly a little embarrassed by how that had come out. “I… I was surprised that I wasn’t allowed to join in the practice.”

Yué nodded, thinking it over. “It is the tradition of the Northern tribe to train women as healers and men as warriors,” she said. She had to speak a little quickly to cut off whatever Katara was going to say with a scowl. “This is of course intended to ensure our culture is preserved. I wonder if there’s ever been a case before where stepping outside that norm of behavior would not result in a violation of the order the common sense practice ensures.”

Katara stared. “I don’t understand.”

“We don’t teach water bending to women not because teaching it is inherently wrong, but because it’s wrong for women in this tribe to be warriors,” Yué explained patiently. “Perhaps an exception to our custom can be arranged, given that it won’t lead to a violation of our cultural norm. We are aware that in the South, things are different. Would you like me to ask my father about this?”

“Yes!” Katara said, far too loudly.

Yué felt eyes turn to them. “Will you join the healing classes again tomorrow?” She asked, deliberately casual.

Katara flushed a deep red and squirmed down in her seat. She went with the conversation change. “Yes, I will. It’s not what I expected to learn but it’s very valuable and important knowledge.”

Yué smiled. “I am happy that you appreciate what Healer Yugoda has to teach you. In that case, I’ll let you be.”

“Huh?” Katara tilted her head a little.

“I was going to extend an invitation tomorrow, if you were free,” Yué explained.

Sokka emerged from absolutely nowhere to throw an arm over his sister’s shoulder. “An invitation!” He exclaimed cheerfully. “That sounds wonderful, Princess Yué, where are we going?”

She eyed him, and saw her father looking over with a frown. Pakku was outright scowling at the teenager. As she watched, the elderly master rose and left the table.

‘He has no idea how inappropriate he’s being. I wonder if the seating arrangement will be altered tomorrow.’

Yué closed her eyes and hid the smile that tried to come out. “Oh, I was going to invite Katara to join me in sewing tomorrow,” she explained. “It’s nothing that you’d be interested in, I’m sure.”

“Oh.” He slumped a little, and then straightened. “Not that sewing and women’s work aren’t interesting! Men can do them- well, I can’t do it,” he said to himself. Sokka frowned. “But that’s not what I mean you know?”

She did not know what he meant. She gave him a polite smile.

“Daughter.”

She automatically rose and gave the guests a bow, including the Avatar. He still looked miserable and distracted.

Her Father had arranged for an open chair. Yué slid into it and accepted the hand towel the server offered to her. “Good evening, Father,” she said quietly.

He smiled at her, affection making the lines of his face soft. “I have good news, Yué.”

She blinked up at him, waiting. She had a rock sitting in her stomach.

Her father leaned in close to whisper in her ear. “Keep an eye out for a necklace. We reached an agreement today.”

It took every ounce of discipline in her body to keep her expression pleasant. She stared at her Father a little too long. She didn’t have any words.

His smile slipped when she didn’t thank him. “Yué,” he said, quiet and disappointed. “Be practical.”

She nodded twice and avoided looking at him. She should take advantage of the time alone to advocate for Katara but there was a lump in her throat. “I don’t feel well,” she managed. “Excuse me.”

Without waiting to be dismissed Yué stood and left the room. She heard a small commotion as the guards hashed out who would follow her. She felt a twinge of regret that her actions would deprive someone of his dinner but she didn’t turn around. She went straight to her suite and locked the door. The guard would have to stand outside all evening in the hallway.

She could have studied or gone to bed. Instead, she drew out her vanity drawers and brought them to the table, along with her jewelry box. She worked late into the night, sewing valuable beads onto her clothing as decoration and hiding gold and pearls in the seams. She put everything away before bed, careful to ensure no one would see anything unusual. She would be taking the full wealth of her position with her when she left, or as close to it as possible.

She felt more certain in her decision now.

Living as a perpetual child in her own home was only slightly better than dying to save the moon. There was less dignity in it, certainly. The thought of being the voiceless wife of Hahn, duty bound to birth his children… it made her want to scream and cry and hit her pillow. She stared up at her ceiling with dry eyes and anger curling in her stomach. There would be no escape from that if she didn’t get out, it would never improve. Hahn didn’t respect her or even like her as a person. He knew enough to look at her face but she wasn’t foolish enough to think this was a romance for him. She was an attractive body that had financial and status perks he could enjoy. That was all.

She wouldn’t. She’d rather die. She admitted that to herself in the darkness and privacy of her own room. Now that it loomed, she thought she’d rather die in the invasion to save the moon than live like that.

#atla #avatar fanfiction #avatar the last airbender #princess yue #electrasev5n #electraposts #electra belle

1 note · View note