Chapter Text
303 BG.
Ji-Won sat underneath the lonely canopy of her makeshift shelter as the rain hammered down on the old planks of wood above her head. A couple droplets managed to seep through the cracks and gaps, dripping onto her matted black hair. She had been meaning to find a way to bathe herself for the past few days anyway.
Somehow, the rain seemed befitting. She recalled hearing from the villagers that the day marked the ninth anniversary since Avatar Kuruk’s death, and the ninth year the new Avatar had failed to be located by his former companions in the Earth Kingdom. Even at the young age of eight, she could tell tension and fear was rising amongst the people of the Fire Nation, as rumours of the world becoming too impure and the rise of the lawless quickly spread through the nation.
Despite the depressing day and lingering feeling of doom in the air however, Ji-Won was glad. It meant everyone was so caught up in talking about the Avatar that their attentions were not drawn to her when she went to steal food from the market stalls. Before her laid a humble feast of a few slices of dried fish, a handful of lychee nuts and her favourite - a small cup of peach fire gummies. It was the best she had eaten for a while now.
Thunder had started to roll in, as the distant rumbling began to move closer and closer to the island. With the speeds of the winds, and her proximity to the rocky highlands, Ji-Won should have probably been quite scared of a piece of roof tile, or rock coming loose and falling on her. Perhaps she would have if she were in any other city, but it wasn’t a worry in Hari Bulkan. All the houses were sturdier than even the walls of Ba Sing Se, given they housed the Fire Nation’s wealthiest and most important nobles. Even the alleys where she would often make her shelters provided plenty of protection from the winds and other elements. The only downside was that people like her were few and far between, and therefore stuck out like a sore thumb.
Before she had the chance to finish the last of her sweets, sets of heavy footsteps sounded along the wet stone pathway just ahead. Great, she thought, shimmying herself out of her shelter so she could stand upright, the rain now falling full force down onto her and soaking her rags. It was just her luck that the soldiers decided to patrol this side of town for curfew checks. She needed to move before someone spotted her.
But as soon as the thought crossed her mind, a shadow emerged at one end of the alley, as her eyes met with a Fire Nation soldier, staring directly at her. Both parties seemed to be initially caught off guard, not expecting to run into the other. Ji-Won didn’t linger however, as she immediately made a dash for the other end of the alley.
She could hear the soldier calling out behind for her to halt, but there was no way she was doing that. The city was considered a sanctuary for only the elite of the Fire Nation. Not open to commoners, let alone strays like herself. Whilst she wasn’t exactly certain what would happen to her if she got caught, she certainly didn’t want to stick around to find out. Worst case scenario would be execution for daring to step foot in such a prestigious city, and the least worst case scenario would be getting locked up in the nearest prison – which was only the most well protected prison in the whole of the Fire Nation.
One pair of footsteps turned into several, as she turned back to spot three soldiers in total chasing after her. Ji-Won’s eyes widened at the sight of the fully grown and armoured men chasing her, heart pounding in her chest. This was a bit excessive for trying to capture a child.
The cold air stung her nose and lungs, as her rapid breathing sent puffs of vapour into the air. The rain didn’t help either, as the stone path was slippery underneath her worn out shoes. Her only choice was to hide.
The Royal Academy for Girls stood on the top of the nearby mountainside, towering over the nearby buildings like a giant walking amongst humans. Ji-Won clambered up the stone stairs, mind and body racing as the only thing she could think about was escaping the ones chasing after her. Maybe there was a bush or a large rock to hide behind… or anything?!
Reaching the top, she saw the soldiers had managed to close the gap slightly and were just a few several steps behind her. The tall entrance doors to the school were most certainly locked, with towering columns holding up a sheltering roof just above. Panicking, Ji-Won tore her shoes off and jumped up onto one of the columns, wrapping her arms and legs tightly around and frantically climbing up the red wooden structure like the most inelegant of frog squirrels.
She was almost ten feet above the ground by the time the soldiers reached her, toes and fingers desperately gripping onto the column for dear life as they yelled up at her to come down and trying to climb up after her, but sliding down with a squeak from their wet and slippery shoes.
As she reached the top, she carefully manoeuvred herself, hands shaking fiercely, as she pulled herself up onto the rooftop. The rain continued to hammer down onto the terracotta tiles as she walked across, the wind flailing her hair all over the place as she looked down into the courtyard of the school. To say the school was breathtaking was an understatement. Even with the chaotic weather, the vast courtyard seemed almost tranquil in a way. The trees swayed rather than thrashed in the winds, pathways glistened rather than were drowned in the rain, and the grass danced as if it were just a gentle breeze passing through.
Cautiously walking on the roof of the wall that surrounded the perimeter, she had found herself climbing up to the main building all the way at the very end of the courtyard until she was eventually able to find a point where she could safely drop down. Though Ji-Won was out of immediate danger, her heart still drummed, as a different kind of fear started to creep up. It was a fear she was much more familiar with. The fear of being noticed.
She figured if she could find a place to hide until the soldiers left and the storm passed, she’d be as good as gold. The only issue with that plan was that she had no clue how to navigate around the white walled maze in front of her. Many of the large windows of the building illuminated light, considering it wasn’t too late in the night yet, so to help gather her surroundings and to see just how crowded the building was, she decided to peek through one of the windows.
The room was brightly lit with warm lamps. The floors were pale green, with brown wooden panelled walls. There were all sorts of straw dummies, and picture scrolls hanging from the wall, indicating it was some sort of training room. It wasn’t an empty room either. There was a young girl in a red tunic and trousers, probably around the same age as Ji-Won, holding a horse stance with her determined eyes fixed ahead. Standing to her was an older woman in a long an elegant robe, with pointy armour sitting atop her shoulders. The girl was the spitting image of the woman, telling Ji-Won they must surely be related in some way. The sound from inside the room was slightly muffled, but she could make out the woman telling the girl to stand strong and watch her posture, all whilst staring at the girl’s form with a harsh scrutiny.
Suddenly, a woman who looked like a servant entered the room, telling the other woman something that Ji-Won couldn’t quite make out. The robed woman’s face turned to that of concern, as she turned to the child and told her to continue her training before following the servant out of the room.
The girl seemed confused, turning her head towards the window, to which Ji-Won hastily swerved her head out of sight in a panic, pressing her back firmly against the white wall. It was only then she saw who had just entered through the doors on the other side of the campus. The soldiers who had been chasing her.
With a loud thud of doors swinging open, Ji-Won noticed the robed woman leaving the building under a parasol, heading in the direction of the soldiers. It seemed they were meeting under a gazebo located next to the wall. Ji-Won figured it would be best to stay put until the soldiers had left, but at the same time, she needed to know if anyone had noticed her break-in and if they were about to report her. As her mind spiralled with all sorts of possibilities, she eventually chose to go against her better judgement and follow to listen to their conversation. Just in case.
Thankfully both the wind and rain had died down by the time she reached the section of the wall next to the gazebo. She laid flat on her stomach, able to peer just over the edge of the roof, as she watched the mysterious woman and soldiers chat underneath.
“Apologies to disturb you at this hour, Headmistress Hei-Ran, but we believe someone has infiltrated the walls of this school,” one of the soldiers said in a gruff voice, “No one would have happened to have seen her, have they? A short girl, no older than ten, torn clothes and no shoes.”
“I can’t say I’ve heard any reports of a young girl running about,” the headmistress replied, “Why are you after her in the first place?”
“You know the law on peasants in Hari Bulkan, headmistress,” another soldier replied, “Their presence is forbidden. We are required to detain her and hold her in custody.”
“And yet, even with three of you, you’ve lost her?” Hei-Ran said with a judgemental disappointment.
“Well… uh-“ the soldier stammered, unable to provide an answer without bringing shame to the three.
“I will keep an eye out,” Hei-Ran finally added after a long pause, sparing them of embarrassment, “But it is likely she is long gone from these walls by now.”
The three soldiers gave Hei-Ran a salute, to which the headmistress gave them a nod, before dismissing them and heading back the way from which she came. Ji-Won let out a silent sigh of relief, as she watched the soldiers hurriedly leave with their tails between their legs, as a servant saw them out and closed the gates behind them.
Making her way back over to the main building, her feet firmly planted themselves back onto the balcony area, as it overlooked the pathway in which the headmistress had walked to head back inside. It had been around a minute since she entered back into the building, so Ji-Won figured it was probably safe to drop down to the ground level. But as she dropped down, her golden hazel eyes were immediately met with a small ball of fire crackling within the palm of the same woman who she thought was gone.
She looked up at her with widened eyes, as the intimidating woman stared down at her. The sharp pin sticking out of her topknot and spiked shoulder plates gave her the silhouette of some terrifying monster, as the small ball of fire gently illuminated her equally sharp features. Ji-Won found she couldn’t move. Stuck in place like some sort of spell had taken her ability to run.
“So that was where you were hiding,” Hei-Ran said, raising a brow.
The walk to the headmistress’ office felt like that of a life sentence, as the two had weaved through what seemed like a series of endless corridors and stairs. But eventually, she had found herself standing in front of the woman’s desk, feeling utterly feeble and small in front of the tall woman as she continued to look down at her.
“What is your name, child?” Hei-Ran asked calmly.
The woman seemed neither angry nor upset, but regardless, Ji-Won found herself unable to even make eye contact, as her legs felt like they were about to give way any second. “J-Ji-Won, madam,” she stuttered, trying her best to not let her fear show, but completely failing at hiding the wobble in her voice.
“And how old are you, Ji-Won?”
“Eight, madam.”
Hei-Ran’s brows raised, as her eyes softened slightly, “That’s just a year younger than my own daughter, Rangi,” she commented, still keeping her eyes fixated in the trembling girl. “Tell me, how exactly did you manage to infiltrate the walls of this school?”
At that point, Ji-Won accepted her assumed fate. She was going to be handed over to the police and imprisoned for life. Dropping down to her knees, she pressed her hands firmly on the floor, head pressed against the back of them as she bowed for forgiveness in front of the headmistress. Water dripped off her clothes and hair, pooling around her slightly. She had seen servants do it to their masters whenever they made a mistake and would beg for forgiveness, so the gesture had to count for something, right? “Please, forgive me!” she begged through stifled sobs, “They were chasing me and I was trying to escape! I climbed to the roof to hide and… and-!”
Suddenly, she felt something gentle and warm press against the small of her back. Daring to look up, she saw the headmistress kneeling down next to her, her soft hand placed on her. Though still intimidating, her features had noticeably softened. Hei-Ran’s expression remained calm, as she noticed a red mark already forming on Ji-Won’s forehead from her bow and her watery eyes.
Hei-Ran was never angry from the beginning. A little startled by the fact such a young girl had so easily broken into the Royal Academy perhaps, but she also noticed the skinny, sunken in features of the girl ever since she realised the girl was lurking in on her conversation on the rooftop. Though the girl’s skin was slightly tanner, and eyes closer to a gold than a bronze, she reminded Hei-Ran a little of her own daughter. “Do you not have a home to go back to, Ji-Won?” she asked gently.
Ji-Won bit the inside of her cheeks, shaking her head. “I live on the streets,” she said, voice still slightly shaking, “My parents were merchants in Jonduri, but couldn’t afford the costs to live there, so they tried to sell me, and I ran away.”
It was only just over two years ago since Ji-Won’s parents had tried selling her to anyone rich enough to make a decent offer. They had initially moved to Jonduri in hopes of a better life, but unfortunately, misfortunes and debt seemed to follow them wherever they went. The place they had lived in quickly became unaffordable, as the city tried to drive the common folk out of the area for expansion of noble residences. Her parents couldn’t keep up. They had sent their daughter out into the city on multiple occasions to steal food for the family, but that didn’t save them from the debts slowly starting to drown them. In a final attempt to keep themselves afloat, they sold Ji-Won to a servant merchant at the harbour headed for Hari Bulkan, under the guise that they were going on a family trip.
Even at the age of six, Ji-Won knew what had happened as soon as the boat had set sail and her parents were nowhere to be found. She had been abandoned. Traded like a disposable trinket for a few silver coins. After the merchant had been allowed through the gates of Hari Bulkan, Ji-Won made her escape and had been fending for herself since.
Hei-Ran’s lips narrowed upon hearing this. Not angry at the girl, but her parents. Sacrificing one’s own child during times of trouble was the most cowardly and dishonourable of acts. She could only hope that when their time came, just like with herself and everyone else, the spirits would judge them accordingly.
Letting out a quiet sigh, Hei-Ran got up to her feet. “Would you like the opportunity to make an honest living for yourself, Ji-Won?” she asked, to which the girl quickly nodded her head. The headmistress smiled, extending her hand out to her. “Then come child,” she said, waiting for the girl to hesitantly take her hand and stand, “Allow me to introduce you to Auntie Yuna."