Corporal Yin He Zhong

[ituha]

(Notes/Warning: Wellp, I've finally finished her, yes. The profile is massively huge, I'm sorry about that, potential reviewer, but I was encouraged by folks to go all out.. so I did. If it really is too long, I may be able to shorten it some if need be. Also here is a link to a Map that shows the towns I created for Yin's background)

Name: Yin He Zhong – Yin, for short

Age: 24

Gender: Female

Group: Fire Nation Military (Domestic Forces / “Home Guard”), Rank of Corporal

Nation: Fire Nation

Bender?: Yes? Firebender

Physical Appearance: Trimmed, toned and conditioned, Yin He blends in easily amongst most of the “Home Guard’s” other female soldiers, though; she does stand a bit taller than average, her eye level at her comrades’ foreheads. This doesn’t necessarily mean she possesses a commanding presence, however. At a little over five feet, six inches in height and weighing about one hundred and fifty eight pounds, Yin may seem a bit intimidating, but this does not reflect her true nature in most cases.

Her skin color is typical of Fire Nation citizenry, being quite fair. Despite spending a great deal of time outdoors, from early in her childhood to the current day, she has never been able to develop a real tan. Instead, it seems she always sports a pinkish glow upon her forehead, nose, ears and the upper parts of her cheeks as well as on the portions of her arms not covered by her uniform. This near constant state of minor sunburn has simply become one more thing Yin He must deal with daily and, though she has sought reassignment to evening and even night patrols, she doesn’t complain when sent out during the hottest parts of the day. Like any active person, she does possess various scars and nicks and the like, a few burns that never completely healed as well, leaving the skin glossy. Though here is nothing out of the ordinary or particularly interesting about these marks.

Being rather tall and in good physical shape, Yin seems to have a long, yet strong figure. Her arms and legs are well toned, not particularly thin though. One could tell that she is, perhaps, a little over average weight as well. She appears to have a sturdy frame, her shoulders broader than most women, with little curve to her hips and middle or much of a rump, for that matter. Giving her a rather masculine appearance over all – something she isn’t particularly pleased with.

It could be assumed that most of Yin’s strength would be in her long legs, though she posses fair upper-body and arm strength as well, the result of her training and a regular daily exercise routine that she sticks to. Despite having a “less than ideal” figure, Yin possesses a respectable bust, a feature she’s proud of. She also seems quite pleased with her nails, keeping them cut short, but well manicured, often using her whittling knife to clean them of dirt and the like. This level of care is repeated when it comes to her toenails as well, though it’s not likely that she would take off her boots and begin filing down her toenails in public.

If one were to observe Yin carefully, however, they might notice two relatively unique things about her. First off, unlike the majority of the population, Yin is left-handed, a fact that caused her some difficulty with her calligraphy writing lessons in school. As conformity is typically held highly in the Fire Nation school system, an altered teaching method wasn’t always available. Additionally, Yin is Splayfooted or “Turtle Duck Footed”, meaning her feet turn outward when she stands and walks, as opposed to one who might be “Pigeonrat Toed”. With her splayfeet, Yin had some minor difficulty following standard stance practices in training, but managed to adapt her techniques to accommodate this personal quirk.

Yin’s face could be described as similar in shape to an inverted triangle, though flat fronted, with rather undefined cheek bones and slightly rounded cheeks. Her nose is a bit large, rounded at the tip and upon close examination; one may notice a slight crook in the bridge of her nose, indicating that it may have been broken at some point in the past. Her lips are somewhat plump, though lack color, they are often chapped as well, sometimes to the point where they bleed slightly, likely from long hours spent on patrol in the hot sun. It is fairly rare to actually see her smile, though not unheard of, her face, in general, maintains a flat, rather bored look.

Yin’s eyes seem to be a bit spaced out, a golden-brown in color, lacking the striking quality eyes of pure gold posses, purity often associated with the nobility and royalty. Her eyes seem to stay in a constant half-lidded gaze, whether she’s honestly bored or tired one couldn’t easily determine. Though, when she’s interested in something or focused on a task, she tends to act livelier. Above her eyes arc rather thick, jet black eyebrows and, though it’s clear she plucks strays to keep them even, she hasn’t thinned them down to the typical look often sought after by most women.

The crowning feature of Yin’s person would be her thick, wavy, deep brunette hair. To most, it would likely appear black, but in the correct light it is revealed to be a very dark brown, though the color and luster often change a bit depending on how long ago it was washed. Yin does take her personal hygiene seriously, washing her hair at least once a day when possible and bathing at least once every three days. When freshly washed, her hair appears shiny, healthy and the color seems rich and vibrant, after a day’s worth of patrolling, however, it becomes matted, shiny – with grease, and the color becomes dull looking.

Yin’s hair is quite long, coming down to about the middle of her back when brushed back. Due to its length, she has two main styles that she is often seen sporting with it. The first is simply the standard style that most all female soldiers wear, hair pulled back, over the shoulders and held out of the face by the headband and the Happuri style armored forehead guard. Though, in Yin’s case, her bangs partially hang over the forehead guard or stick out from beneath it a bit in the front and at the sides. At the back of her head, a good portion of her hair is put up in a low ponytail, held in place by a thin red hair band. The ponytail hangs down, over the rear of the headband, ending just below her collar, while the rest of her hair is held down by the back of the headband and hangs down to about mid-back.

The second hairstyle Yin tends to wear is similar, but without the Happuri, her bangs are allowed to hang down. She also puts some of her hair up in a small, thick, upside down triangular shaped top-knot, held in place by the same red band that she uses for her ponytail when in uniform. She tends to wear her hair in this style only when out of uniform, which is rather rare.

Clothing/Armor: Yin He really possesses only two complete outfits, the first being her armor and uniform and the second, a civilian outfit worn when off duty or when a uniform would not be quite formal enough for some occasion that may arise. Her financial situation leaves her with little money to throw around when it comes to fashion and the like, but she tries to, at the very least, appear presentable.

Beside the two complete outfits, she has a few other articles of clothing that can be switched out with portions of her civie attire to either vary the look or just to be used as replacements for certain pieces if she must wear the outfit for more than one day. The same goes for her uniform, most of it is standard issue, but she posses a few extras of the non-armored pieces that can be switched out for equivalent pieces, allowing her to always have on a relative clean uniform day by day.

Of course, one would most likely see Yin He in uniform patrolling the streets of whatever city she might find herself deployed in. The uniform and its armored components are typical of the Domestic Force’s Firebending troops, designed for mobility and adapted for the hotter weather of the Fire Nation. Though, to provide a cooler more comfortable outfit, the uniform sacrifices a few levels of protection that are present in the gear worn by frontline forces deployed overseas.

Light by most standards, the first layer of Yin’s uniform really begins with regularly washed white linen cloth chest wrappings, bound tightly enough to keep things in place, but not too tightly as to become uncomfortable. She also wears a simple pair of linen underwear and a pair of light, cream colored socks. The socks strike a balance; they’re light enough to allow her feet to “breathe” while also retaining softness enough to keep her boots from wearing on her legs and feet.

The second and main layer of Yin’s uniform consists of a dark charcoal gray short sleeveless top. The top is standard issue for the uniform; it is collarless and also leaves the midriff bare. It is made from a rather thick looking cloth but the way the material is woven it allows the top decent breathability. Despite this, it is not uncommon to spot darkened patches upon the fabric beneath Yin’s underarms after she has spent the day out in the sun.

Along with the top, Yin wears a pair of black shorts, hemmed with bands of elastic burgundy material that cinch them to her legs just above each knee. A similar band of burgundy fabric makes up the waistband for the shorts as well. Over the shorts, she wears something akin to a short, baggy half-skirt, a dark charcoal gray in color, matching the top. The half-skirt wraps around fully behind her, but in the front it’s split up the middle and wraps in around her legs, it is just slightly shorter than her shorts, allowing the burgundy bands to be visible from the front.

Worn over the shorts and over the half-skirt, to keep it in place, she wears a cloth garment that wraps around her waist. Held in place by a built in black leather belt, the garment is V shaped at the front and back, the front “flap” portion hangs down over Yin’s pelvic region, while the rear flap hangs down over her bottom. The V shaped “flaps” are black overall with burgundy hemming along the Vs’ leading edges. Additionally, hanging down from beneath the V “flaps”, two longer, but thinner, cloth flaps hang down in the front and back, the tip of each reaching just below her knees. The longer flaps are a burgundy overall with cardinal trim.

Worn low on her hips, around the cloth garment, Yin wears a thin, black leather belt around her waist. This belt is designed to hold her Tonfa baton, attached by a strap, while sitting low enough as to not rub against her bare midriff. The baton isn’t the only thing she hangs from the belt, occasionally she’ll be seen with a pair of light handcuffs dangling from it and nearly always, a small coin pouch as well. She also tends to attach a small canteen onto the leather belt from time to time, especially on particularly hot or humid days.

The canteen is built light, made of tin with a small screw-on cap at the top and a metal loop sticking up along one side to which she ties a bit of leather strip in order to secure it to the belt around her waist. Though the canteen is quite small and can become a nuisance when Yin must run or jog, as it tends to bounce against her thigh, it proves to be worth its weight in gold when there aren’t any sort of public fountains or water sources around.

Moving down, Yin wears a pair of standard issue semi-armored boots. The boots are made of leather and cloth, primarily bistre in color, with dull golden colored soles and the up-turned toes typical of Fire Nation style. The thick cloth comes up to about mid-shin, but worn over the fronts of the boots from just below the ankles, slightly over the tops of her feet, to mid-shin, Yin also wears armored shin-guard plates. The plates cover only the front of the shins and ankles, but are thick enough to take a strike from a blade or other weapon. They are held in place by a strap that circles the foot from the base of the plate as well as by another similar strap that runs around the calf and is tied in the back to hold the plates against the shins tightly.

Upon her arms, Yin wears a few more armored pieces, strategically placed upon her forearms to facilitate blocking attacks from all manner of weapons. She wears cloth sleeves beneath these iron vambraces, however, to prevent the metal itself from rubbing against her skin. The sleeves are a cardinal in color and reach from just below the elbow joints to the wrists, with a small triangular flap of fabric extending out over the top of the hand, the flap edges are hemmed with golden colored fabric.

Yin then wears the vambraces, which are a dark charcoal gray, over the sleeves to hold them in place. The vambraces reach from just below the edge of the sleeves to the wrists; the bands at the wrists are trimmed with gold, or a metal with a similar appearance, Yin isn’t quite certain if the metal is actually gold or not, though she doubts it.

The next portion of Yin’s uniform is clearly the most heavily armored. Worn over her shoulders, she sports the trademark shoulder guard cover of the Domestic Force’s Firebenders. The armor covers her shoulders completely, angling down in the front and back, in a V shape. The front bit partially covers her chest, while the V in the back covers to the same degree, the edges of the plate angle downward slightly over the tops of her arms as well. The metal portion of the plate guard is a solid black, but affixed beneath it and hanging down from the edges, it seems a golden colored leather strip has been attached. The leather strip prevents the metal portion from digging into the sides of Yin’s arms which could potentially limit their movement.

Along the leading edge of the shoulder guard, in the front and back at either side of the V shaped portion, two circular notches are cut out of both the leather piece and the iron portion; they are likely just for decorative purposes. The shoulder guard has a wide iron collar, cardinal in color with golden trim and a strip of soft golden colored leather around the inside to protect the neck from abrasion.

Worn around her neck, Yin keeps a small metal whistle. The “Pea” whistle is used to alert other soldiers and just generally call attention in an emergency situation, occasionally used in the dark or when visibility is low, as a sound source to guide people, be they citizens running from danger or Yin’s own troops. With a very shrill sound, the whistle can be heard over a long distance or over other sound sources providing a clear alert to those in the area. Typically worn on a very thin iron chain, Yin has found the whistle to be a useful addition to her patrol gear.

The final piece of Yin’s uniform and armor would be her Happuri style headband and face guard. The guard doubles as both a form of protection for the head as well as a way to keep the sweat and hair out of her eyes. Though, it seems her hair finds ways to get over or under the forehead guard at times. It is primarily a burgundy cloth band that is wrapped around her head and tied at the back to keep it tight. Along the front of the band, curving around the front of her head, a metal plate has been affixed. The plate is iron with black, red and golden decorative engraving upon it, a small triangular bit angles up at the very center as well. The decorative pattern is different than most, denoting her rank as a Corporal.

Also attached to the front plate, but hanging down at the very edges, are two more iron pieces designed to protect the sides of Yin’s face. Each side plate has similar gold and black engraving with a notch cut out of the back to accommodate her ears. The plates reach down to the sides of her face, ending at the sides of the jaw. Just how much protection the Happuri would actually provide, Yin isn’t quite sure, but she does understand the secondary benefits of wearing it.

Yin’s civilian/formal outfit begins in much the same way as her uniform, the same undergarments and socks, though she would not use the exact same underclothing after a day at work if she were to change into her other outfit. Instead she would likely find some clean things to wear beneath her civie attire.

The outfit is layered as one would expect in Fire Nation fashion, the first layer consisting of a sleeveless white linen top. The top is collarless and works as an undershirt worn over her chest wrappings and beneath the second layer. Though it’s not really underclothing, Yin’s pants could be considered part of the first real layer as well. The pants are somewhat baggy about the ankles, made from a Beige colored fabric, they are held up by a simple white sash at the waist, though very little of the pants are actually visible when worn with the rest of the outfit.

The next layer consists of a long sleeved shirt with a rigid collar; it is puce in color, overall, with rich carmine hemming around the collar portion and the lapel seams. Though a lighter shirt might be cooler, Yin wears this longer sleeved one to protect her skin from the sun, since her uniform provides little protection for the arms. The long sleeves of the shirt reach to Yin’s wrists and are then bound beneath burgundy arm wraps, extending from about mid-forearm to the wrist, with a triangular flap of fabric extending out over the top of the hand. The end of the shirt tucks beneath the same white sash she wears around her waist.

Over the shirt and covering most of the pants, she wears a robe-like garment that she pulls over her head and down into place. The garment is sleeveless and has a low, wide collar that allows the rigid collar of her long sleeved puce shirt to stick up through it. Cardinal in color overall, the dress/skirt like portion extends down to about mid-shin with slits up the sides of each leg to about mid-thigh, a rounded hem at the bottom in front and back. The hem that runs along the bottom of the dress part and upon along the silts is burgundy in color with small flame shapes embroidered at the corners, also burgundy.

Wrapped around her middle, Yin wears a falu pink waist sash over the pull-on robe-like garment. It is bound relatively tightly, the two ends, once tied together, tend to hang down over the back of the robe garment. Because the sash is quite long, and must be wrapped several times before being tied off, Yin likes to keep her personal possessions in the folds of the sash. Typically her whittling knife and tools in their little case and a small pouch containing coins, identification papers, as well as her room key for the apartment she stays in, all tucked into the sash where she feels they are safe.

Worn over her shoulders in a similar manner to the armored shoulder guard plate she wears with her uniform, Yin sports a burgundy shoulder cover shawl-like garment. The cover fits easily around the collar of her long-sleeved shirt, the neck hole wide enough to fit her head through when donning it. It angles over her chest slightly and does similarly over her back, rounded at the ends. At the tips, the cover comes to a sharper point just over the ends of her shoulders and, unlike the armored piece; it does not curve down slightly over her arms.

Upon her feet, Yin wears a pair of slipper-like shoes, a seal brown in color, though noticeably scuffed in places, showing their age. The shoes are made of light leather and have the classic up-turned toes, exposing the dark tan of the soles. Though they do not come up high on her ankles, Yin still manages to tuck the bottom hem of her pant legs into the shoes to keep them from dragging on the ground.

With a close look, it becomes apparent that Yin He wears no jewelry whatsoever. No necklace around her neck, no bracelets or bangles upon her wrists, her ears are not pierced and no rings grace her fingers. Simply put, Yin never had any interest in sporting jewelry, nor could she ever really afford it.

There is one last piece of clothing Yin wears in her daily life, a simple bath/sleeping robe she tends to slip into after a bath or just after she returns home to her apartment. The robe is made of a very light material, primarily tea rose in color with cerise hemming and a waist sash of the same color. Because Yin only wears this robe when in the privacy of her home, and often with nothing else worn under it, it would be rather unlikely that anyone would really see her wearing it.

Weapons: Being a soldier, Yin He has reached a relatively high level of skill when it comes to combat, thanks to Secondary School, basic training and continued practice over her last four and a half years of service. As denoted by her armor, she’s clearly a Firebender and as such, bending would be her primary weapon.

Having discovered this ability at a young age, she would likely have become exceptionally skilled quickly, if not for her remote location – the interior of the Fire Nation’s main island. Due to living out on such a remote farm, Yin was not able to attend formal training until she reached her teen years. Even later on, she would not get the opportunity to join one of the nation’s formal Firebending academies, as her family was unable to afford even a fraction of the tuition.

From the time of her discovery to the first days of Secondary School, Yin often practiced the basics alone. As her interest in bending grew, she borrowed scrolls and books on different techniques to add to her routine. From this practice, Yin developed a strong sense of the basic and intermediary moves and stances, giving her a solid framework to build upon once she started to take formal lessons at school and then, later, into basic training. It did, however, have some negative effects though, as she was not supervised or instructed by a master or, at least, a skilled bender, she developed some bad habits as well.

When she reached Secondary School, she got the chance to take courses in Firebending with real teachers, allowing her to rapidly pick up more advanced concepts. Following Secondary school and her enlistment in the military, Yin received further training and instruction in the more powerful and offensive moves associated with her element.

Preferring a more balanced technique then what is traditionally taught to soldiers, Yin enjoys more versatility in her bending, possessing the classic rapid fire punches and kicks, producing searing and concussive blasts of flame as well as arcs and rings and a few other forms. Along with the usual abilities, she’s found her specific style to be more accommodating to defensive measures as well, making full use of her vambraces and other armor to block attacks and the like. She is also capable of blocking or dissipating various Firebending attacks and water-based ones as well, though to what degree, she is uncertain.

At present, she takes considerable pride in her abilities, and has attained recognition as a skilled bender, practicing and sparring with the other Firebenders in her unit to further improve her skills. If she continues on her current path or were to seek out a master trainer, either on her own or through the military, she might, herself, attain the tile of “Master Firebender” in time.

Besides her bending, Yin also possesses a secondary, less lethal, weapon as well. Called a Tonfa of Tong Fa baton, the wooden weapon is usually carried attached to a leather strap hung from her belt, when in uniform, or occasionally just held in her hand, idly spun by its handle. Constructed from one-hundred percent Ebony Hardwood imported from the Igni Islands, the main or horizontal portion of the baton is about twenty inches in length, the wood is smooth and highly polished.

The horizontal portion is slightly thinner at the tips and thickens at a point about three fifths of the way up its length when held properly. A handle, about six inches long, made of the same hardwood, extends up from the thickened part vertically, providing a handle to grasp or a sort of hook when the baton is held differently.

Yin was given the Tonfa baton as a gift from her squad mates some time after her basic training was complete. She had been in search of a less than lethal secondary weapon and once she had it, she sought out one of her comrades who had some experience with the weapon and requested training. With the help of the other soldier, she quickly learned the various techniques associated with her new weapon. Finding it to be exceptionally versatile, Yin began to carry it on patrols and the like where it soon proved its usefulness in taking down and controlling those who might resist the law.

Recently, Yin has tired wielding the Tonfa while Firebending, slowly working it into her moves and such, though she tends to use it in her off-, or right hand, while using it in conjunction with her bending. Whether using her Firebending, her Tonfa, or both, Yin is a formidable fighter with confidence in her abilities.

Personality: In her youth, Yin He was a quite and rather shy girl. Today, she still retains a quiet, reserved nature, but, as she is a soldier and officer of the law, she’s developed a more assertive side as well. In truth, there is far more to Yin than one might assume from a brief meeting, she is not simply another soldier, another cog in the Fire Nation military machine.

With a rather slow and ponderous way of moving about, one might get the impression that Yin is not particularly gifted in an intellectual sense. This is actually somewhat true; she is a bit slow when it comes to understanding complex concepts, though this doesn’t mean she’s stupid, just not book smart or extremely sharp-minded. She is also fairly thoughtful about her actions, almost always looking before leaping, Yin very rarely finds herself acting on impulses.

To most, Yin might seem to be in a constant state of immense boredom with her situation or surroundings, tired or otherwise displeased. She simply needs direction at times, something to commit herself to. Before joining the military, and to a greater extent, before she discovered her bending, Yin was often very indecisive, perhaps even somewhat listless. But, with definite goals laid out for her, she thrives.

Even at present, she tends to languish when she lacks something to occupy herself with. This has led her to adopt several hobbies to help fight boredom, discouragement or a state laziness. As long as Yin has something to do or something to work on, she will remain quite content, even willing to endure hardships without complaint.

Without a doubt, enlisting in the military has helped Yin to become a better-rounded person, able to deal with tough situations efficiently with a degree of authority. Though she used to prefer following, more so than leading when it came to activities in the field, Yin has developed a taste for control and responsibility that has strengthened her as a person. She is capable of quick thought in a pinch and a commanding presence when need be, but Yin still finds herself doubting her own ability to lead at times, something she makes certain never to let show. It seems that, with more responsibility, so to can come anxiety

Having been placed in command of a small group, consisting of four other soldiers, Yin often worries about them. The thought of having the lives of four people in her hands is somewhat overwhelming, but she endures and tends to demand their respect through a combination of tough love and flat honesty when dealing with a situation. When Yin was younger, she was exceptionally protective of her little brother and this sense of defending those under her watch has remained.

She is generally very patient, enduring the hot weather, the people she must deal with daily, as well as the occasional unwanted advances made by men, some even from her own unit, simply letting things go without dwelling on them. She tends to remain in control of herself, showing anger only in cases where she has been pushed for a long period of time. It does take a great deal to get Yin to snap or strike back at someone verbally, as she is capable of taking quite a bit without letting on that she is upset with something.

The only thing that really gets Yin truly flustered is unexpected or drastic change; she despises changes to her daily routine, structure and predictability are imperative to her day to day life, though this may actually be a double-edged sword. When out of her element, Yin is often uneasy, but it may actually be her insistence on a highly structured and predetermined lifestyle that causes her to slip into the listless state she struggles to avoid.

She does come off as rather socially distant, keeping her private life very quiet; she is not at ease with discussing certain subjects with just anyone. Generally courteous and pleasant with the citizens and the like, she does somewhat enjoy using the authority her rank bestows upon her on nobles when she must deal with them. Being from a small farming community, it amuses her to hold power over people who have more wealth than her family could attain in decades.

To her few close friends, she is loyal, trusting and compassionate, though there are still matters she is not willing to discuss with them, specifically matters of the heart and her own economic and social status. Of her friends, she has revealed her familiar history to only two, as she feels somewhat ashamed of her rural upbringing when it seems many of her comrades were far better off and from the cities.

Because of her rather private nature, Yin is more of a listener than a talker, always happy to hear a friend’s stories or problems, usually compelled to find something to say when confronted with the latter. Most of her friends have come to respect her ways and tend not to pry, though some still forget and ask her things on occasion, as always, they are met with patience from Yin.

Though quiet more often then not, Yin finds it difficult to resist a chance to poke a bit of fun, at times, to lighten the mood. When a situation presents itself, she tends to come up with playful quips and jokes, a familiar grin crossing her lips when something comes to mind. For the most part, however, she tends to be a bit more talkative when around those she trusts.

As far as romantic relationships go, Yin has accumulated some experience over the years. She tends to be loving and more open with lovers and partners than she might be with her regular friends. As it is, she is forced to be more open initially to find those who interest her – other women. When it comes to such things, she can, at times, be emotional and, of course, a bit protective, though most of her encounters with lovers and the like last only briefly. Only once had she a real relationship that, unfortunately, ended due to reassignment.

Recently, she’s curtailed her efforts in seeking romance, following the incident that nearly cost her her promising military career and left her feeling rather disheartened and suspicious. Though, keeping emotions and whatnot from showing is not particularly difficult for Yin, and her friends and comrades were none the wiser. Despite this, some small part of her wishes she could find someone to be close to again.

Background: Nestled in a small, fertile valley northwest of Lun Yang, west of Chong Dao, southeast of Sun Sei and lying in the shadow of the great dormant volcano Mount Shankara, one would find a quaint farming community with the town of Chu Lin at its heart. Fed by the Kali River, the valley is a green bastion surrounded by barren lava fields and the occasional small tropical forest. The soil is surprisingly rich, perfect for growing Sugar Cane, the valley’s main cash crop. Ideal in nearly every aspect for the growth of the much needed plant, the region receives large amounts of rainfall from the east all year-round and the tropical climate is quite accommodating.

With a population of only about one hundred and fifty in Chu Lin proper and less than one hundred more living on the outlying farms, the town is only really on the map due to the Sugar Cane itself. Many of the families living in the region sell directly to the government, as the sugar is an essential war time commodity. With these contracts, and the growing need for resources, the government eventually went ahead and ran a rail line out to the small town to better facilitate the transportation of the Cane.

Some time before the government contracts, however, and longer still, before plans to construct the Chu Lin Railroad Branch were even considered by officials in Luan Yang, things in Chu Lin were as quiet and normal as in any other small farm town.

For the most part, Zhou Shu Hui found the farm boy from the other side of the small town to be thoroughly annoying, he seemed to show up at the most inopportune times and never seemed to take the hint, but nothing she did could discourage Chao Zhong. He’d made friends with her family, her brothers, even her friends; it seemed the infuriatingly determined boy simply would not give up until he’d won her heart.

Zhou Shu, born to a general store owner and his wife in the heart of the small town, had grown up as any other small town girl would in the Fire Nation – simply. Far from the mainstream culture and the hustle and bustle of the nation’s industrialized cities, Zhou’s life was pleasant and quiet, in her teen years she helped her father with his business and eventually started a cloth mending service out of shop that was her all her own.

Chao, on the other hand, was born to the long standing Zhong family of Sugar Cane planters. The Zhong family had grown Cane in the Chu Lin Valley for the last three generations and Chin Da Zhong and his wife Yami both hoped their son, Chao, would take over the family farm when the time came. Until then, he worked hard around the farm, beginning his work when he was first able to help carry small bundles of the Cane, around the age six.

Though most of Chao’s time was taken up by his chores, his parents both saw the benefits of sending him off to the newly constructed “Chu Lin Academy” – a one-room schoolhouse in town. While attending the “Academy”, Miss Zhou Shu Hui caught Chao’s eye immediately and he quickly developed a bit of crush on the shopkeeper’s daughter.

As the two grew older and continued their education, Chao’s infatuation with Zhou grew too. When the two were in their mid-teens, Chao approached her only to be politely turned down. He tried several more times to win Zhou over, but nothing seemed to work. By now, Zhou was well known around the town as an exceptionally beautiful young woman and many of the men from both the in town and the farms sought to catch her eye.

Despite the odds stacked against him, Chao never gave up on Zhou, going so far as to “run into” her family and friends to introduce himself and hopefully get on their good sides. Years went by and Chao still pursued Zhou’s heart, his moment finally came when the girl’s longtime boyfriend left her to seek his fortune in ‘The Big City’. Chao sought out the heartbroken young woman, in honest concern more so than for his own reasons, and consoled her.

Some time after, feeling she had little to loose, Zhou gave Chao a chance and he proved himself caring, hardworking and honest. The two grew close over the next year and a half and Chao’s dream came true, the couple was married with full support of both families at Agni’s Shrine at the end of Chu Lin’s main street in early spring.

The two families decided that it would be best if Zhou moved in on the Zhong family’s farm. So, in preparation, Chao and his father, with the help of the town’s master carpenter, made several additions to the Zhong family farmhouse. They worked hard for several weeks, adding a new bedroom, increasing the size of the living spaces and updating the kitchen.

Fortunately, the arrangement seemed to work well and life for the young couple was good. Chao continued to work around the farm, beside his father and two hired hands that lived in town and came out to the farm to work. Zhou helped around the farm and kept up her clothing and cloth mending service at her father’s shop as well, to earn a bit of extra cash for the family.

The family enjoyed a prosperous Cane harvest at the end of the year and quickly began replanting for the next one. With the good harvest past, the family would soon receive another blessing. Shortly after the harvest, Zhou announced to the family that she was with child and the Zhongs rejoiced. Soon the family began to make preparations for the baby, using the extra funds from the harvest; they added another small room onto the house and bought a little crib and other supplies.

In late summer, Chao’s mother, with the help of a midwife from town, delivered Zhou’s baby. Chao rushed immediately into the room to meet his new daughter, quickly followed by his father, now a grandfather. The pudgy little girl was contently lying upon her mother’s chest when the two entered the room, both Zhou and baby were doing well and they soon had a name in mind for the little one, Yin He or ‘Silver Lotus’.

The very next day, Zhou’s family arrived at the Zhong farm to meet their new granddaughter. The day after that, her brothers traveled back to Chu Lin Valley to meet little Yin, bringing their children and wives with them, and soon it was a veritable family reunion. Throughout the visits, Yin He was, at times, frightened by the many unfamiliar people appearing and inspecting her only a day or two after her birth and cried often.

After the families left the Zhong farm, however, the pace of daily life around the home slowed back to normal and Yin began to get used to her family. After a few more days, a soft tuft of dark brown, almost black hair began to appear upon the baby’s head and after a week and a half more, she seemed to be growing some too.

For the most part, Yin was a quiet baby, rarely crying unless something truly startled or upset her. Being quite busy, her parents often left her with her Grandmother, Yami, during the day and returned late in the afternoons to spend time with their child. Watching over Yin was relatively easy for Yami, the little girl seemed to sleep quite a lot and, when awake, she was easy to amuse and keep happy.

Little Yin grew quickly over the next few months and when she was a bit older, Zhou and Chao began to take her into town to show off to their friends. Instead of a wide-eyed interest in her new surroundings, Yin seemed to cling to her parents somewhat and often fell asleep in their arms, seemingly uninterested in the world around her.

Along with the trips into town, the younger Zhong couple showed their daughter around the farm, introducing her to the various animals they kept to supplement their income derived from the Sugar Cane. Yin saw the Chicken Pig coop and her mother helped her spread some feed for the snouted animals to peck up, they also visited the Cow Hippo pen and met the family’s two dairy animals. The final non-human Zhong “family member” Yin got to meet was the family’s Dragon Moose. Used for pulling the plow during replanting, the Dragon Moose was quite terrifying to little Yin and she burst into tears at the sight of him.

As time went by, Yin became more inquisitive and eventually began crawling around the farmhouse exploring, though Yami always kept a close eye on the little girl, making certain she didn’t find anything dangerous or eat anything she shouldn’t. On Yin’s first birthday, the family held a modest celebration; Zhou and Yami made a little cake and Chin Da carved a little wooden Turtle Duck toy for his granddaughter as a present.

Yin loved the little duck toy and, within a few more months, she was toddling around the home repeating her first word, “Duck, Duck, Duck, Duck…” The little Turtle Duck also became a teething toy for the young girl as her baby teeth continued to grow in. She would keep the small toy with her to the present day, cherishing it.

With time, Yin’s vocabulary grew with her and her personality, too, began to emerge – rather quiet and a bit shy. She would often watch her father and grandfather work around the farm, wandering about, following them as they went about their daily tasks to keep things running. Zhou began to worry that young Yin might wander off and get lost or hurt out in the fields and the like, but the quiet little girl seemed to always mind her parents and grandparents, staying within their supervision and out of the way of their work.

When Yin reached the age of four, her mother decided to give the little girl some responsibility and tasked her with the retrieval of the Chicken Pig eggs. Yin was more than happy to help out her family and took to the work quickly, soon her mother added feeding the Chicken Pigs to the girl’s chore list as well, and Yin accepted the new task with enthusiasm.

A strange pattern began to emerge with the Zhong’s daughter, however. It seemed that, when she had work to do, she did it right away and with enthusiasm, though, once finished, it seemed Yin would slump into a bored and rather mopey state. At times, she would wander off into her bedroom and nap the day away after finishing her chores, as if she had nothing else to occupy her time with.

Somewhat worried, Chao and Zhou encouraged Yin to meet with other children her own age from the town and other farms, but Yin seemed to shy away from other people when confronted. She simply felt nervous and a bit uncertain when meeting someone new and felt that remaining quiet was the best thing to do. Needless to say, the other children who met her didn’t really know what to do with her; she didn’t seem interested in playing, and the like, as they were used to.

Zhou soon discovered that she was expecting another child, a sibling for Yin, and the younger Zhong couple felt confident that the new child would help their daughter to come out of her shell a bit more. With the news, Yin did seem to perk up somewhat and became rather excited over the prospect of having a younger brother or sister.

As it would turn out, that fall, the family welcomed their second child, a baby boy they named Lee, into the world. Though Lee was born healthy, Zhou did not fair so well and lost a considerable amount of blood during the birth, then came down with a fever as well, leaving her bedridden for many days. Yin immediately stepped up to help her grandmother tend to little Lee and Zhou, bringing her food and drink and keeping her company as she recovered.

Yin also found time to play with her baby brother, lying down on the floor before him and making funny sounds and faces to which Lee would respond with squeaky infant laughter. Watching her daughter happily interacting with her new son seemed to help Zhou remain in good spirits and eventually she did regain her strength, though she made the decision to close her clothing repair service at her father’s shop in town, in order to have more time to raise her kids.

Things went well for family over the next year or so, Yin took on more responsibilities around the farm, looked after her little brother and stove off listlessness. As Lee got older, it seemed that he was far more adventurous than Yin had been, occasionally toddling out of the house and down the front steps, disappearing in an instant when Yami and Zhou weren’t watching.

On one occasion, Lee disappeared during the Sugar Cane harvest, at the very time when the fields had been set ablaze in preparation for the hand cutting of the plants. Zhou and Yami panicked and searched the house and surrounding areas in a frenzy, praying that little Lee hadn’t wandered into the fields. They quickly sent Yin out to inform Chao, Chin Da and the hired hands that the boy was missing.

Yin bolted from the house and made her way toward the fields, the fires were spreading across the Cane toward the west, blown by the winds. The girl considered making a dash across the unburned portion to save time, foolishly, though in retrospect, luckily, she did so and only a few yards into the dense Cane plants she found her little brother. Sitting in the dirt, playing with a pill bug, he was oblivious to the flames moving toward him.

Quickly she scooped him up and returned to the farmhouse, much to the relief of her mother and grandmother. Though the fire would have taken some time to spread to the place where Yin had found Lee, the chances that he would have been found before that, in the vast fields, were unlikely and Yin was praised by her family for saving the boy. Following the incident, Yin began to think of herself as her brother’s protector and took great pride in the thought.

Shortly after Yin turned six and Lee celebrated his second birthday, Chao and Zhou sat their daughter down for a talk. The family discussed the girl’s future and the younger Zhong couple expressed their desire to see Yin start school in the next few months. Yin was repulsed by the idea and refused immediately. At her young age, the girl saw no reason to go off to school when she could be helping around the farm; it just didn’t make any sense.

Though Yin resisted, an important event would soon take place in Chu Lin that would cause the people of the valley to put a greater emphasis upon education. Early one morning a precession arrived in Chu Lin, consisting of Fire Nation Cavalrymen leading a large carriage carrying a senior aid sent by War Minister Qin himself.

Word spread quickly through the town and outlying farms, the only real interaction the people of the Chu Lin Valley had with the central government was during the biannual population tallies and when the tax collectors came around, this was clearly something important. The War Minister’s aid soon called for a meeting, requesting that the heads of each farming family show up at the town hall. Both Chao and his father, Chin Da, attended the meeting and returned in good spirits with a great scroll of paper in hand.

Father and son soon announced the news to the family, apparently, the Fire Nation was consolidating its strategic resources to make the war effort more efficient and one of the industries affected was that of the Sugar Cane planters. The scroll they had been given detailed a government contract offered to the family. In the past, the Zhong family had worked with a middle man, a private transportation service that used wagons to carry the freshly cut Cane away. The transporters would arrive at the farm and load the Cane, then pay the family and move off to the west toward the refineries in Chong Dao.

The War Minister’s adviser had explained that a government agency had purchased the transportation service and would be willing to buy directly from the farmers for nearly fifteen percent more than the old service had been willing to pay. Fairly patriotic and seeing the clear benefits from a fifteen percent profit increase at harvest time, the Zhong family unanimously agreed to accept the contract and the very next day Chao returned to town to present the signed document to the advisor.

Yin had been curious about the news and had hovered about as the family discussed the contract, she’d peered over her parents’ shoulders but, as she knew not how to read, the characters on the scroll meant little to her until her father explained what it meant for the family and Yin herself. With Lun Yang taking a greater interest in the Chu Lin Valley, Chin Da anticipated that the family and community as a whole would be interacting with the central government far more than they had in the past.

With this in mind, Chao and Zhou were convinced that sending Yin to school would be imperative. No longer could the people of the Chu Lin Valley live so simply, an education would be an important asset. Following another talk with her parents, Yin reluctantly agreed to attend the “Chu Lin Academy”, at which school was beginning in the next few weeks.

On the very first day of school, Zhou walked Yin down to the school house. The young girl carried a small pail in her hand, containing her lunch, while the other gripped her mother’s hand. Yin was thoroughly nervous, the tickle of “Butterfly Dog Ears” in her stomach increasing as sighted the “Academy”. Zhou accompanied her daughter in and the two met with the teacher, a kindly woman named Min Ho who greeted young Yin with a pleasant smile, reassuring her that she would have a fine time with the class.

Zhou wished her daughter well and returned to the farm, leaving Yin to face her fist day. She quickly found a seat amongst the desks as the other children arrived and began to mingle; she did not join in, however, choosing to remain quiet at her seat. It seemed to her that most of the other children already knew each other and this only seemed to alienate her further.

As the class began, Min Ho taught the students the national oath and the lot rose from their seats and turned to face a portrait of the Fire Lord on the left wall. Yin began to feel a bit overwhelmed but tried to maintain a calm appearance as the day went on. Following a bit of history on the school house, Min Ho introduced herself and had each student stand up and do the same. When it was Yin’s turn, she leapt from here chair, introduced herself in one lightning fast run-on sentence and sat back down as quickly as she could.

By the time her first day was finished, Yin had actually learned quite a lot, both about what the class would cover as time went on and just general knowledge about her town and country that had not been readily available back at home. Tired out from the day, Yin was happy to find her mother waiting for her, outside the school house, when class ended and the two walked home together.

Over the next two years, Yin experienced the ups and downs of going to school, she struggled some with her reading and writing, but the small class size allowed Min Ho to work more closely with the girl and this helped her keep up with the class. Because Yin was left-handed, she had some difficulty with her calligraphy and Min encouraged her to try writing with her right, but this only proved more difficult.

When it came to socializing, Yin remained quite shy, mostly moping around back of the schoolhouse, minding her own business while the other children played games and the like. Toward the end of the second year, however, she managed to make friends with a rather aloof girl by the name of Ju. The girl was from another Sugar Cane farm and could relate to Yin somewhat, though the two never really met outside of school.

At the beginning of Yin’s second year, however, a new group of children would be joining Min’s class and Yin was a bit apprehensive at the thought. She had established herself with the current group, more or less, and a new bunch worried her some. The first few days went well and the new students seemed to treat the, now eight year old, Yin with respect. She’d grown some over the summer and stood taller than all but a few of the boys around her age, uncertain if it was her height or simply the fact that she’d been there before them that intimidated them.

During the second week of school, a new student joined late. At first, Yin and Ju paid the new girl, who went by the name Liu Yi, little attention, staying at their far corner of the field around back of the schoolhouse. One day during play time, however, Yin went around front for a drink from the school’s water pump only to find the new girl surrounded by some of the younger boys.

“City Slicker”, the boys chanted as they encircled Liu Yi, who stood with her back to the water pump, a fearful look upon her face. Generally, Yin wouldn’t have involved herself in the business of the other children, but as she approached it became clear to her that the girl was truly frightened and that some of the boys were acting exceptionally malicious. Realizing, too, that they were blocking her path to the water pump, Yin strode up to the bunch and pushed two of the boys aside.

Using a sharp tone she’d heard her father use with the family’s Dragon Moose when he was being stubborn, Yin ordered the group of boys, the lot all shorter and younger than she, to disperse. Some protested but were met with a cold glare from Yin golden-brown eyes and slowly backed off. “Leave her alone,” Yin had said flatly, “and don’t block the pump anymore.”

Liu Yi was ready to thank Yin and Yin was ready to take a small cup off of the pump for a drink when one of the BAD!ier boys ran up behind the older girl, hooked one foot around Yin’s ankle as she bent over for the cup and placed his arm against her back. Pushing with his arm and pulling back with his foot, he managed to make her loose her balance, sending the farm girl stumbling forward into the “City Slicker.”

Yin’s right arm and side caught Liu Yi as she fell and both fell into the ever-present mud that surrounded the water pump, landing somewhat entangled with a splat. Yin immediately rolled off the smaller girl and screamed at the boys before storming off to go clean up, leaving Liu Yi to skitter away and do the same.

The next day, Liu Yi approached Yin and thanked the older girl for defending her from the rowdy farm boys. Yin didn’t feel like she’d done a whole lot to help, but tolerated Liu Yi’s gratitude and praise. The girl stuck around and Yin and Ju made no protest, it turned out that Liu Yi’s father had originally grown up in the Chu Lin Valley, but had moved to Hokage as a young man. He’d married and Liu had been born, spending the first seven years of her life in the city before her family moved to Chu Lin to help take care of her ailing grandfather.

It seemed Liu Yi had found a place with the two older girls and always sough them out during the day’s play time. Over time, Yin began to see the girl as more of a friend and less of a tagalong, eventually warming up to her. The rowdy farm boys still tried to pick on Liu but Yin seemed to intimidate them with her presence and began to take on the same ‘protector’ roll when it came to Liu as she had for her younger brother. Even Ju began to warm up to the city girl with time.

Liu was a very polite and smart girl, having attended school in Hokage for two years before her family moved; she was naturally bright and very sweet, though easily intimidated. The trio of friends soon began to meet outside of school, though it took some prodding by Liu Yi to get the two older girls to come along, but once they were together, they enjoyed each other’s company.

The three sat together in class, had slumber parties at each other’s homes, swam in the Kali River and played various games. Liu Yi even offered to help Yin with her studies and, albeit reluctantly, she accepted. The city girl really did know her stuff and helped Yin refine her calligraphy, read more fluently and also aided in several other subjects that had given the Zhong’s daughter trouble.

Later that year, the trio attended the Summer Solstice festival in town and browsed the various vendors, sickening themselves on sweets and the like. Ju won a large stuffed messenger hawk from one of the game booths that had been set up, Yin and Liu had made attempts at winning something, but it seemed the games were somewhat rigged.

As the festival wound down, two events took place that would cause a bit of a ‘gold rush’ in the Chu Lin valley. Hundreds of miles to the Northwest in Sun Sei, an archeological team discovered a large buried temple. The region had always been rumored to hold the tomb of the first Firebender, but the chamber had remained elusive. With the new discovery, hope of finding the tomb increased and scholars, professional archeologists and treasure hunters alike flocked to the location.

About the same time, a tablet was unearthed on a farm to the west of the town of Chu Lin, not far from the Zhong farm. The ancient tablet told of a Warlord who had ruled the valley during the Fire Nation’s feudal period, many thousands of years ago. Chu Lin Valley had been suspected for years as the site of the ancient Warlord’s fortress, but extensive searches had revealed little and the area was archeologically abandoned.

With these twin discoveries, treasure hunters as well as the justified authorities converged on the two locations. The town saw an influx of travelers passing through to Sun Sei and many seeking fortune in the valley itself. It wasn’t long before Chao found treasure hunters poking through the family’s fields with shovels and pick axes, searching for relics.

The mass of new people traveling through the valley and those who sought ancient treasures that may or may not have existed, had many different effects on the community in the region. On one hand, the surge brought economic growth to the town and also encouraged the central government in Lun Yang to level a neat gravel roadway stretching from Chong Dao in the east through Chu Lin and then northwest to Sun Sei.

On the other, the town experienced a rash of crime, shops and homes were broken into, crops were damaged by treasure hunters and a man was even killed and found lying in an alley way behind a tavern. The greed that came with the treasure seekers was slowly costing Chu Lin its innocence and peaceful small town feel.

Yin’s life changed considerably, her father now escorted her and Liu Yi to school each morning then walked them back home in the afternoons. No longer were they allowed to roam the town freely, nor could they visit the river for a swim, the dangers to Yin that the outsiders had brought with them were far too real to Chao and Zhou. Fortunately, though, Yin was still able to meet with her friends, though they had to stay around the Zhong family farm and not wander off.

Eventually the farmers banded together and petitioned Lun Yang, citing the treasure hunters as a threat to their crops, a strategic resource, thus a threat to the security of the nation. Within a matter of weeks, an edict was issued and the treasure hunters were forbidden from entering the valley with intent to search and soon the waves of people traveling to the town slowed to a trickle.

In time, thankfully, the valley returned to normal and the gracious citizens sent their thanks to Fire Lord Ozai himself, seeing him as the one who saved their community. Yin was somewhat caught up in this bout of nationalism and began to think of herself as more than just a farm girl, but a citizen of a great nation.

The next few years were peaceful and pleasant for the girl; she celebrated her tenth birthday with her friends present and enjoyed the freedoms once more that had been restricted during the ‘gold rush’. Liu Yi continued to her help Yin with her school work and the two spent a great deal of time together, Yin soon came to think of the girl as her best friend.

As Lee grew and prepared for his first year at the “Chu Lin Academy”, Yin discovered something new about herself. She’d watched the hired hands who worked with her family Firebend in the past, generally a great show during the harvest of the Cane, when they would set the fields ablaze. Both men were benders and Yin had always wondered if she could learn to do like them, not realizing that bending was something one was born with.

[ituha]

One night, to see if she could learn, Yin mimicked one of the motions she’d seen the hired hands use. She took a deep breath and punched the air wildly, hoping to see some flame shoot from her little fists. When nothing happened she tried again and again and, had it been during the day, she may have missed it, but on her last try a small spark sprang from her hand. Seeing the spark, Yin screamed, waking her family with a start and ran excitedly to her parent’s room.

Her sleepy family managed to get up out of bed, save for Lee who fell back asleep only minutes after his sister’s scream, and move out into the living room as Yin insisted that they watch her make the spark again. After several tries, Yin was able to replicate the little glint of light and turned to her family with a smile, exceptionally proud of herself.

The next day, Chao asked the two benders, who worked around the farm, what they thought he ought to do with Yin’s discovery. Neither of the two had ever been formally trained, nor were they particularly interested in training the little girl using their own personal knowledge. Both suggested that Yin be sent to a Firebending Academy if she ever desired to make something of her ability. The Academy would be far too expensive, though; the programs in public school would likely still work out for Yin.

By now, Yin had shown her friends and classmates the sparks and discovered that she could produce larger bursts with practice. Liu Yi applauded her and watched, enthused, even Ju was interested in watching Yin’s spark shows. Discovering her ability to bend proved to be an immense confidence booster for Yin and she was soon practicing regularly. Despite this, she never did put off time spent with her friends in favor of bending.

While Yin went about her daily routines of school, chores, play and practice, powerful men hundreds of miles away, to the southeast in Lun Yang, were unveiling a grand plan to connect the nation like never before. The fledgling Imperial Railroad Company had just received authorization and Government funding to construct a new branch of track stretching from Chong Dao, west to Chu Lin, then northwest up to Sun Sei. The plans were laid out and work began before the people of the Valley were even informed of the decision.

The new Railroad line would better facilitate the transportation of the Sugar Cane, cutting the travel time between Chu Lin and Chong Dao down from two days, by wagon, to about three hours by train. A few days after work on the new line from Chong Dao began, officials from the Railroad and Government arrived in Chu Lin and called another town meeting to unveil the plans to the citizens.

As before, Chao and his father attended the meeting and listened to the officials as they pitched the track branch. Few of the citizens in Chu Lin knew much of trains or other complex machines and the idea of a method of transportation that could move goods and people back and forth from the town to the cities at amazing speeds seemed too good to be true. Some, however, were skeptical, and feared that the new line would open the town up to the same surge that the ancient tablet had brought upon them, years before.

The Government officials assured any doubters that they were still protected by orders from Lun Yang and that the treasure hunters and crime would not return with the railroad. Satisfied, the men of the Zhong family returned home and explained the plans that would soon change the shape of the town.

Yin didn’t know what to make of the news at first and asked Liu Yi about trains and the like, figuring that, since she was from the city, she might know something. Liu Yi had seen trains before, back when she’d lived in Hokage, and described them as best she could to her curious friend. Though the news of the Railroad had been the talk of the town, it quietly faded from view as the weeks passed, it would be some four months before the track layers would even reach Chu Lin.

Soon, Yin’s attention was back on her bending. One of the hired benders who worked for the family suggested she try breathing exercises with a candle and Yin quickly took to this. She would light the candle with a match then sit before it and carefully concentrate, observing as the flame grew and diminished with each deep breath. At times she would try to manipulate the intensity of the small flame without growing it larger, but couldn’t quite figure out how to do it.

Eventually, Yin, with the help of her friends, went around the town asking various townsfolk if they could borrow any and all books or scrolls dealing with Firebending. Most of the material they found was simple histories and the like, but others were fairly detailed and taught some basic moves that Yin quickly tried to replicate.

When the new school year started, Lee, now six years old started as well. Yin, Liu and Ju all watched over him and helped him grow accustom to the school setting, making sure he avoided mistakes they had made when they were new. At first, Lee was quite grateful for the help from his sister and her friends, though, as time went by, he began to reject their help and started to spend time with the other little boys.

Feeling that, with his sister looking out for him and the like, he would appear weak to the other boys his age. Lee began to push Yin away when at school, at times even going so far as to tease her to impress his “friends”. Though Yin didn’t show it, she was hurt by her brother’s behavior and, instead of giving him trouble, however; she gave him the cold shoulder both at school and at home.

Yin missed the old Lee, the happy little boy who had enjoyed playing with his sister, and went to Zhou to ask about his behavior. Zhou had been aware of the rift growing her two children and explained to Yin that it was just Lee growing up some, assuring her that he was still the little brother she’d known, on the inside. This was, for the most part, true, it seemed Lee would revert back to his old, normal self when not around his rowdy friends.

Realizing this, Yin avoided the boy when he was with his friends, though still she felt uneasy around him, somewhat betrayed that he would change so for people who weren’t his own family. Ju could sympathize somewhat, she’d had an older brother who had gone away to the city and returned much different than the kind fellow she’d once known.

Within the space of three days, however, the town’s attention was drawn to the eastern horizon from which a wispy trail of smoke curled into the air. Many simply watched and waited, the potential source of the smoke was not immediately apparent, it couldn’t have been a fire, as there was nothing on the lava fields beyond the valley to burn. Eventually several men arrived in town and with them, they brought the answer, wearing the uniforms of the Imperial Railroad Company, the men began surveying the lay of the land in the valley.

The smoke on the horizon came from the stack of a steam locomotive that moved slowly forward as the track before it was completed by the track layers. Some families traveled out to view the progress while others decided to wait for the track and the great iron machine to come to the town itself.

The Zhong family decided they would wait for the track to reach Chu Lin, but Yin found herself dragged along by Liu Yi to join her family on a trip out to see the track laying in progress. The train was like nothing Yin had ever seen before; it reminded her of some sort of dragon with smoke curling from its smoke stack and steam jetting out from various places, the whole machine seeming to breathe.

The locomotive was somewhat frightening to Yin, though she wouldn’t admit it to Liu Yi who had stood beside her unfazed by the sight of the great machine. After viewing the workers and the train for a time, they returned to Chu Lin Valley, following along after them, the railroad would arrive in the town within the next two weeks.

Right alongside the main road leading to Chu Lin, the tracks ran, turning off just outside of the town and running parallel to it, north of main street, before turning northwest up toward Sun Sei. Beside the tracks, in town, a small train station was constructed for travelers and a bit to the east of the station, loading docks and a crane were put up to load Sugar Cane onto the trains and goods off, for the town.

As the town changed with the addition of the Railroad, Yin reached an age that marked change for her as well. At about twelve years old, the girl had entered the first phases of adolescence and, with it, came various physical changes as well. For the most part, Yin tried to ignore such things and continue to live the way she had. She wasn’t exactly alone in this; however, both Ju and Liu were experiencing the same things, though the topic was usually rarely discussed amongst the trio.

Over time, Yin continued to practice her bending, the books and scrolls were helping her greatly, but she reached a point where she had very little new material to learn from. At this point, she simply repeated the basic motions and movements again and again, mastering them. By the time she was twelve, she was capable of producing small red bursts of flame from her feet and fists.

With the new railroad, things would change for the Zhong family somewhat as well. Instead of the government owned transportation service wagons arriving at the farm to purchase and move the harvested Sugar Cane off to Chong Dao, the service was now run by the Imperial Railroad Company. The wagons would arrive, load up with the Cane and depart for the train station. Then, either Chao, or Chin Da would walk with the wagons down to the station where a government official would record the weight of the Cane on a large scale, pay whichever Zhong was present and then have it loaded onto the train for transport.

The new weighing system actually increased the profit the Zhongs would receive per harvest, as the old bushel counting method assigned less worth to relatively heavy bundles of harvested Cane.

One evening, Yin stayed up past her bedtime to practice her bending stances. While up, she discovered her parents were awake in the home’s living area discussing plans for their daughter. Curious as to what they had in store for her, Yin cautiously listened in, hiding in the darkened hallway, leading to the bedrooms.

It seemed that Chao had learned some of Chong Dao, the industrialized city to the east which was now connected to Chu Lin by the rail line. He planned to go into the city to explore options open for Yin to receive a higher education and, hopefully, find the girl formal Firebending training as well, as it seemed she was quite passionate about it. Yin was both excited and terrified at the prospect and quietly snuck back to bed to avoid being caught.

The next day, Yin told Liu Yi and Ju about what she had heard the night before. Both were interested, though Liu Yi more so, as her parents had plans to send her to the ‘Admiral Suma Secondary School’ in Chong Dao, often shortened to ‘Suma Secondary’. Yin inquired and Liu described the school, which was quite typical as far as Fire Nation public schools went, all of which was news to Yin as she’d lived her entire life in the country. The one thing that really caught her attention, above all else, however, was when Liu mentioned the classes for Firebending instruction.

Thoroughly excited, Yin returned home after school with Liu accompanying her. She had Liu describe the school to her family and expressed a great interest in attending it when she was old enough. That would likely be in a year and a half, when Yin would be fourteen years old, but it was never too early to request more information from the school and so, Chao stuck to his plans to visit the city.

When Chao returned on the train, he had a great deal of information on the school and the different requirements for Yin’s attendance and the like. He also brought back a small book on Firebending for his daughter that Yin immediately read cover to cover. The enrollment process seemed unpleasantly complex to the farm family, however, and Chao considered returning to Chong Dao to get the matters sorted out.

Fortunately, Liu Yi asked her father to help the Zhongs figure out the enrollment procedures and the issues were cleared up, leaving Yin on a clear path to attendance at Suma Secondary. Yin was very happy to hear the news and thanked her friend repeatedly; the two had reached a point of closeness in their friendship that convinced both that they would be best friends forever, though this would not be the case.

Over the next year and a half before Yin was to begin at Suma Secondary, the common conversation topics of the trio of friends slowly shifted away from games and make believe and, instead, turned to boys. It didn’t really seem to matter who it was, just if they were male and roughly the same age as the trio, or somewhat older, it seemed Liu and Ju had their eyes upon them.

Yin felt wholly left out when the other two girls brought up the subject, they had pointed out the various boys to Yin on many occasions, but every time she looked upon them, they were just the same old boys she’d known from her first days at “Chu Lin Academy”. They were simply other people, in her eyes, nothing different then they had been and yet, it confounded Yin, what were her friends seeing?

It reached a point wherein Yin asked her mother what the other girls were seeing, Zhou assured her daughter that she would soon see and suggested that she may just have been a late bloomer. This only further confused Yin, how could she be a late bloomer when she was the tallest girl at the “Academy”?

Yin’s mind was shifted away from this issue, however, when her father asked her to help with the Sugar Cane harvest. Yin had asked in the past for permission to help with the Cane harvest and Chao had always told her she wasn’t old enough yet. Controlling the blazing field and knowing where to stand to avoid being burned could be complex at times, but at age thirteen, Chao felt that Yin was ready.

She was quite enthusiastic and joined the two hired benders on the harvest day, lending her small bursts of flame to the effort as they lit off the field. When the flames had engulfed the leaves and other unimportant portions of the plants, the fire burned itself out and Yin joined in cutting and stacking the Cane for transportation – missing that day of school to help her father. The harvest went well, and Chao was proud of his daughter, he even gave her a small share of the family’s profits that she hid away for when she would go off to school in Chong Dao.

Sometime after the harvest, however, Yin found herself noticing other people in a way she hadn’t in the past. Though, unlike Ju and Liu, Yin found her eyes drawn to the features of other females. Soft, shiny long hair, graceful figures, long legs, among other features, Yin would spot and study. At first she convinced herself that she was simply jealous of others, and that was why she cared to look upon them in such a way.

Over time, Yin’s interest in other girls and some younger women grew and it frightened her. She considered talking to her mother and, at a time, her friends, but she thought better of it and kept the peculiar feelings to herself. She made up her mind that she would simply ignore it and, perhaps, it would go away, just like Lee when he was being annoying. She realized she’d have to be careful to keep things quiet, would have to watch what she said, and also where she looked as well, for that matter.

At home, things changed somewhat, too. Lee, realizing Yin would be away nearly all day when she began school at Suma Secondary, began to feel he would miss his sister. Though they hadn’t always gotten along at home or at school, especially, Yin had looked out for him and he truly did care about his sister. In the waning days of her last year at “Chu Lin Academy”, Lee made an effort to show Yin that he had been grateful for her help over the years and, at the back of his mind, he was somewhat frightened at the thought of her no longer being there each day.

After seven years of schooling at the “Chu Lin Academy”, Yin, along with her friend Ju and the other students who had started school the same year they had, and passed, graduated. A small celebration was held and the students were presented with little diplomas, written up on special paper by one of the town’s record keepers.

At first, Yin was a bit shocked when she discovered that Liu Yi would not be graduating that year, feeling somewhat panicked. She soon remembered that Liu was a year younger and had started at “Chu Lin Academy” a year after her, due to the move from Hokage. She had always hoped Liu would come along when she would have to ride the train into Chong Dao for school each day, but it seemed she would have to wait a year before her friend could accompany her.

Ju was old enough, though her parents saw little benefit in sending her off to Chong Dao for further schooling. Her brother had already ventured off into the city and returned a changed man, not so much for the better, in many cases. Yin and Liu had tried to convince her to come along to Chong Dao for school, but Ju didn’t really seem up to challenging her parents will.

When the time finally came, Yin, accompanied by her family and friends, arrived at the Chu Lin train station. It was early morning and the ride into Chong Dao would take three hours, Yin’s first class would begin at nine that morning and the train would depart at five forty-five, leaving her fifteen minutes to get from the station to Suma Secondary and then find the classroom before the bell rang.

After showing her monthly pass, which her father had purchased from the station days before, to the conductor, Yin boarded the train and waved goodbye to her family and friends.

The train ride was quite frightening at first, each bump and rattle of the passenger car against its coupler seemed to startle poor Yin. After a time, she stretched out on the seat and tried to rest some, having gotten up early, but the constant jostling and terrifying sounds that came from the train made napping impossible. She would slowly get used to it, however, and, peering out the window at the country side going by was quite an interesting sight that the farm girl had never experienced.

When the train arrived at the station in Chong Dao, Yin reluctantly stepped from the car onto the platform. There were so many people milling about, waiting for trains and the like and most seemed well dressed, though not all. Carefully Yin made her way through the crowds to the front of the station and, using a map Liu’s father had made for her, started off to find the Admiral Suma Secondary School.

The city itself was nothing like Chu Lin, it was so large, there were so many people and buildings lined the streets. Chao had offered to take Yin into the city ahead of time, so she could familiarize herself with the city and the school, but Yin had been frightened and put it off until it was too late, and now she was paying for it.

Fortunately, she did manage to find the School and arrived at her fist class only a few minutes late. The teachers were somewhat sympathetic on the first day and Yin managed to get through the day alright. Her schedule consisted of a literature and writing class in the morning, mathematics following that, a class on history, one dealing with basic sciences, then two classes that both dealt with Firebending and a seventh and final one that was simply Physical Education.

The other freshmen students seemed just as nervous and uncertain as Yin felt, though they all seemed to be a bit more comfortable as a group and looked upon the farm girl warily. Though dressed in some of her best clothing, she wasn’t exactly prepared for school, having noticed the other students’ uniforms upon arrival. The teachers were mostly reasonable and offered her a day or two to acquire the proper attire. Along with a uniform, she was required to bring another outfit for her bending classes and the PE as well.

These issues didn’t seem too hard to overcome and Yin returned home on the train that evening tired, but in good spirits. Though she didn’t really interact with her peers much, it didn’t bother Yin; most of the day was spent in class anyway, unlike it had been at “Chu Lin Academy”. During the day, however, she had missed Liu and Ju, often thinking back to Chu Lin, wondering about what her friends were up to.

The next day at Suma Secondary, Yin went without a uniform again, though Zhou rode down on the train and met Yin as school ended and the two purchased the required clothing before heading back home to Chu Lin. As the first week passed, the farm girl settled into the school routine, though new things would soon come up to worry her.

The academic classes Yin was taking quickly began to pick up the pace. The material and workload were beyond anything she’d been used to at the little schoolhouse back home and she began to struggle with her studies once again. When it came to the bending classes, the part of the school day Yin most looked forward to, it became apparent that the students would have to change from their uniforms into the lighter clothing and back and this put up red flags in Yin’s mind. Changing in a room with all of the other female students in the class would prove both awkward and difficult for the farm girl.

Yin soon asked Liu to help her with her studies, though, as bright as the girl was, she was still a year behind Yin and could offer only limited help with the homework and the like that the academic classes required. Still struggling, Liu’s father would often offer to help her with her work as well and, with this, she managed to maintain decent marks. In her bending classes, Yin did exceptionally, taking to the new techniques and moves with ease and enthusiasm, though the changing room always seemed to leave her flustered and nervous.

When not at school or studying, Yin divided her time between her friends and her family. She helped out around the house and farm whenever possible and the old trio or friends still met as often as possible, enjoying each others company even when there wasn’t really anything to do. Ju was still her same old self, but Liu was quite lonely around “Chu Lin Academy” as both of her friends no longer attended.

Yin missed her friends as much as they missed her and sought something special to give them. She figured a little something that they could keep and look at would be nice, something that would remind them of their friend away at school and the like. For a time she searched shops in Chong Dao, but wandering the city alone frightened her and she decided that she would rather make something for her friends, it would be more thoughtful, she felt.

One evening, while she was getting ready for bed, Yin spotted the little old wooden Turtle Duck her grandfather had carved for her on her first birthday and knew immediately what she would give her friends. The next day, after school, Yin found her grandfather’s whittling knife and a small piece of wood and started scraping away at one side. She wasn’t really certain where to begin and decided to just try for a duck shape. After a time, the knife slipped and she cut the hand holding the piece.

She quickly went to bandage up the cut, but was caught and forced to explain what she’d been doing. Chin Da was a bit disappointed that Yin had taken the knife when she could have just asked for help. She apologized and asked him to teach her to whittle. Having had little time to spend with his busy granddaughter, Chin Da accepted and the two sat down on the porch steps, each with a knife and block of wood in hand.

By the end of the week, Yin presented Liu and Ju with two small wooden turtle ducks that she’d carved with her grandfather’s help. Both were detailed with little carved-on feathers, they were also painted, Liu’s blue and green while Ju’s was red and purple in color. The girls were surprised and held the little ducks in their hands reverently, thanking their friend for the gifts. Yin felt so proud and welcomed her friends, promising to be around as much as possible.

Having completed the little ducks, Yin continued to seek out her grandfather for more whittling lessons. The idea of creating a beautiful little piece of art out of a simple block of wood was appealing to Yin and soon she was taking her projects and her grandfather’s knife along on the train to practice when there wasn’t much else to do.

School went decently for Yin, though it was still difficult and the other students were rather distant, but the farm girl didn’t much care, when she had free time, between classes or at lunch, she spent it whittling. The little hobby helped to take her mind off the various issues that pestered her. As her first year wrapped up, she was still friendless for the most part, but she felt her life was back in Chu Lin and it never really bothered her.

She passed most her academic courses with average grades, though barely squeaking by in mathematics. In her bending courses she did exceptionally and even requested to take a course over the summer break period. When it came to the physical education class, she did well, but had never been particularly interested in sports or the like.

As summer began, Yin got to attend Liu’s graduation at “Chu Lin Academy”, the whole Zhong family and Ju showed up to see the younger girl receive her little diploma as well. Following the graduation, the old trio of friends had a bit of a party, heading into Chu Lin proper to enjoy dinner and deserts, paid for by both Yin and Ju.

Liu was growing excited about attending Suma Secondary with her friend in the fall and Yin brought her a great deal of information and even borrowed several textbooks at her friend’s request so that the girl could get a head start on her first year – Liu had always been a book type. When Yin started her Firebending summer class, Liu would often come along with her.

The ride into the city was unsettling for the girl, but having Yin along with her made things better and the two talked and enjoyed the view together as the train chugged along. Yin still whittled often, and Liu would suggest things for her friend to carve from the various blocks of wood, holding up a long piece and claiming she saw a Catgator in it or a shorter piece and seeing Meadow Vole ready to be carved out of the wood.

When the pair would reach the school, however, Liu usually went off to the library and the different classrooms to explore and familiarize herself with the school’s layout. At the same time, Yin would make her way to the changing room were she would quickly change into her lighter clothing, then scurry out onto her spot in the large paved courtyard used for the classes.

The summer bending class helped her to reinforce the techniques that she had picked up during the regular classes the year before, though she was most pleased when the class began to try new moves and more advanced exercises. Yin soon found herself challenged, however, when she was paired with another student for sparring, a similarly aged fellow named Zhang.

Never before had Yin felt so competitive, but Zhang brought it out of her and the two went back and forth during the class trying to show each other up. Be it direct sparring between the two, or just in the mastery of various moves, whenever the teacher had the students demonstrate something they’d learned, Yin would look to Zhang to see if he could do better than she had. And it seemed he would always look right back at her.

For the most part, the two were evenly matched but that didn’t deter them from continuing their rivalry. Though both were fierce in the courtyard, neither aimed to injure the other, they both simply strove to outdo the other. Both were willing to come to the other’s aid when things went wrong as well. On one occasion, Yin sprained her ankle, landing wrong after a sweeping kick, immediately; Zhang was there to help her to the school nurse.

On another, Zhang had been burned in a sparring match with another clumsy student and Yin was first on the scene, seeing that he made it to the nurse and waited outside, missing the rest of the class just to be certain that the boy would be alright and able to attend class the next day.

At times, Liu would leave the library early and come to watch Yin and her class from the edge of the court yard. It seemed, though, when Liu was present, Yin’s competitive desire to show up Zhang doubled and she would, at times, become reckless. By mid summer, an event in Chu Lin would take place, during which, Yin’s perspective on her old friend Liu would begin to change.

As always, the Summer Solstice festival was soon approaching. Held in midsummer, the festival marked the longest day and had always held significance in the Fire Nation, from the capital of Lun Yang to little Chu Lin. The festival usually consisted or music, dancing, a great deal of sweet and junky food, rigged carnival style games and occasionally a small firework displays in the evening.

In the past, Yin and her friends had wandered around the food vendors and other various little shops, at times playing the little carnival games. This year, however, Zhou had pressured Yin to dress up some and try out the dancing; perhaps some of the young men of the town would be interested, seeing the Zhong’s daughter dressed up. Yin really could have cared less, but honored her mother’s request and dressed up anyway.

When she arrived at the festival she quickly met up with Ju, who, like always, was never dressed in anything more than her simple day to day attire. The two waited at the end of Main Street for several minutes until Liu Yi arrived, dressed up in clothing she’d purchased in Chong Dao, the girl immediately caught Yin’s eye.

Liu was always known for dressing up during the festivals, but before now, Yin hadn’t really noticed how much she’d grown, well on her way to becoming a beautiful woman. The trio was soon off into town, stopping occasionally to browse a small vendor or two on their way down Main Street.

When they reached the center of town, they found the musicians playing, but hardly anyone dancing. Yin would later learn that many of the town boys were off pestering the fireworks expert who was setting up the display outside of town. Liu was disappointed to see the square mostly empty, Yin was somewhat relived and Ju couldn’t have cared less either way – neither had really been enthused with the prospect of dancing.

When Liu had turned to her two friends and playfully asked if they wanted to dance with her, Yin accepted without a second thought. Like some sort of bizarre fantasy come true, Yin, led by Liu, strolled out into the square amongst the few other dancers. The farm girl had never really learned to dance and simply followed along with the younger girl, had she even been able to, she likely would have been just as clumsy.

Red-faced, palms sweating, Yin now saw her old friend as potentially something more than a friend and it both frightened and excited her. Liu on the other hand, only grinned, attributing her friend’s obvious nervousness to being out dancing in plain sight of the townsfolk and other festival goers. Liu had always known Yin to be uncomfortable in front of groups and the like. As they danced, the younger girl had no idea what was going through her friend’s mind.

The rest of the evening was a bit awkward for Yin, though fun nonetheless. The trio had left the center of town and enjoyed some of the junky food before watching the fireworks display, Yin sticking right beside Liu for the rest of their time at the festival, simply drawn there.

As the summer drew to a close, Yin’s feelings for her friend grew and, though at times she told herself her thoughts and fantasies were wrong, she could not help herself. Her birthday soon arrived, marking the girl’s fifteenth year. Her favorite amongst the several small gifts she received was a whittling kit from her grandfather, complete with two knives and several small detailing tools.

At school, Yin’s bending class wrapped up and she began to prepare for her second year. Following the last few classes of the summer semester, Zhang had actually approached the girl after she emerged from the changing room. The two talked some and it was clear both would miss the other if their schedules were different during the next year. Yin had promised she would try for bending courses during the last two periods of the day, Zhang agreed to alter his schedule for the next years as well, both hoping they’d see the other again.

When the next year at Suma Secondary began, Yin and Liu took the train into Chong Dao, and each day the farm girl considered putting an arm around her friend as each bump and rattle of the car seemed to put Liu on edge. How she yearned show her friend affection, but she could never bring herself to say or do any of the things that occupied her daydreams.

As school began, Yin found her new classes to be similar to the year before, though noticeably tougher. She was quite pleased though, to find that Zhang was in both of her bending classes. And the two rivals were soon back to their old ways, though it seemed that Zhang was friendlier and spoke more, trying to engage Yin in conversation.

Over time, the farm girl began to regard the boy as a friend, her first new friend at the school. During their classes together, including the PE one, which they also shared, Yin got to know Zhang better. He had been born in the colonies out in Fire Nation occupied territory, but had been sent back to the Fire Nation for four years to attend Secondary School. For the most part, he lived on the campus in the school’s dorms.

Though, she spent the time between classes and her lunch period with Liu, Yin found time after her school day was over to meet with Zhang. Liu had an extra class that she had requested that ran for an hour longer following the regular school day. Of course, Yin was willing to wait for her friend’s class to finish so that they would be able to ride the train home together and this gave her an hour of free time around the school to spend however she wished.

As the year progressed things went well for Yin, she still struggled with some classes, but had fallen into the Secondary School routine well enough to deal with the work load. Though she was a grade up, Yin still went to her friend for help at times, for whom her feelings continued to grow. Her bending classes were, as always, at the top of her grades and she worked hard to improve at all times, still challenging and challenged by Zhang, the two worked well together.

When summer arrived, Yin took another bending course, as well as a math class that had been recommended due to her barely passing mathematics grades. As before, Zhang was present at the summer bending class too, much to Yin’s delight. He often helped her with her math work when the chance presented itself as well. Liu, on the other hand, had taken several academic enrichment courses over the summer and Yin felt it best not to bother her with requests for help.

Back home, Lee had grown up some and began to take on more responsibilities around the farm, though he always seemed to find time to go off and get in trouble with his friends as well. Yin tried to talk some sense into the boy, and he had matured to the point where he did occasionally heed his sister’s words, though it still didn’t straighten him out completely.

As for Ju, Liu and Yin saw little of their old friend. The girl had found herself a boyfriend, a fellow from a farm on the western side of town with an aloof and rather bleak personality that seemed to mesh perfectly with Ju’s. Despite her friend’s attempts, Ju seemed content with moping around with her new boyfriend who seemed wholly uninteresting to Liu and Yin, though they put up with his dullness for a chance to be with their friend.

When the Solstice festival rolled around, Yin made up her mind to say something to Liu, it had taken her an entire year, but she felt she was ready to do something. In all of her daydreams, it seemed that Liu would admit her feelings right back and things would work out for the two, but those were just daydreams and Yin wasn’t entirely convinced that she was doing the right thing. When she arrived at the festival, however, she could find no sign of Liu.

Later that evening she met up with Ju and her boyfriend and learned that Liu had been ill the night before and hadn’t come to the festival. For a time, Yin considered going to speak with Liu at her home, though, she figured she shouldn’t bother the girl when she was sick and decided to put off her confession for another time.

Now at age sixteen, Yin started her third year at Suma Secondary, a year in which she would loose a friend and test another friendship to its limits. As the new year began, Yin found she had another three classes with Zhang as before and was happy with the arrangement, both had been offered advanced bending courses this year and they had jumped at the chance.

Liu was taking advanced classes as well and it kept her busy often, though Yin still got to spend time with her on the train and during lunch. As the year progressed, however, it seemed that Liu was around less and less during lunch and seemed consumed by homework while on the train. Yin quickly became worried at this, as she was gaining a friend in Zhang, it appeared, at the same time, she was loosing Liu.

The farm girl had also noticed an unsettling trend in Zhang’s attitude toward her as well; it seemed possible that he desired to be more than just a friend to Yin. As he tried getting closer to her, she tried to act aloof and uninterested, taking a page from Ju in the hopes that the boy would simply become discouraged and take friendship over nothing.

The farm girl soon suffered a major blow midway through the year that would change her life at Suma Secondary. One day during lunch, while Yin was sitting alone eating her meal, Liu Yi and a boy Yin did not know approached her. The younger girl introduced the boy to Yin, his name was Cho, they had met in their literature class and the two had grown close – Liu had a boyfriend.

The news shocked Yin, she froze and sat staring, her eyes moving from her friend to Cho and back several times, finally she managed to squeak out “I’m happy for you”, before coming up with some sort of an excuse to leave the area and find somewhere private to deal with the news.

Sadness, frustration and anger washed over the farm girl, just able to find an empty classroom to duck into before her eyes welled up with tears. She felt extremely foolish, she was mad at herself for never saying anything or doing anything, for being so indecisive. She was also mad at the boy, Cho, and, though she realized that she’d had no claim upon her friend in the first place, the hatred was still there.

Over the next few days, Yin avoided Liu and kept mostly to herself. Emotionally distraught, her bending suffered and she became somewhat clumsy, drawing the attention of Zhang and her teacher. Eventually Yin came to the conclusion that she was wrong, whatever it was that made her to look upon other women with desire was not something she should accept.

Zhang had noticed the change in Yin’s behavior following her introduction to Cho. Though, he knew not the reason for Yin’s sadness, he still sought to make her feel better. Following their last class of the day, he sat down with her and asked her what was troubling her. Yin, having explained to no one the reasons behind her seemingly depressed state, admitted to Zhang no more than that she’d had some trouble with an old friend.

Yin had never introduced Zhang to Liu and the more Zhang tried to coax the truth out of her, the easier it seemed to just leave it at what she’d admitted in the first place. The farm girl began to avoid her old friend and spent more time with Zhang during the day. Though Liu was not upset with Yin in the least, Yin couldn’t stand to be around the younger girl anymore, feeling bitter and foolish in her presence.

On the train to and from Chong Dao, Yin began to sit in the second car to avoid Liu and this hurt the other girl, feeling rejected by her friend, she no longer approached Yin, the two friends had drifted apart and Liu was confused and saddened with the way things had turned out.

It seemed the more time Yin spent with Zhang, the bolder the boy got, eventually asking her out to an early dinner after school. Yin, understanding Zhang’s growing feelings for her, initially refused, claiming her heavy homework load and chores back on the family farm prevented her from staying longer. Zhang said he understood and let the farm girl know the offer was still open, suggesting they go on a later date, to which Yin gave no definite answer.

After several days passed without another word on the subject from Zhang, Yin began to give his offer some thought. All of her friends (ex or otherwise) had boyfriends, perhaps if she gave Zhang a chance, she could be normal like them or, at least, appear that way. Perhaps she could be “cured” of her peculiar interest in her own gender by getting to know Zhang in a deeper sense.

The next day after class, Yin approached Zhang and asked him about his offer, he seemed a bit excited by her seeming interest and let her know it was still most definitely open. The two planned to go out the next day, after class in the late afternoon and, in preparation, Yin finished up all of her homework and let her parents know she was staying in Chong Dao later “with a friend” the, as she had only mentioned Zhang to her family as a rival.

The “date” had started out rather awkward, and Yin had felt rather uncomfortable at first, but over time, the tension wore away and the two were talking and joking like they would have on any other occasion. To Yin, it felt no different than simply talking to Zhang as a friend, there really seemed to be no ‘relationship air’ about the outing which helped the farm girl to enjoy the evening.

Zhang, on the other hand, tried several different “techniques” to get the girl’s attention off of bending and their day to day topics and onto something deeper and more inline with Zhang’s hopes for the pair. He had certainly taken an interest in the girl, though she was not exceptionally attractive, he found the confidence and pride she possessed for her bending and the like to be interesting, though she seemed to lack such feelings for herself as a person. Zhang hoped to show her she had much to be proud of, as he could see a great deal of potential in her.

When the two had finished their meal, Zhang walked Yin back to the train station to see her off. He’d put an arm around her as they walked and the familiar gesture had caused Yin some discomfort, though she did not push him away. Biting her tongue, the girl decided that she would just have to put up with it if she wished to be normal.

Spending time with Zhang was not unpleasant, though Yin did not greatly enjoy the romantic qualities of the relationship, she still enjoyed talking with the boy, they did have a fair amount in common. After several outings with the colonist, Yin showed Zhang one of her best wood carvings and he seemed to be interested in seeing more of her work.

Feeling quite proud of her wood work, Yin promised Zhang she’d make him something and over the course of a week, she carved the boy a small saber-toothed Moose Lion. Yin painted the Moose Lion gold and brown and brought it to Zhang once she was satisfied with the final coat. The young man enthusiastically accepted the gift and placed the carving in his dorm room, up upon a shelf where it would be safe.

In return for the gift, it seemed his awkward advances came more frequently. Eventually, one evening while seeing Yin off at the train station, he asked her to close her eyes for a moment. Yin, somewhat skeptical, did as Zhang requested only to feel his lips pressed to hers only a moment later. Yin felt repulsed and considered pulling away, but that would have hurt Zhang’s feelings and her chances of being “cured” so she endured.

When Zhang broke the kiss, Yin quickly boarded the train without a word, though she did manage to wave to him from one of the windows of the car before the train pulled out of the station. During the rest of the train ride home, Yin thought about the kiss. She’d managed to endure it without letting on that she was uncomfortable with it, it most certainly had not been “special” or “magical” as the kisses in the novels and legends were depicted.

For the most part, Yin was becoming worried about things with Zhang. She greatly enjoyed his company but as he got closer to her, more familiar and intimate, she began to regret leading the boy on. Nothing had really changed thus far; she still found her eyes drawn away from Zhang by other girls, and on top of that, she began to feel increasingly guilty. She was, more or less using Zhang, the poor boy cared for her, this she knew, but she saw nothing more than a friend in him.

Indecisive as ever, and afraid to hurt her friend’s feelings, Yin did not break things off with Zhang. She continued to go along with him when he offered, though the girl did try to shift their interactions away from romance with jokes, silliness and quick changes of conversation topics. As the months wore on, and the school year neared completion, Zhang would make a move that would come close to ending the pair’s friendship entirely.

One evening, after dinner at one of their usual spots in downtown Chong Dao, Zhang asked Yin if she wanted to come back to his dorm room, back at the school. Yin, missing the implications of such a request, accepted, as she had only visited his room on a few occasions, and then, typically she was just waiting out in the hall for him to change or something of the like.

When the couple reached Zhang’s dorm, they slipped in through the rear entrance, up a flight of stairs and quietly entered the boy’s room. Yin was a bit surprised to find the room empty, typically one would find Zhang’s rotund and rather disorganized roommate there, often practicing his Tsungi Horn.

The farm girl questioned her friend about his roommate’s disappearance and he simply said that he’d left for the day to visit his family. Zhang next moved to his bed and Yin joined him, sitting at the foot. One thing led to another and the next thing Yin knew, she and Zhang were both only half clothed and the boy was upon her. For a time she endured, as she had with his kisses and other advances but as things progressed she felt like a teapot near to boiling.

Things reached a point at which she could take no more and grabbed the boy by the arms before he could get any further. She rolled Zhang off of her and then rolled herself off of the bed, grabbing up her discarded clothing, she dressed herself quickly concentrating upon nothing else. When she’d finished, she looked across the room at the shirtless boy who sat upon his bed, watching her, a rather confused and disappointed look upon his face.

After a long pause, Yin managed to find her voice, “I can’t do this, I just can’t do it, it’s not me. Well, it is me, not you..” She’d trailed off, unable to explain her feelings to the boy. To Yin’s surprise, Zhang rose from the bed and dressed himself as well. He calmly offered to walk the farm girl down to the train station and, as they walked, he let her know he understood and apologized profusely.

Yin had hugged him at the station and asked him if they could still remain friends, frightful that he had been the one to offend Yin, and having no idea what had gone through her mind, he felt immensely relived that he had not lost her altogether and let her know everything would be alright between them. Though it sill hurt Zhang, Yin had been his first real girlfriend after all.

The two wished each other a goodnight and went their separate ways as the train pulled out of the station, on its way to Chu Lin. During the ride home, Yin sat quietly, thinking over everything that had happened, it had seemed like a blur and now she was left trying to put the pieces together into something that made sense. Halfway home, she gave up on her “quest” to be “normal” and wished only for things to return to the way they had been between her and Zhang.

Yin’s third year at Suma Secondary finally wound to an awkward close that summer. For many days following the end of Zhang and Yin’s formal relationship, things had been tense between the two. Zhang was an exceptionally smart and level-headed person, if not a bit prideful, but he still seemed to act somewhat aloof toward Yin, despite having said their friendship could continue.

Yin really did understand what he felt and she could not blame him in the least. She, once again, felt quite foolish with the way she had used him, or, at least, she felt that she had. At times she considered explaining everything to Zhang, though she could never muster the courage required to do so. She did, however, manage to apologize to him; though he wasn’t sure why she did so, Zhang had thought he’d been the one in the wrong, feeling like he’d moved their relationship along too fast.

When the summer began, Yin learned that Liu would be taking summer courses again, though their train schedules were different. Yin’s advanced summer bending course and another catch-up class, this time in Literature and Writing, were both in the later afternoon, while Liu’s enrichment classes started earlier in the morning and got out while Yin was still in her class, needless to say, the two never really saw each other anymore.

Zhang was, as usual, taking the summer bending class as well and, over the course of the summer, the awkward uneasiness between the two friends slowly wore away and both were happy with moving on and retaining their old friendship. Though it had happened slowly, Yin was greatly relived when it seemed things had returned back to pleasant normalcy.

On Yin’s seventeenth birthday, late in the summer, Zhang and a few others whom she maintained casual friendships with went out to a place in Chong Dao for lunch then back to the school for a bit of a party in the dorm’s common area. A month later, Yin’s fourth and last year at Suma Secondary would begin and an event would take place that would change the girl’s future forever.

As the fourth year stated out, Yin found her schedule similar to the last three years, though, now both of her bending classes were considered “Advanced” and she became exceptionally proud of this. During the last year, she even got the chance to take a wood working class that drew her in immediately. A great deal of it, she found quite interesting, though she found herself less than thrilled with some of the more formal and traditional pieces she was required to create.

Socially, Yin was doing well; she had actually managed to make several new friends, mostly from the bending classes. Zhang remained her closest friend, however, and the two spent a great deal of time together while at school and after class. Eventually, feeling she could trust Zhang, Yin asked him to visit Chu Lin and the farm girl showed off her town and home to the colonist.

Midway through the year, the senior class students were called to an event in the center courtyard area of the school. Yin quickly found Zhang and the two picked out seats together on the edge of a raised stone planter box. They’d asked around some as the class moved about the courtyard looking for places to sit, rumor had it that the military had sent recruiters to do a presentation to the class.

It wasn’t a particularly big deal to Yin; she’d been exposed to the propaganda and the stories of the Fire Nation’s March to Civilization since starting at “Chu Lin Academy” at the age of six. The war was taking place, this she knew, but the fact never really weighted on her mind. The Fire Nation was doing the world a service and the other nations were foolishly resisting change, it was as simple as that to the farm girl.

She watched quietly as the soldiers and their commander marched into the courtyard, starting the presentation. For the most part, Yin was rather bored and whispered to Zhang to pass the time, but, as she watched, the soldiers preformed an impressive display of Firebending; the girl could feel the heat upon her face, even from a distance.

This caught her attention and she hushed Zhang for the rest of the presentation, watching and listening intently. By the time the forty-five minute long event ended, Yin’s mind was abuzz with what she had seen. She’d always been a bit uncertain of her future following Secondary School, but now, it seemed she had found something that honestly appealed to her.

She could join the army, perfect her bending, serve her country, family, and the Fire Lord, who, Yin had always believed had taken direct action to protect Chu Lin Valley from the treasure hunters and also helped to increase the profits for the farmers. It was the central Government, after all, that paid her family for their Cane, offering more than the Zhong’s had ever received in the past.

It seemed like the perfect place for her and during the walk to their next class and even after it, Yin talked poor Zhang’s ear off about the military. The presentation occupied the girl’s mind for the rest of the day, she really had direction, a goal, something to do with herself now and it made her feel secure.

When she returned home she immediately told her family of what she had seen and expressed interest in, perhaps, joining up once she had graduated from Suma Secondary. Her father found the idea interesting, her mother didn’t feel that it was the wisest choice, Lee laughed at the thought of his sister a soldier and Chin Da and Yami saw no real problems with the idea. Yin, for once, ignored her mother’s opinion and continued to entertain the idea of enlistment after school.

Back at school, Yin worked hard to keep her academic grades up. Her Literature and Writing class had a major end-of-the-year project due that would practically make or break one’s grade. The topic she’d been assigned – the history and family tree of Fire Lady Illah – did not appeal to the girl in the least and she forced herself to spend time in the library. She also worked with Zhang to complete the project to the standards required, which worked out quite well, as the boy was a marvelous writer.

Fortunately, she had managed to pull up her mathematics grades and settled for passing with average marks, as her major project took up much of her time. When it came to her bending classes, Yin, as always, gave her best effort. Now, however, she took the classes more seriously, with her new goal in mind, she understood that the military would take an interest in her skill if she were to distinguish herself.

The more Yin thought about her plans, the more the idea seemed to work, and soon, she had her heart set upon enlistment, though she did not fully understand what would be expected of her at the time. She even asked Zhang what he thought about joining up with her, but the boy was more interested in becoming a scholar of historical literature than joining the military. Understanding how interested Yin had become, however, Zhang was more than happy to listen to her and even acquired information on the training and the like for her.

Becoming anxious, Yin began to visit Chong Dao’s recruitment center on the other side of town. Here, she met a Sergeant whom she talked to often; the man described military life to the girl, though his words were not always honest. As it was his job to recruit, he left out many of the hardships of war and service life. Finally, during the last month and a half of school, Yin made up her mind and registered at the recruitment center.

They gave her a propaganda riddled information booklet and a date to appear for a physical and other registration procedures once she had graduated from Suma Secondary. The gears were then set into motion and Yin’s path into the military was clear and unalterable. That night, she returned home and proudly announced the news; her mother was still somewhat worried about the idea, though she relented at the sight of her daughter taking such an interest in an honorable, albeit dangerous, path.

When Yin and Zhang, along with the rest of their class, graduated, Yin’s entire family rode the train into Chong Dao to observe the ceremony and celebration. Even Ju and her dopey boyfriend were present, though Yin caught no sight of Liu in the crowd and felt a touch of relief at the fact. Just standing up before hundreds of people alone, was enough to give Yin’s stomach the familiar “Butterfly Dog Ear” tickles.

The ceremony began and, of course, Yin was called toward the end due to her ‘Z’ surname, but once she received her certificate of completion along with several smaller achievement scrolls detailing her completion of the advanced bending classes, she was free to skitter down and join Zhang and her family. Following the ceremony, the group went into Chong Dao for dinner then headed to the train station to head home.

Zhang and Lee had gotten along surprisingly well, as in the past, when they had first met; Lee had developed a tendency to pester Zhang often. Occasionally poking fun at the relationship between Yin and the colonist, though Lee had no idea that they had been anything more than friends, it had brought back some tough memories for both Yin and Zhang. Thankfully though, the boy gave Zhang no trouble.

When the group reached the station, they bid the colonist farewell, as Zhang would be going back to his family in the Colonies for six months before returning, one again, for a higher education, specifically dealing with his passion – Literature. Yin had known for sometime that her friend would be leaving and hugged him tightly; she wished him luck back home and promised to write to him often, he returned the good luck wishes, returned the promise to write and asked that Yin be careful in the military.

She let him know she would stay safe and, as the train pulled out of the station, Yin just caught the end car, standing on the step, holding the railing for a moment, waving goodbye to her old friend. Soon, she was back with her family in the first car and joined their discussions and the like, trying not to dwell on Zhang’s leaving.

Only two weeks after the completion of her Secondary School education, however, Yin was only days away from her acceptance date at the Chong Dao recruitment center. Having read the information booklet cover to cover several times over, Yin had started to prepare herself and began running around the town regularly, in the mornings, to get in better shape. She also helped around the farm as usual but made certain to spend a bit more time with her family each day.

Though the military seemed like a “Grand Adventure” to the young woman, she was aware of the fact that she would be away from her family for long periods of time and she knew she would miss them. At times, she wondered how Zhang had managed, as he had not seen his family for nearly four years.

[ituha]

Now, as Lee prepared for his first year at Suma Secondary, Yin prepared for what would likely be the rest of her life. When the day finally came, Yin gathered her nerve and rode the train down to the Chong Dao recruitment center. The familiar Sergeant took care of the farm girl’s forms and other paperwork before leading her into a large waiting room occupied by a sizeable number of young women sitting in chairs.

After waiting for a time, Yin was called down a hall by her last name, from the waiting room and into a small office where she met with an officer who asked her several question and completed a few more forms that the young woman was required to sign. Once that was complete, the officer stood up; presented Yin with several official looking documents – the ones she had signed – bowed, and welcomed her into the Fire Nation Army’s Domestic Forces Branch, National Guard Section.

Yin was thrilled and stood up, matching the bow and thanking the officer, tacking “sir” onto the end of her sentence. The next stop for the girl was the waiting room once again, then on to a physical administered by a very bored looking Nurse who hardly said two words. Once the physical was complete Yin quickly left the Nurse behind, it hadn’t been a particularly enjoyable experience and she felt no need to linger.

Before she’d left, the Nurse had given Yin a sheet of paper then told her to report back out to the Sergeant at the front desk. On her way out, she passed through the waiting room once more and it seemed the number of girls waiting had diminished considerably, the military certainly was efficient.

When Yin returned to the Sergeant she handed over the papers to him, she had read three of the four and they seemed boringly official, nothing really interesting to them at all. She watched as the Sergeant stamped the papers with several ink stamps in rapid succession, his arm moving like some sort of a mechanical device. As he completed the task, Yin noticed something about him she hadn’t before, looking down at his hand; she noticed he was missing three fingers, perhaps from fighting?

The Sergeant caught the girl’s worried look as she peered at his left hand and he chuckled, explaining that he’d lost the fingers when he’d worked in a factory in his teen years, hardly the impressive war story Yin had been expecting. It did explain why the man was at a desk job, though.

Once finished with the paperwork, the Sergeant gave Yin a small, official looking scroll and welcomed her into the service as the officer had done earlier. Proudly, Yin thanked him, bowed and turned to leave, heading back toward the train station. Immediately outside, she unrolled the scroll and read what was written upon it. She was expected to report for basic training at a base south of Chong Dao on the outskirts of Lun Yang in one month’s time.

For days, following her dealings at the recruitment center, Yin peered at the little scroll that she’d been given. The booklet the Sergeant had presented her with earlier discussed the boot camp some, thought, of course, it was somewhat sugar coated. Yin continued her morning workout routines, hoping to make improvements to her stamina before her month was up. Though she’d been in relatively good shape, thanks to work around the farm and her bending practice, the book suggested preparing physically.

As time ticked down to the end of the month, realization set in for the Zhong family, their daughter would soon be heading off and Lee would begin his Secondary School career shortly, as well. Yin’s younger brother would be going off on the train as she had and the farm girl wished she could accompany him on his first day, but, by the time school began, she would already be away at boot camp.

At the very least, Yin was able to give Lee a bit of a tour of Chong Dao and the school before she left. The boy seemed satisfied and Yin felt confident that he would be able to find his way to and from school without any issues. Though Yin’s relationship with her brother had had its ups and its downs over the years, the last few days they spent together were pleasant ones. They both knew they would miss each other, and Yin couldn’t help but feel a bit worried leaving her brother, who would help him with bullies and the like when she was gone?

On Yin’s last day before boot camp, she worked around the farm as if the next day would be like any other. That evening, she stayed up rather late with her family, excited and nervous about the next day, she probably wouldn’t have slept much anyway. The next morning, quite early, she packed her things, her clothing, her whittling kit and her wooden Turtle Duck carving from her grandfather, among other things, all went into the new duffle bag her mother had bought her.

When it was finally time to say goodbye, the Zhong family went with their daughter to the Chu Lin train station to see her off. Both solemn and proud, her family members hugged her and wished her luck then watched as she boarded the train and waved from an open widow. They stayed until the train was out of sight on the horizon before returning home to continue the generations old daily tasks that a family farm required.

The train ride to Chong Dao was like any other and Yin watched the scenery go by as she had done for the last four years of riding into town, though she knew she wouldn’t be riding home again in the evening. When she reached Chong Dao, Yin wandered about the station for a time, remembering all of the times she’d been there, with Liu, Zhang and her family, but there was little time to reminisce, as Yin soon spotted several girls she recognized from the recruitment center lined up at the end of the platform.

The farm girl joined the others, staying on the edge of the group, feeling a bit shy. Soon, a train approached from the north and pulled into the station before them. A uniformed Captain hopped from the first of the two passenger cars and herded the girls aboard, checking their scrolls as they boarded. Yin made certain to sit at the back of the car, using her bag, placed upon the seat beside her, to ward of those who might try to take the seat, but it seemed no one was interested.

During the two and a half hour train ride south, she inspected her comrades. They seemed like a rather tough lot, though there were a few fragile looking girls amongst the bunch as well. These seemed to wear worried looks and Yin considered consoling the nearest, a thin, brown haired girl sitting across the isle from her, but thought better of it as the Captain patrolled the cars regularly.

When the train turned off the mainline and screeched to a halt, Yin slowly rose from her seat, hoisting her bag onto her shoulder by its strap. The Captain soon returned to Yin’s car and ushered the recruits out of the train onto a new platform where an obese little man stood, wearing the uniform of a Sergeant. As the girls filed out, the Sergeant ordered them to line up on a yellow line painted upon the ground, Yin and the other did as they were told, standing still, watching the smug looking man before them.

The Sergeant paced up and back before them, finally stopping at the center of the line, his beady eyes scanning over the lot assembled, inspecting them like a hawk would inspect a potential meal. When the girls were fully assembled upon their line, the Sergeant addressed them in a terrible shriek of a voice, “Welcome to the Army, Cabbage Slugs! Let’s see if I can turn you sorry lot into something worth the Fire Lord’s Time!”

It came as a bit of a shock to Yin. It seemed everyone at the recruitment center, save for the Nurse, had been so welcoming and friendly and now this man was screaming at her. She decided the best course of action would just be to remain silent and avoid calling any attention to herself. Despite her best efforts, the Sergeant, whose name was revealed to be Huifang, strolled up before her and peered up at her, he certainly was short.

After making a few less-than-friendly remarks about the farm girl’s impressive height, he moved on and berated the next girl in line, moving his way down. Once the “introduction” was complete the lot was led by a Corporal, up a gravel road from the train platform, through a large gate and into the iron-walled base that would serve as the new recruits’ home for the duration of their training.

They were led around and given a bit of a tour. The first stop was the mess hall where the Corporal explained the meal schedule and line procedures, next, they moved on to the obstacle courses and various training grounds, then on to the main administration portion of the base. The center of the walled complex housed a great many large iron buildings, home to the officers and other higher ranking staff, also the site of great planning and conference rooms; it was even rumored to have a kitchen staffed by well trained chefs, though this was likely just a rumor.

The tour made four more stops, the next being a recreation area for the troops, it included a pair Kuai Ball areas, several small Knockit Ball courts and an area for weights and lifting of said weights. Following that, they passed by the base infirmary and then on to the showers and bathrooms. These were gender separated, of course, but Yin was not pleased to learn that facilities were quite public. Bathing here would be far more awkward then anything in the changing room at Suma Secondary had been.

Finally, the group reached their last stop; the barracks that would house them. The building was long and looked something akin to a cylinder cut down the middle and laid upon its side with a door at either end. Inside, the group found a row of bunk beds and here, the Corporal left them to settle in. Before heading off, however, he informed them that they were required to assemble at the main training grounds within the hour.

Yin put away her things and made her bed, she even introduced herself to the girl who had chosen a bunk beside her. She seemed friendly, but a bit nervous and rather preoccupied so Yin let her be and wandered out of the barracks following some of the other girls. When she arrived at the main training grounds, she found Sergeant Huifang waiting beside a table stacked with folded up clothing.

She was quickly issued a pair of boots and a pair of recruit uniforms, one to wear while the other was being cleaned and the like, so she’d never have to wear a dirty outfit. And Huifang had guaranteed them that they would get dirty. Yin returned to the barracks, changed into one of the uniforms and set the other, and the clothes she’d been wearing, aside.

The recruit uniform wasn’t terrible, a bit too small in places, but not uncomfortable and Yin felt rather proud to don it, though it did mark her among the lowest on the totem pole around the base. When she returned to the main training area, Sergeant Huifang was screaming in the face of one of Yin’s fellow recruits, clearly the girl had been late to show up for her uniform.

While the girl was sent to change, the assembled recruits, Yin included, were ordered to run a large circle around the central administration buildings. Sergeant Huifang commanded them to run until the girl returned, but there was a catch. If the whole of the group failed to make three circles around the buildings by the time she returned, they’d run eight more circles as a group. In Yin’s opinion, it was clear that the Sergeant lived in a world where logic did not apply.

Fortunately, the recruits made the three circles before their comrade returned, though most were out of breath. The Sergeant informed them that the circles were quarter miles and that they ought to get used to running them often, as he “liked to watch people run”. When the girl who’d been late returned, Yin noticed that many of the other girls gave her dirty looks, was Sergeant Huifang trying to turn them against each other?

Now that the entire group was fully assembled before the Sergeant, they did several drills, mostly just to get a feel for following orders, knowing where to stand and the like. It started out awkward and Yin found herself confused at times, but eventually they managed to get the hang of moving as a group, though they would still likely make mistakes for a time.

The next few hours were spent trying out one of the obstacle courses. The Sergeant gave them no real time limit, but walked along as each recruit made their attempt, criticizing and screaming at them to move faster. The girl before Yin scraped up her knee badly when she attempted to make her way up a climbing wall. It appeared to be bleeding, but Huifang gave it no notice and the girl simply faded back into the group.

During Yin’s try, she slipped and landed in a muddy water-filled ditch that one was required to leap over. The Sergeant laughed and made a jab at her splayed feet, then ordered her to pick up the pace. Yin felt she’d completed the course in a decent time frame, and slogged back to the group with muddy water seeping from her boots. As much as she hated mud, complaining in front of Huifang would have been a poor choice indeed.

The group ran the course two more times, then it seemed Huifang was becoming a bit bored and ran them over to a paved area with lines upon the ground to facilitate training in marching as a group. The day wore on and Yin became increasingly tired and irritated with the Sergeant, though she knew there was little she could do about him.

Eventually they were dismissed to eat lunch at the mess hall and Yin found herself starving. She waited in the long line, found herself a tray and moved through the food servers. It was rather like the Secondary School lunchroom, though it seemed the staff scooping the food onto the soldiers’ trays moved like lifeless machines. When Yin asked the server behind the counter for an extra scoop of what looked like Cow Hippo beef stew, she only got a dull look in return.

Yin was a bit apprehensive when it came to finding a place to sit, but felt quite relived when the other members of her recruit group beckoned her over to a table they had chosen. After lunch, they were ordered back out and were instructed in several exercises that seemed remarkably simple for the lot of them, though the more they did them the more they realized how sore they would be the next day.

By the time they were dismissed in the evening, they wandered about like zombies, most moving off toward the mess hall for dinner. Yin had honestly never felt so exhausted in her entire life, not even after work around the farm, back home, or after her bending classes, had she felt so tired. The food was definitely mediocre at best, and, had Yin not been so tired and hungry, she might have missed her mother’s cooking.

After dinner, the farm girl trudged off to the barracks, fetched some clothing and showered. So tired was she, that she didn’t even care to notice her comrades were bathing nearby, in plain sight. After showering, she wrapped her hair up in a towel and returned to the barracks where she plopped facedown upon her bunk, asleep before her face met the pillow.

The next morning Yin awoke to the shrill sound of a horn being blown just outside of the barracks. She would have rolled over and gone back to sleep, if not for the female Corporal who strolled down the isle of bunks, prodding anyone who wasn’t up and ready with the handle of her Dadao sword. Once up, Yin realized she’d left her hair up in the towel and, when she unwrapped it, she found it matted and tangled, but there seemed to be no time to tame it, as breakfast was only served for a certain amount of time each morning.

Dressed in her clean uniform and, thankfully, now dry boots, she made her way off to the mess hall to start her day. As Yin adjusted to life on the base, she found herself perpetually tired, and it seemed she was not the only one. As weeks passed, it seemed she really learned little about her comrades; they all tended to be too tired to talk when free time presented itself.

By the fourth week, however, it seemed Yin and most of her recruit group mates were toughening up and, despite the rigorous routines Sergeant Huifang put them through, they managed to find a bit of energy to do other things. Yin managed to write home and even sent off a letter to Zhang in the Earth Kingdom. She admitted she had questioned her decision during the first few weeks of basic training, though, now, she felt she could overcome and continue on.

Toward the end of the fifth week, some of the girls had actually been sent home and Yin had watched them sadly pack up their things and wander back out to the train platform, she made up her mind that she would never be one of those girls. Helping further, Yin did make friends with some of the other recruits, though she was a bit embarrassed when they told her about their homes, all had lived in the Nation’s largest cities. While Yin, on the other hand, had been born in Chu Lin Valley, a place unknown to all but one of her new friends.

As the sixth week came to an end, Yin quietly celebrated her eighteenth birthday, letting only two of her friends know about it. She seriously feared that Huifang would double their runs or the like to “celebrate”. Though the Sergeant never learned that it had been Yin’s birthday, their daily routine did change. They left behind the more basic drills and began training with weapons, mostly Warspears and Dadao swords.

Yin wasn’t exactly pleased with the change at first, but soon adapted. She did find it strange that they were training her and the other benders amongst the group in melee weapons, however. The farm girl considered asking someone, though never worked up the courage and, instead, learned from a friend who had asked. The practice was to give the benders two weeks of basic weapons training before they were sorted out into Bender specific training groups. It helped to give them the ability to pick up a weapon and use it effectively if the need arose.

Yin found the swords difficult to get the hang of, being left handed, but the spears seemed easier to control and she proved herself decent with the former and competent with the latter. When the two week period was up, Yin and seven other benders from her recruit group of sixteen remaining girls were sorted out and placed under a Captain who would carry out their bending instruction.

Pleased to finally be away from Sergeant Huifang, the farm girl settled into the new routine under Captain Yao. Though she still bunked in the same barracks with the nonbenders from her recruitment group, Yin and the seven others found themselves in a mixed bunch under Yao, a group that was made up of both young women and men.

Firebending was the main focus of the group, though they still ran, exercised, and did the obstacle courses regularly as well. Yin quickly took to the military style bending, though it was somewhat different from what she’d been taught back at Suma Secondary. Back there, one was allowed to personalize a style to a degree and the class focused on technique and new moves. The military, however, taught a specific swift assault style with a focus on ferocity and stamina, as maintaining a high level of combat for long periods of time would be essential.

This portion of boot camp really appealed to Yin and she applied herself fully to mastering what was taught. While others complained about the rigorous practice and sparring, Yin forged on and elevated herself to a position near the top of her group in skill. Even suffering a few burns here and there from arrogant sparring partners, Yin didn’t back down, though she never showed anger toward them either, ever patient.

When the five weeks of Firebending training were completed, Yin was commended on her skill and, while basic training was complete for many of her comrades, the farm girl was recommended for advanced training courses under a different Captain, fortunately at the same base, as it was the one of the sites for the “Advanced Program”. A bit nervous about being accepted for further training, Yin wrote her family and friend, telling them of her new experiences, her apprehension seemed easier to deal with when she shared her feelings through the letters and received encouragement in return.

The Advanced Courses were indeed different, however. When Yin reported for her first day, she noticed how few had been chosen, only ten others were present and only a few she recognized from her old group. She was also rather disappointed to see that, among the group, there were only two other girls, and neither she knew.

As Yin’s recruit group had, for the most part, completed their training and been assigned around the Fire Nation, the farm girl found that she had the girls’ barracks to herself, that is, until a new group of young recruits arrived. Yin tried to be accommodating, the wide-eyed, nervous bunch made her wonder if she’d looked the same way fresh off the train. She helped them when she could and gave advice, her protective side coming out somewhat.

The training was certainly tougher now, then it had been with Captain Yao, the “Advanced Courses” truly lived up to the name and Yin found herself thoroughly challenged. She knew right away that it would not be a walk in the park. The new Captain, a man named Sheng, was exceptionally strict and a perfectionist. He had no qualms with making the recruits retry a move for hours until they met his standards. Unlike Yao, he wasn’t in the least bit understanding or compassionate, though he was unlike Huifang as well, and did not needlessly harass the group.

Sheng pushed the group relentlessly, however, and within two weeks time, three recruits were dropped from the program and assigned to actual units. Yin worked tirelessly, though it seemed Captain Sheng would always find problems with her stances or her landings coming out of kicks and other various attacks. He also criticized her left-handed technique but let the issue drop, as there was little Yin could really do about it.

Over the next two weeks, four more recruits were dropped from the program and assigned, leaving Yin and one other girl as the only female soldiers left amongst the group. The farm girl was increasingly fearful that she would be next to go and redoubled her efforts to impress the Captain. Finally, during the last week of the five week program, it seemed she was measuring up to his high standards; he rarely criticized her forms, simply observing and nodding slowly.

When the final day came, Captain Sheng presented each of the four remaining recruits with a certificate that officially stated their completion of the course and basic training all in one. Yin later learned that she had managed to come in third in the course that had started off with eleven recruits. She was quite proud as Sheng presented her with the certificate and bowed before her, his face an emotionless mask, as always.

With her certificate in hand, Yin reported to the administration offices and was quickly given her new orders and a complete Domestic Forces National Guard Firebender’s uniform. The next day, she left the base on the train, having wished the new recruits from her barracks luck. Southbound to a base on the outskirts of the city of Zaozhou, here, she would begin her formal military career.

The train wound its way through Lun Yang and Yin peered out at the golden-roofed city as it passed by. Some of her comrades from basic had ventured into the city during their down time, though Yin had been either too tired or too nervous to join them when the opportunity had presented itself. As she watched it, she felt that, perhaps, she’d made a mistake in not visiting. The city, though new and somewhat frightening, seemed exciting to the girl, but soon, the train had left the great capital city behind.

Moving farther south, the train passed through several small villages and towns. Eventually, Yin became somewhat anxious and pulled her assignment orders out of her duffle bag, giving them a look. Unfortunately, they were quite vague, detailing only her record transfers and the like; they provided no information on the city of Zaozhou itself or the exact location of the base. The farm girl made up her mind that she would have to ask directions once she arrived.

The unit she was being assigned to; The Domestic Force’s Sixth Regional Command, Third division under a Captain by the name of Zhu, Second Platoon, seemed to be a typical “Home Guard” unit and Yin hoped that her new comrades would treat her well. She was still quite new and would have to learn the new routines once she reached the base. In basic, they’d briefly gone over the various jobs soldiers like Yin were given, though there were bound to be differences from unit to unit.

Eventually the train entered the outskirts of a city or large town; the sky seemed to darken and the ground outside took on a dark gray shade. The train moved deeper into the city and, instead of the large and proud buildings of Chong Dao and Lun Yang, Yin watched rundown homes and cheap looking multi-story apartment complexes, tightly clustered together, pass by the windows of the car.

Finally the train pulled into the Zaozhou train station and Yin stepped off with her bag in hand. She now understood why the sky was darkened, a perpetual haze of smoke and ash hung in the air, drifting on the winds from the northeastern side of the city. Turning, Yin spotted the source; a massive industrial park dominated the skyline to the north and east, a veritable forest of smoke stacks spewing the smoke and ash into the air.

Looking about, the city was quite large and sprawled outward in all directions. Nervously, Yin left the station and turned out onto a main street. The people around her all seemed to either trudge along wearily or move about at a rapid pace as if they were Hummingbird Bees late on their way back to the hive. Alone and practically lost, Yin wandered along, becoming increasingly frightened that she might be unable to find the base on time, or at all, for that matter.

Just as she began to feel desperate, she sensed a presence behind her and turned to find herself face to face, more or less, with a rather short, stocky woman, clad in the uniform of a nonbending Corporal who peered back up at her. The woman asked if Yin was lost and the farm girl explained her situation eliciting a toothy grin from the Corporal.

Feeling a bit relived, Yin followed along as the woman led her down several streets toward the southwestern part of town, talking incessantly as they went. Yin listened carefully as the pudgy Corporal introduced herself and explained some about Zaozhou, the base, and occasionally asked the farm girl questions as well. The woman’s name was Chun, though several inches shorter, she had three years on Yin and strode about the town like she owned the place, the farm girl’s nerves settled almost immediately.

The pair soon reached the base and Chun helped the new recruit find the administration buildings where Yin would turn over her assignment papers and the like. Once that was finished, Yin strolled out only to be met once again by the kindly Corporal who offered to give her a tour of the base. The base itself was very similar to the one Yin had been sent to for her training, the same basic layout and facilities, though all on a smaller scale. She also noticed that the base was out of the path of the smoke and haze from the factories, leaving the air clean and clear.

Following the tour, Chun led Yin up a small hill within the walled complex to the barracks, all seemingly exact copies of the ones from the training base. She led her inside and helped the new addition settle in before explaining that she had to return to her patrol route. Yin wished her well and took a quick nap on her new bunk; she was surprised at how accommodating Chun had been and took a liking to the older woman. She couldn’t help but wonder, however, who she might otherwise have run into on that street in town.

Because she’d not yet been formally assigned to a squad, Yin lounged around for the rest of the day, resting from her trip or strolling around the base inspecting the facilities. Unfortunately, she found that the showers were of the same unpleasantly public design as those back at the training base. The mess hall, too, seemed set up in the same way and the young woman doubted that the food here would be any better.

Later that evening, the other soldiers began to return from their patrols of the city. Some welcomed Yin while others shunned her and it seemed some didn’t even notice she was there, but Yin had come to expect this and gave the social aspects little thought, at least it seemed she had a friend in Chun, she was fairly certain. When dinnertime rolled around, she made her way to the mess hall and found Chun and three other soldiers reserving an entire table, as Yin turned out of the serving line, they called to her and she took a seat with them.

Chun introduced her to the three other soldiers in the group; all three were nonbenders, two were men and the third, a woman who appeared to be even younger than Yin herself. It seemed they already knew some about her; clearly the Corporal had described Yin to them during the day. All four regulars at the table smirked at the farm girl and Chun announced that Yin had been added to her squad, the three seated at the table with her would be her new squad mates.

Yin was a bit shy at first, but they all seemed like decent people and, as she got to know each one a bit better, she began to feel lucky that she’d ended up in Corporal Chun’s Fourth Squad. After dinner, Yin, Chun and their other female squad mate made their way back to the barracks for the night.

The next day, bright and early, Yin awoke and changed into her new uniform for the first time. She had a bit of trouble with the armored pieces but quickly figured them out, fortunately, the uniform fit her well and she felt both comfortable and proud wearing it. After breakfast, she met up with the others from the Fourth Squad and Chun sat the lot down with several maps and explained the layout of Zaozhou, their patrol routes and general purpose.

When they were finished, and Yin had been assigned a section of the city to patrol, Chun presented her with a thick handkerchief, explaining that she ought to wrap it around her head, keep it wet, and breath through it when in the smoky portion of the city. The smoke and ash could easily cause lung irritation or worse, and it was due to this, that Yin’s predecessor had had to retire early.

Feeling confident that she could complete the route without too much trouble and hoping to live up to Chun’s expectations, Yin studied her small map and turned off toward her part of the city once the group reached the downtown area. The young Firebending Soldier’s first patrol went well and she slowly developed a sense of where she was in the city. At first she’d thought the map was too detailed and small, but it came in handy when she got into the denser lower class areas of the industrial city.

She had been instructed to use her whistle or send up a blast of flame if she were to run into any trouble, but nothing arose and she simply got a chance to observe the people and the city as she made her way up and down the streets on the look out for trouble. When the city’s central clock reached two in the afternoon, easily made known by the ringing of a great bell, Yin made her way back to the central marketplace and met up with her comrades.

After a quick lunch break, they switched portions of the city and Yin found herself in the hazy side of town, deep in the slums and the impoverished sections. She made certain to wear the handkerchief Chun had given her, regularly removing it and rewetting it with water from her canteen.

During this second patrol, however, Yin did get a chance to use her authority. Out of the corner of her eye, while walking down a narrow street, she observed a man leap from an alleyway and snatch a bag from an elderly man’s hands. She spun around, shoved the whistle in her mouth and blew it several times. For a moment, the thief turned and looked back, when he noticed Yin he bolted and ran directly into a fruit stand.

Before he could get to his feet, she was before him, crouched in a ready stance, her left hand aimed at his chest, ready to unleash a blast of flames at a moment’s notice. Soon, the elderly man and one of Yin’s male squad mates had arrived at the fruit stand. They returned the bag to the man, helped pick up the stand then bound the thief’s hands and roughly pushed him along to the city’s central marketplace.

Eventually Chun and the others arrived and they took the man to the local jail where he would like stay overnight. Yin was praised for her quick thinking and happily returned to base with her comrades for dinner, that evening. She told the story several times over of how she’d caught the guy and how he’d ran straight into the stand. The others chuckled and grinned and Yin felt wholly accepted.

She was soon used to her new life and when her first pay day came she allocated thirty percent to send home to her family, thirty percent more to save in the bank and the final forty percent she stashed away in a pouch that she hid between her mattresses for a time when she might need it.

As time went on, Yin wrote her family and Zhang and told them of her new experiences, her new friends and Zaozhou in general. She had grown close to her comrades, Chun especially, and it seemed the older woman enjoyed Yin’s presence just as much as she enjoyed hers. By the end of her fourth month in Chun’s Fourth Squad, the farm girl had done a great deal, she’d caught or helped to catch several criminals and had even helped rescue a little boy who’d been pinned beneath a wagon when the wheel broke, sending it toppling onto its side. She also began to notice an old but familiar feeling when she was around Chun.

It was slight at first, and Yin hadn’t put much thought into anything between her and the Corporal, but the more time she spent with her, the more the feelings crept up upon her. When she first truly became aware of it, she fought to suppress it, fearing things would turn out the way they had with Liu. She told herself time and time again not to risk her feelings upon a one-sided little crush as she had done with her old friend.

While she began to struggle with her feelings again, letters from home helped to take her mind off things. The Cane harvest had been of record quality, Lee was fitting in well at Suma Secondary and her grandparents were both in good health, all seemed well at home in Chu Lin Valley. Zhang too, was doing well. He had spent his time with his family and was preparing to return to the Fire Nation to continue his education soon. Skilled teachers were sought after in the colonies and Zhang intended to help fill the need.

When it came to Captain Zhu, Yin saw little of the man. He seemed to keep to himself for the most part, remaining up in the main administration tower building at the center of the complex. Though, from the few and far between interactions they’d had with the man, Yin learned from her comrades that he was quite a reasonable fellow and had actually been reassigned from the frontlines after some sort of incident.

While Yin had been fortunate in meeting many friendly folks around the base, there were others who seemed content with nothing more then challenging her to mock duels and the like. To some of the other Firebending soldiers, Yin was only a challenge to test their skills against and she had some near misses over her first half-year at Zaozhou from their “overenthusiastic” fighting styles.

Over time, Yin’s street experience grew and she learned to read people and understand different situations better. Her comrades had stressed the importance of observation, as this was one of their main tasks – to observe and act when trouble arose. During her first few weeks with the Fourth Squad, Chun or her other squad mates had, at times, accompanied her on her patrol routes, pointing out things and people, both suspicious and benign, that she would never have spotted otherwise.

Soon, Yin began to think of herself as a protector of the innocent and walked the hazy streets with pride. Eventually she found herself able to pick up on subtle things that could incriminate a thief or determine someone’s innocence in a situation. She also became closer with her squad mates, having one or two come to her aid with impressive speed in an emergency or Yin herself weaving through back alleys at a sprint to answer a whistle call from a friend in need.

It wasn’t long before she did see her group as friends, all of them, though there was something more she felt for Chun. When around the Corporal, she found herself giggling hysterically at the older woman’s jokes and just a general awkwardness about her nature began to show. Chun pick up on things easily and playfully prodded Yin, occasionally calling her out on her peculiar behavior, causing the Firebender’s face to flush a deep red.

Yin quickly realized how silly she’d been acting, and in front of everyone, as well. She knew quite well that, if her little secret was found out, she would likely be dishonorably discharged from the Domestic Forces, ending her military career. It wasn’t exactly something in the rule book, certainly not an overt regulation, but soldiers had been dismissed for far less and Yin became somewhat frightened.

Chun, on the other hand, found Yin’s growing infatuation amusing and decided to make a small move of her own to confirm her suspicions. Later one evening, while Yin was returning from the showers, Chun caught up with her and the two walked back to the barracks together. Before they reached the top of the hill, Chun idly asked the young woman if there were any restaurants she preferred in Zaozhou.

Yin had stopped in her tracks, curious if the Corporal was implying something, and tried to remember if Chun had expressed any particular interest in a specific type of food. Of course she had, Yin remembered, Chun loved to talk, after all. The farm girl slyly answered with the name of a place that served Chun’s favorite foods and the older woman chuckled at Yin’s attempt at subtle incentive.

That night, Yin slipped into her bunk for the night, filled with anxiety and excitement. Did Chun like her? Or was she just playing around? There was also fear in the girl’s mind, would she be “discovered” and loose her position? As much as she wanted to tell the Corporal, likely, what she already knew, the risk seemed too great and Yin decided to put a lid upon her feelings and act as normal as she could, hoping to not draw attention or suspicion from other soldiers.

Only a few days later, the Corporal offered to take Yin to her “favorite” restaurant and the farm girl accepted without a second thought. That evening, after the group had returned to base, Yin dressed up in her civilian outfit, washed and put her hair up in a top-knot and went to meet Chun for their little outing into the city for dinner. The older woman, dressed in her uniform from the day’s patrol, grinned and shook her head at the sight of Yin prettied up.

The evening was pleasant if not somewhat awkward for Yin. It was certainly clear that Chun understood what was going through the girl’s mind and it seemed she enjoyed toying with her some. After dinner, as they made their way home in the dark, the Corporal asked her directly and honestly what she felt and the like. Yin stopped and peered though the dark, catching Chun’s dark brown eyes boring into her and, somewhat intimidated, she quietly admitted her feelings and explained things to the Corporal who stood surprisingly silent, listening.

There was silence for a moment, and Yin felt she’d made a terrible mistake, but she then caught a gleam in the dark, Chun’s usual toothy grin. The Corporal stepped a bit closer and told Yin that she “was a cute kid” and that they’d “have to come out to town together again sometime”, and with that, Chun chuckled and started back off toward the base once again. Yin stood for a moment, feeling quite relived and certainly excited before jogging along to catch up with her.

Over the years Yin spent at the base in Zaozhou, the two would grow closer, their little dinner dates eventually becoming a full fledged romantic relationship and love affair, though conducted in extreme secrecy, as both knew the consequences of discovery were a very real threat to their careers. It meant a great deal to Yin, however, how much her partner cared for her, as the distinguished Corporal was more than willing to take the risk.

These were happy times for Yin and she found herself rarely bored during her free time, it seemed there was always something to do. Write to her family and friends, whittle, practice her bending, spend time with Chun or even join her squad mates for a game of Knockit Ball. Though, it was during one game with her friends, that she would suffer a painful injury.

Played on a court denoted by lines painted upon the ground and a four foot tall net positioned across the court, divining each side, Knockit Ball was played with large wooden paddles used to swat a rather bouncy leather-bound ball back and forth from side to side. The goal of the game was to knock the ball over the net, past the two other players and into a box painted upon the ground at the end of the court. A point was awarded for each time the ball could be knocked into the opposing team’s goal box.

One afternoon, while the sun was just setting and a cool breeze off of the ocean to the east blew through the base complex, Yin and her three equivalently ranked squad mates were out on the court playing a game and having a bit of fun. Yin had never been great at it, the paddles were a bit cumbersome and she tended to hit the ball too hard, sending it flying clean over the other team’s goal box, but she was still enjoying herself.

Yin and her fellow female squad mate had been challenged by the two men from Chun’s Fourth and both had accepted the challenge. The game had started out in favor of the men, they were up by three within the first fifteen minutes of play, but a lucky shot by Yin and two well placed ones from her teammate led to a tied score.

Then, it was their ball again; they could break the tie with a precise shot. Yin wasn’t great at serving the ball so she tossed it over to the other girl and she knocked it over the net, but the men managed to knock it right back at them. Yin, watching the ball and nothing else, moved to the right and forward to hit it, though as she moved so did her right-handed teammate. The other girl swung, hit the ball and as she followed through, the paddle struck Yin squarely in the face.

The heavy wooden paddle struck hard, first breaking the bridge of her nose. As it rolled, the edge also struck her forehead just above her left eye, leaving a sizeable bruise. Yin grunted in pain, dropped her paddle and clutched both hands to her face, finding a steady stream of blood trickling from her nostrils. She turned immediately and raced to the showers in search of a sink or other source of cool water to put upon her face.

Her friends quickly followed her and urged her to visit the infirmary, Yin, at first, refused, claiming that it wasn’t that bad, but then she looked in a mirror and realized that her nose was noticeably crooked and badly swollen around the break. One of Yin’s squad mates eventually pulled Chun away from some paperwork and the Corporal saw to it that Yin visited the base doctor who manually straightened the girl’s nose out.

For quite some time, Yin kept her head in a sink, running cold water over her nose to control the swelling, as ice was nowhere to be found in the tropical Fire Nation. Eventually the pain decreased to the point where she was able to live with it, though, her nose would forever have a slight crook to the bridge. Additionally, she never accepted an invitation to a game of Knockit Ball again, claiming that “Knockout Ball” was more suitable a name for it.

Three months into her second year based in Zaozhou, Yin would add a new weapon to her personal arsenal to supplement her Bbending. With a considerable number of patrols under her belt by the second year, Yin had discovered a bit of a problem when the need arose for her to apprehend someone. She could use her bending, yes, but that wasn’t always the best solution when one intended to capture a criminal or the like alive.

At times the mere sight of her flames could cause someone attempting to flee to freeze in their tracks, though when she encountered another bender or someone intent on escaping or fighting back, the issue arose. Firebending just wasn’t very well suited to taking someone down relatively unharmed.

Yin had mentioned this issue to Chun at a point and the Corporal suggested she bring it up the next time the squad was together. Afraid that it might seem like she was complaining, Yin waited until the squad met for lunch between patrols in downtown Zaozhou. She expressed her concerns and the others, though all nonbenders, understood her argument. One suggested she carry a Dadao with her as a secondary weapon, but the back sheath’s straps would interfere with her armored shoulder guard’s straps.

She also admitted that she was rather poor with the swords and Chun was first to offer a hand in helping her train with one. Yin was ready to accept, more so for a chance to be with Chun than to really learn the Dadao, when the other female squad member spoke up and mentioned a weapon she’d seen another Firebender from their base use. She described the wooden baton weapon and its versatility and, from what she heard, Yin was thoroughly interested.

Later that day, Yin’s squad mate tracked down the fellow who carried the baton and introduced him to the farm girl. He didn’t seem particularly interested in speaking with her, keeping a rather bored look upon his face, though it didn’t much matter to Yin, she was there to learn about the baton weapon. Eventually the other soldier brought out the weapon, called a Tonfa Baton, and explained some basic moves and whatnot as Yin watched, by the time he was done, she had her heart set on acquiring one of the weapons.

The Tonfa seemed ideal to her needs, the various takedowns the other Firebender had shown her would be perfect on the streets and the like and Yin told her friends that she would search for one. She had asked the fellow, who’d given her the demonstration, but he had said he’d had his since his last posting, before coming to Zaozhou. So, between her patrols, Yin checked around the marketplaces and various shops in town in hopes of finding one of the batons.

Her searches turned up little, unfortunately, and Yin began to wonder if she would have to special order the weapon through a shop or somehow requisition one through the Army, though it seemed the weapon wasn’t exactly standard issue. After her attempts to acquire the baton through military channels failed, Yin began to try the shops again. Though, one evening when she returned to the barracks, she found something crudely wrapped up in paper lying upon her bunk.

She removed the paper wrapping and found that the item was the weapon she sought, a smile crossing her face as she took it in her hand like the other soldier had shown her. She soon encountered her squad mates and the lot of them grinned when they saw she’d found her gift. Eventually she managed to get it out of them and they admitted that it was an early birthday present, as Yin’s twenty-first birthday was only a month away.

With her new weapon in hand, Yin sought out the perpetually bored Firebender from before and requested training. He didn’t seem thrilled with the request, but fortunately one of Yin’s squad mates, the woman who’d introduced her to the fellow, prodded him into helping Yin learn. He relented and the lessons began, one hour in the evenings after the day’s patrols every other night. The farm girl took to the weapon well, finding it just as versatile as it had looked in the hands of her new “teacher”.

After several weeks’ worth of the little evening lessons, the other Firebender deemed Yin competent with the weapon and claimed she needed no more instruction from him, likely just to get her out of his hair. Yin felt she had learned enough of the basics to use the weapon properly and began carrying it with her on patrols. Within the first three weeks of bringing it along, it proved useful in disarming and disabling a man who’d attacked her with a knife during a patrol in one of the shadier parts of town.

Yin’s life in Zaozhou was pleasant, though there were always dangers present when out on the streets, but she had become used to this over time. While out and about, she would tend to keep a bored air of disinterest, though in actuality, her gold tinted eyes surveyed her surroundings attentively from behind her half-lidded gaze. Yin’s normal routine would be challenged, however, by a major event that would have significant impact on the farm girl’s career, her relationship with Chun, and the city of Zaozhou itself.

Late one afternoon, Yin and Chun were preparing to go into town as they often did. The Fourth Squad had the next day off from patrols and the pair often left the base at different times then met up in town to rent a hotel room for the night. The set up had worked well and allowed the two intimate time alone without the risk of being caught by squad mates or other soldiers. Both realized conducting such an affair on base would be practically suicidal to their futures.

It was Yin’s turn to leave first, that evening, and the pair had already picked a small hotel to stay the night at ahead of time. As Yin was on her way out, she noticed strange clouds billowing up from the northeast, she nearly dismissed them as smoke from the factories but it seemed far too thick. As she stood observing it, just outside of the base’s main gates, several soldiers ran up the hill from town, straight past her and toward the administration buildings.

Only minutes later, wailing claxons sounded throughout the base complex. Yin quickly returned to the barracks and changed into her uniform and armor. When she emerged from the barracks she found the courtyard filled with her fellow soldiers, confused and feeling somewhat panicked she quickly found Chun and the others amongst the crowd.

Captain Zhu made an appearance and ordered the Squads into town to deal with rescue and evacuation efforts as the city’s northeastern residential and industrial section was reportedly going up in flames as they spoke. Some spoke of sabotage, others of an accident, though no one knew for certain. The lot of soldiers quickly moved out, down into Zaozhou, toward the growing smoke clouds.

Chun’s Fourth Squad soon arrived at the edge of the conflagration, the tightly packed lower class neighborhoods and the constant easterly winds pushed the flames along at a terrible rate, consuming everything in their path. Yin and her squad mates helped guide a constant stream of citizens toward the southwest and away from the flames, they had to manage the narrow streets and try to keep the people from bolting madly ahead.

Eventually, another Squad relived them. Though, instead of falling back, Chun ordered her group forward to search for survivors as the fire moved steadily west. When they got close to the partially burning southern portion of the affected areas, they encountered a group of Firefighters who refused to let them pass, claiming that the army would “Get in their way”. Chun ordered them aside, but they refused and the lot actually seemed ready to fight, the leader striding over to glare down at the Corporal.

Yin, charged on adrenaline, determined to search for survivors and enraged at the though of simply standing back and watching the Firefighter Captain berate Chun, charged forward and caught the man’s left temple with the handle of her Tonfa baton. The Firefighter Captain had no time to react and sagged to his knees, falling flat upon the ground, out cold. The other Firefighters brandished their axes and the like, and Yin’s squad mates drew their Dadaos, but before either side could make a move, a series of loud booms echoed from the northeast, drawing everyone’s attention.

Boilers from one of the burning factories had exploded, sending chunks of red-hot iron raining down upon the area, starting new, smaller fires. The Firefighters put away their weapons and begrudgingly picked up their Captain, forced to deal with the new fires instead of causing trouble with the Domestic Forces soldiers.

Into the partially burning section they charged, searching half burned homes and shops for survivors. At a point, the squad became separated in the smoke and Yin, alone, led several survivors from their burning home to safety, returning three more times to find more and a fourth to help rescue one of her squad mates after he had been injured by falling debris.

Chun’s Fourth Squad was finally ordered back late that evening and, as they trudged tiredly back up the hill to the base, they could still see the flickering of the fire off to the northeast, still not fully contained. Though burned and battered, their efforts had saved many lives and all but the one had managed to escape with only minor injuries.

Over the next two weeks, Yin and the whole of Captain Zhu’s forces aided in the search and rescue and clean up efforts, the Great Zaozhou Fire, as it came to be known, had taken nearly three hundred and fifty lives, destroyed a third of the city’s industrial park and consumed thousands of homes and shops in the town’s lower class districts. Federal troops from up north soon arrived to aid the Domestic Forces as well, they set up refugee camps and the railroad was used extensively to bring in supplies to the city.

It was later discovered that the fire had been caused by a factory worker who’d failed to shut a door on one of the boilers’ fireboxes, allowing a spark to leap out and ignite a large coal pile. The pile had burned internally, unnoticed for sometime, and the great fire had begun while the factory was shutting down for the evening.

After things finally died down, Yin and Chun got their chance to slip away and enjoy an evening together in town. The morning after, Chun admitted she had some news for Yin that she had been reluctant to reveal. The farm girl sat quietly as her partner explained the situation. The Corporal was in line for a promotion and she had just received the news a few days before the Great Fire. Chun was to be promoted to Sergeant and reassigned to a base near the town of Shu.

Yin was devastated and shocked; sitting silently she tried to cope with the news. After nearly three years together, they were going to be split up by orders. Unable to contain her emotions, she began to cry and Chun slid over next to her, hugging the farm girl. Both had suspected the day might come when they would have to part ways at the military’s will, but neither had really planned for it.

Eventually Yin settled and looked to her lover, Chun explained to her that she had one last thing to do before they were forced to say goodbye. She had been planning to recommend Yin for promotion, though she had not yet done it, as it would have meant their separation sooner. But now, as it was certain that the Corporal would be reassigned, she felt that Yin deserved it and even suggested that they might be sent to the same base, giving the girl a bit of hope to cling to.

Three days later, both teary-eyed, the two said their final goodbyes and, newly promoted; Sergeant Chun bored a train that would take her halfway to the base near Shu. Yin slumped into a listless state over the next few days, command was processing her status and it would be some time before they either promoted or reassigned her, or both. With Chun leaving, the Fourth Squad was taken off of the active roster for the time being and her squad mates also lounged about.

At last, Yin received her new orders; she’d been promoted to Corporal and was issued a new Happuri style headband and forehead guard that denoted her new rank. She felt quite proud to wear it and thought of Chun often, knowing that it had likely been the Corporal’s words that had elevated her to where she now was. There was a downside, however, she was to be reassigned as Chun had been, they were sending her to a base near Lun Yang to lead a squad of her very own.

Forced to say farewell to her old friends from the Fourth Squad, Yin was northbound for Lun Yang on an early morning train two days later. The life she had known had been turned upside down and she was hurtling into the unknown. When the train arrived in Lun Yang, she stepped off, onto the platform, only to be greeted by a few soldiers who had been sent to meet her. She was a bit surprised by a welcoming committee and followed them back to the base that would become her new home.

The Lun Yang base seemed larger and far more modern than the one at Zaozhou and Yin quietly settled herself in. The next day, she met the four soldiers who would make up her command, the Second Squad of the Third Platoon. The first, a nonbender named Shing, seemed to be a real joker, he seemed decent enough but his sense of humor wore on Yin’s nerves at times, though she never admitted it.

The next was a Firebender by the name of Xiu; she struck Yin as rather bitter and at times ferocious. Occasionally talking back and challenging orders. Yin was patient, yet stern with the woman and made certain to keep Xiu on a tight leash. The second bender in Yin’s group was a man named Li. He often kept a look and tone of great seriousness, showing little emotion and speaking rarely. Despite this, Yin found him to be reliable and level-headed, a good choice to pair with Xiu on patrols.

Yin’s last subordinate, a younger girl and a nonbender named Pang, seemed quite reasonable, if not a bit shy and Yin found herself acting a bit protective of the girl. At times getting after Shing and Xiu when they gave Pang trouble, be it the domineering intent of the latter or the playful jokes by the former.

For the most part, Yin was happy with her group, though Xiu could, at times, test her patience. She spoke with some of the other Corporals and figured out patrols routes and the like, eventually making friends with a fellow named Chung who helped her to settle into a routine in the large city. Lun Yang was almost nothing like Zaozhou, though one could still find lower class neighborhoods and slums that seemed similar to the ones in the industrial city to the south.

The first few months in Lun Yang went well enough. Yin still missed Chun and wrote to her as often as she did Zhang and her family back home. She did get the chance to travel north to Chong Dao on a day trip and met her family, spending a day with them in the city, she had missed them greatly and, with her reassignment, she would be able to meet with them at least once a month.

[ituha]

Around the base, Yin made a few new friends, mostly members of her Second Squad. She also got to know Chung better; he was a rather quiet, thoughtful fellow who enjoyed games like chess and Pai Sho. Yin had never much liked Pai Sho but was willing to learn chess and Chung happily taught her. The two often met in the late afternoons for a game after their respective Squads had completed the day’s patrols.

Yin was quite terrible at chess, but she never refused an offer to play, as she knew Chung greatly enjoyed it. He never lost a game to her and she often told him he should try playing in tournaments, though he never seemed to agree, claiming that his skills were not exceptional in the least and that it was simply a hobby.

Halfway through her first year based in Lun Yang, however, Yin made a decision that would give her a little more freedom in her day to day life. For the first half, she’d lived on-base with her comrades though she slowly grew tired of the public nature of the barracks and bathing facilities and considered moving off into an apartment in the city. Sharp-minded Corporal Chung helped her find a suitable place in town that wouldn’t consume all of Yin’s pay and the farm girl jumped at the opportunity.

She was soon moved into a small studio apartment with cold running water, a bathtub, a flush toilet, and a gas stove. Yin was amazed at some of the modern conveniences and the simple differences between her old home in Chu Lin and this little apartment in the capital city were impressive. Though it was cheaper to live on-base, the freedom and privacy of having one’s own place was a luxury that Yin greatly enjoyed.

The apartment complex was owned by a middle-aged couple who seemed friendly to Yin and she settle right in. She would wake up in the early mornings, prepare and eat breakfast then jog the neighborhood and run through an exercise routine before returning home to get the armored portions of her uniform and then it was off to the base.

She would report to the administration buildings, receive her unit orders for the day, meet with her squad and then they would go over the patrol routes for each member and head into town. Patrols around Lun Yang were extremely routine and Yin saw only a fraction of the crime and violence that she had experienced in Zaozhou. This wasn’t always a wonderful thing, as Yin did find herself honestly bored at times, especially in the upper tiers of the city where the rich lived, though she did find using her rank on the nobility quite amusing.

Midway through the day, Yin would meet back up with her Squad and the group would go get lunch either from a vendor, a restaurant or just from the middle or lower tier market places – carrying on the tradition Chun had started with her squad years before. Following lunch, the group would split up once more for the second patrol route of the day and then return to base in the evening or late afternoon.

After her usual loss at chess with Chung, Yin would return home to her apartment, take a bath, eat dinner, and curl up on her sleeping mat for the night. When the farm girl found free time she often whittled, decorating her apartment with a collection of little animals and the like that she hard carved and methodically painted.

Emboldened by owning her own place and thus out of sight by the military and the like, when off duty, she also began to pick up younger women from bars in the lower tiers of the city, bringing them home to the apartment at all hours of the night. Most were quite young, eighteen to twenty or so and generally from upper middle class families. Curious girls who ventured into the lower class neighborhoods at night for excitement, at least, that’s what they usually said.

The little affairs never really led to anything stable and, after a time, Yin began to grow weary of the pick up girls, yearning for something more than a one-night stand. Though she eventually curtailed this nocturnal behavior altogether, someone had already taken notice and acted upon their discovery with malicious intent.

One evening, as Yin was returning home from her chess game with Chung, she opened the door to her apartment to find a small envelope upon the floor, having been slipped under the door at some point while she was away. Idly, she picked up the letter and cut it open using her whittling knife. It clearly wasn’t from her family or friends, as their letters always arrived at the base. Reading it, she was shocked to find that she was being blackmailed, someone had observed her bringing girls home and now they were demanding money, lest they reveal her secret to the base commander via anonymous letter.

Thoroughly enraged and honestly frightened, Yin followed the instructions in the letter and placed the amount of money desired into a similar envelope – a sizeable blow to her savings. The letter instructed her to take the envelope to an alleyway around behind the apartment complex then shove it into a rain gutter outlet and leave. The farm girl did as she was told and angrily left the alley and returned to her room, hoping it was the last she’d hear from the crooks.

Several weeks passed and Yin felt the problem had been solved. She’d been forced to pay the blackmailers what she paid monthly in rent and when she realized this, she became suspicious. Following the fourth week since the first letter appeared, Yin found yet another pushed under her door. It requested the same amount of money as before, though, this time, the drop instructions were different and led her around to the complex’s trash bins.

At this point, Yin was certain the blackmail wouldn’t end until she found some way to make it end, and that would likely require finding out who the blackmailer was. The farm girl had a fair idea who was behind it, likely someone from the apartments, though it had shocked her some and she felt she needed to be absolutely certain before she made any moves of her own.

With the date for the new money drop approaching, Yin made a few casual trips down to the trash bins under the guise of emptying her room’s little garbage can. She found the spot where she was to place the new envelope and quickly scouted out the surrounding area, feeling increasingly nervous the longer she stayed; fearful that the blackmailer might be watching and become wise to what she was planning.

At times, Yin wished she could tell Chung what was happening; surely he could up with some sort of solution that could get her out of this predicament. Though, she knew she couldn’t explain things to Chung without revealing her secret, he seemed trustworthy, but there was no telling what he might do if he were to find out.

And then, the day was upon her. Yin crept down to the trash bins and placed the envelope in the requested location before walking off, back toward her room. She did not return to her room, however, but instead, circled back through the complex and out onto the street. Yin managed to double back and come around the side of the building that lay next to the apartments, peeking around the corner; she had a clear view of the trash bins.

After a little less than an hour, Yin was growing tired of waiting for something to happen, having slid down the wall into a seated position long before. When she was just about ready to leave, someone opened the door at the side of the apartment building. Yin rose to her feet and pressed herself against the wall, watching carefully.

It was one of her landlords, the wife, and she watched her descend the stairs from the doorway with a trash bag in her hands. Yin began to feel discouraged, but as she watched, the landlady dumped the bag then moved the bin out of the way and retrieved the envelope, slipping it into her robe before returning back up the stairs. It was the landlords!

Filled with bitter rage, Yin tried to seem nonchalant as she returned to her room, passing the landlady at the front desk on her way. She wanted to scream, no amount of patience could allow someone to take such treatment for long, especially from folks who put up such a kindly façade. Safely back in her room, she began to ponder and plot some sort of way to strike back at the landlords, enough so, to make them drop the blackmail scheme.

She considered moving out, though, she suspected that they would track her down, or just disclose the secret to her commander when they realized she was trying to escape. Over the next week, Yin struggled to come up with a good way to get back at her landlords and then, one evening, fortune smiled upon her.

As she was returning home late, from a rare evening patrol, Yin had made her way up a flight of stairs to her floor and, as she rounded the corner, she casually observed a man slip out of one of the rooms up the way from hers. She was nearly to her door, and was ready to turn when she recognized him; he was the husband of the landlord couple that owned the complex.

Bitter at the sight of the fellow and a bit curious as to what he was up to, Yin stood silently and watched him. His clothing seemed a bit disheveled and he was sticking his head back through the doorway, seemingly talking to someone inside, likely why he hadn’t noticed the Home Guard soldier’s presence. Then, she saw it. The landlord took a step back and a woman leaned out of the doorway, hugging and kissing him.

A mischievous grin crept across Yin’s face as she watched, placing her hands upon her hips and cocking her head to the side a bit, she waited for the couple to notice her. The woman spotted her first and gasped. The landlord, stepping quickly out of her embrace, turned to face Yin, uttering only one word, “You…”

Yin gave the man a sweet smile and put forth her terms, “You know, I might forget what I saw here if someone were to stop slipping little letters under my door. If not, someone’s wife may learn of their husband’s unfaithfulness.” The landlord shooed his floozy back into her room and quietly approached Yin. She could tell he understood everything she’d said, realizing that she knew, he reluctantly promised to end the blackmail as long as she kept her end of the bargain.

And so, the letters stopped and Yin felt at ease. Though, she did not truly relax until she’d moved across town to another complex with the help of Chung, once again. The Corporal had asked about her reasons for leaving, the farm girl simply said it was due to “noisy neighbors”.

Soon, she was settled into her new apartment, very similar to the last, though it had a large window at the font that looked out onto the street below. Yin had learned her lesson and never brought friends, or otherwise, home to her apartment again, leaving her home as private, off limits to those who knew her for the most part.

Patrolling went well, mostly the same old same old of Lun Yang as usual. Yin’s squad mates had become used to each other and most of the group friction dropped to a minimum, though Yin still found herself intervening at times. The Second Squad was soon well known amongst their platoon after seizing a store-house of contraband and stolen goods from a small gang of criminals operating in the city’s slums.

The stash was valued in the hundreds of gold and the Domestic Forces dealt with the lot of it, destroying the illegal and auctioning off the legal loot. Most of the gangsters were apprehended as well and faced time in prison. Yin was quite pleased with her squad mates and with herself as well.

Only a short time after the successful seizure of the store-house, Chung and his squad met up with Yin’s during the afternoon patrol break and the male Corporal offered to take the other group to lunch at a local seafood buffet in celebration of the successful operation. Yin readily accepted, having only tired various river fish and the like, she was curious to try a little something new. Though, this decision would nearly end her life at the age of twenty-three.

The group, both Yin’s Second Squad and Chung’s Fifth Squad, ten in all, moved through the buffet line and selected various seafood dishes to add to their plates. Once seated at a long table, specifically reserved for large groups, they began to eat their meals. Yin had chosen a few fillets of freshwater fish that she had enjoyed back home in Chi Lin, mostly catfish and trout, though, situated at the edge of her plate, she had two large cocktail shrimp as well.

Yin had never tried shrimp, her squad mates had recommended them and, from where she sat, she could see that Pang had piled a great many upon her plate. The farm girl carefully picked up the shrimp and, following Chung’s instructions, held it by its tail. She took a small bite off the end, just to give it a try, and set it aside, it wasn’t exactly to her liking, cold and whatnot and she didn’t feel she’d be eating much more of it.

One of Chung’s squad mates suggested she try breaded or grilled shrimp, that way it wouldn’t be cold and she may like it better. Yin thought it was worth a try and rose from her seat, walking over to the buffet to place a few of the breaded shrimp upon her plate, before she could get halfway there, however, she began to feel short of breath and turned back to the table, somewhat worried.

Within a few minutes, her breathing became more difficult and the other soldiers at the table began to notice her distress. Yin’s face quickly began to turn pink and it seemed her cheeks and lips were swelling up slightly, her worry soon turned to fear. The farm girl began to panic and the more excited and frantic she became, the harder it was to breathe. Chung and a few of the others realized that it was something about the food and rushed to Yin’s aid.

They pinned her to the ground and Chung explained that it was likely an allergy to something she’d eaten, he told her to stay still and try to breathe slowly. Yin tried to do as she’d been instructed but it was terrifying and she still felt like she couldn’t get enough air. Eventually she calmed down enough and the other soldiers helped her up, half carrying her out of the restaurant and back to the base infirmary.

By the time they reached the base, Yin was feeling increasingly nauseous and threw up just outside of the infirmary entrance. Her squad mates then helped her inside and the base doctor took a look at her. She was still having some trouble breathing and her face was as swollen as ever, but the doctor felt certain that she would survive. He asked what she had eaten and she recounted the meal at the seafood buffet, the shrimp coming immediately to mind.

The doc understood at once and explained how people could occasionally have allergies to different foods and, as Yin had lived inland for most of her life, she had not discovered her Shellfish allergy sooner. He stressed the importance of avoiding anything that might contain shellfish of any sort and told the farm girl that she had likely been very lucky, as she had only eaten a small piece of the shrimp.

After the doctor visit, Yin walked slowly home, accompanied by her comrades. Rest was really the best thing for her at that point, simply rest and wait for the allergic reaction to pass. It was a day and a half before the pinkish color left her face and the swelling too, had abated, but the frightful experience was still fresh in her memory and she made up her mind to never eat seafood again. At least, nothing besides the fish dishes she was used to.

For the next few days following the incident, Yin’s squad mates seemed to behave themselves better. They were more thoughtful around her as well and she began to feel like they were being sympathetic after her close call with the shrimp. Eventually, things settled back into their normal routine and the soldiers of Yin’s Second Squad began to act like themselves again, she remembered to thank then for their concern, however, after the fact.

Chung had felt a bit guilty, taking the group for seafood and watching his friend nearly die from her allergy. The male Corporal had apologized, but Yin felt he’d done nothing wrong; in fact, she thanked him for helping to calm her. If not for his actions, she might have gone into a mad panic and died from her restricted airways and the like.

Several months later, Yin celebrated her twenty-fourth birthday in the company of her family, north in Chong Dao. It was a happy occasion and she was pleased to see how much Lee had grown. He was now working for the Imperial Railroad Company as a conductor, part time, though still lived with the Zhong family in Chu Lin, helping around the farm that would, one day, be his.

With a new year ahead of her, Yin has changed little, though she still avoids seafood. She continues to regularly write to Zhang and Chun and, as her family is only a few hours away by train, she has been able to meet with them often. She still whittles and has recently tried painting some too, to pass the time. Yin’s Second Squad still patrols the streets of Lun Yang daily, keeping the peace and maintaining order, led proudly by that farm girl from Chu Lin Valley.

With her daily routine as predictable and structured as ever, Yin is happy, for the most part. Though she won’t admit to herself, beneath it all, part of her yearns for something more, be it love, duty, excitement, or just a break from the ordinary.

Sample RP: The late afternoon sun shown down upon the golden roofs of Lun Yang, giving the city a shimmering glow. The shouts of merchants selling their wares, the day to day conversations of the people on the streets, the simple sounds of a living city, all blending together into a sort of urban white noise. The cobbled streets bustled with people going about their business, few noticing that they were being casually watched.

With each step taken, the Tonfa baton made a rotation, spun by its handle in the soldier woman’s hand. Seemingly bored golden brown eyes surveyed the street, idly looking over the people, never really pausing to inspect any one in particular. As she made her way through the crowds, the people seemed to instinctively part, allowing her to move along without any trouble or wait.

Corporal Yin He Zhong rounded a corner onto another street, headed north toward the middle tier central marketplace. Up ahead she spotted a large cart attached to a Dragon Moose, the animal stood out in the center of the street while the cart portion, loaded with fresh fruit, was backed up to the front of a shop. Parking violation, Yin thought to herself as she neared the cart. When she reached it, the Dagon Moose turned its head and looked at her for a moment, but she paid it no attention and rapped her baton on the cart’s wooden frame a few times.

After several knocks on the frame, a man emerged from the shop and strode over to the Corporal, “Something the matter officer?” he asked, a slightly worried look upon his face that he seemed to be attempting to hide. Yin turned her gaze to the man and pointed at the cart with her baton, “You can’t park here, your Dragon Moose there,” she said, pointing toward the animal, “is standing out there, blocking the street,” replied Yin, in a rather bored tone.

“Oh.. I’m just unloading here, it won’t take but a few minutes,” said the man, eyeing the crates of fruit sitting in the back of the cart. Yin gave the contents of the cart a look, he was likely right, it wouldn’t take him too long to unload the fruit crates and be on his way. The Domestic Forces soldier set her hand upon the edge of the cart for a moment then turned toward its owner, “Alright, ten minutes you can stay here. I’ll be circling back this way shortly to make sure you’re finished, understandable?”

The man nodded and reached into the cart to retrieve a crate, before disappearing back into the shop. Yin moved around the back of the cart and continued on her way up the street. She had no intention of circling back as she had said, she was confident the man got the message, why would he risk a fine? Yin knew she’d been a bit lax, but she was alone, her subordinates off patrolling their own parts of the northeastern middle tier section, so there wasn’t really anyone to question her methods.

Why go through all the trouble to cite a fellow who wasn’t really causing a problem? Now, had there been a wagon or another cart coming down the road, Yin would have had the man move the cart no question. The soldier woman gave the issue no more thought as she caught the sound of a clock tower bell ringing out five o’clock. She knew she would need to reach the central marketplace in the next thirty minutes to meet back up with her Squad and head back to base as their patrol shift ended at five thirty.

Strolling along at a leisurely pace, Yin began to notice the numbers of people in the streets had diminished some, likely heading home from work for dinner and the like. Reaching an intersection, Yin stopped for a moment, finding herself facing directly into the slowly setting sun up ahead. For just a short while, she closed her eyes and enjoyed the warmth of the sun upon her face and front. Though the sun could burn you, as Yin knew well, its warm rays were wonderful at the right times during the day.

Still standing at the intersection, enjoying the sun, the Corporal caught the scent of something cooking, likely someone making dinner up in one of the apartment homes built over the top of a shop. Whatever they were cooking, it was making Yin hungry and she placed a hand upon the coin pouch that hung from her belt. She opened her eyes and peered down at the pouch, a frown crossing her face. She’d bough her Squad lunch earlier that day, as per tradition, and she could feel that there wasn’t exactly enough left for her to buy dinner.

It would be the same old tin can and rice dinner for Yin that night, how she longed for her next paycheck. While mulling over her financial situation, the Corporal didn’t immediately notice that someone was addressing her until she felt a small tug on the back flap of her uniform. Turning slowly, she found two children standing behind her and peering up, a young boy and girl, both looked to be siblings, maybe a year or two apart, though neither older than seven or so.

Before Yin could speak the little boy started, “Soldier lady, you gotsta help ‘cause our friend’s lil’ Lionlamb’s stuck under our place and can’t get out or anything and it’s too dark’n scary under there for us so.. you gotsta help us!” As the little boy spoke, the little girl gestured frantically down an alleyway that ran between two nearby shops. Yin listened carefully and turned her head for a moment, noting the sun had dipped lower into the western sky, her Squad would be meeting up soon.

They could stand to wait for a few minutes; she decided and let the children know she would help them. The seemingly mute little girl reached out and grabbed Yin’s hand, pulling her along as the little boy led them across the street and down the alley. The little group turned down a new alley that led to a residential street and up ahead, Yin spotted another young girl crouching beside an open crawlspace hole on the side of a home.

The girl pointed into the dark crawlspace hole and spoke, “Kiri’s in there.. my little Lionlamb.. we brought her outside and she got scared and ran inside there and now she won’t come out!” Yin moved over next to the little girl and kneeled down; peering into the blackness that was the crawlspace between the floor and foundation of what she assumed was the sibling’s home. She couldn’t make anything out and turned to the little girl who’d called the Lionlamb Kiri, the owner, she figured, “Are you sure she’s under there?”

The little owner girl nodded, “We saw her go right under there and blocked off all’ve the exits and stuff.. I just hope she comes out.. Maybe you could go in and get her?” The other two children nodded and gathered around to watch. Yin considered suggesting they use some food or something to bait the little creature out, she wasn’t thrilled with the idea of crawling around underneath a house, it wasn’t exactly the job she’d been trained to do. She couldn’t tell the children no, though, they were counting on her to retrieve their pet and she had promised to help them.

Holding her right hand out in front of her, a small flame held in the cupped palm, she squirmed her way into the crawl space, moving along upon her stomach. The crawlspace was only about a foot and a half in height and Yin found her head brushing against the bottom of the floor above, the ground was dusty and covered with fine gravel that crunched as she wormed her way along.

The light from her tiny flame helped to illuminate the dark crawlspace to an extent and she was happy to note that there were no creepy crawlies or spider webs hanging around, she’d always disliked bugs and the like. As she squirmed along, she caught the sound of something moving around up ahead and she cupped her left hand to the side of her right, directing the light from her flame.

There was Kiri, the little Lionlamb, she had become caught by her little collar on a nail that stuck out from a floor support beam and couldn’t get loose. Yin carefully moved toward the little creature and, just before she reached out to it, she figured she should have asked if the little thing would bite or not. Very slowly, she reached out; fortunately, it seemed the Lionlamb hadn’t noticed her yet and didn’t until the Corporal had a firm grip on the collar.

The Lionlamb bleated in surprise, but Yin had the little creature unhooked from the nail and firmly in her hands before it could bite or wriggle out of her grip. With Kiri held in her arms, Yin was without her light source, but as she turned around, she caught sight of the light coming in through the crawlspace hole and squirmed her way back toward it on her elbows and knees.

When she reached the hole, she handed the little Lionlamb off to her owner and the children cheered as Yin pulled herself out of the hole as well, closing the crawlspace with its cover behind her. She was dusty, dirty and, though it was not her regularly scheduled bath night, she would make an exception.

A smile did cross her face as the children thanked her, however, and she let them know she was glad to be of help and also made certain to suggest they keep little Kiri on a leash when outside from then on. The children promised they would and Yin bid them farewell, strolling back out onto a main street. As she made her way off toward the marketplace to meet up with her Squad, she wondered what they would say when they saw her covered in gray gravely dust, it would make a good story, she though, grinning.

[jialingjin]

Coin flip!

*Has Ikeru do it*

She says it's heads. Congrats

[ituha]

Oke doke, it's been five days so... *Thunder bumps*

[jialingjin]

*settles in to read this monstrosity* Zhi.. incase I die: I love you. >D

[jialingjin]

*throws hands up* ACCEPTED. DONE.

OMG. I'M GOING TO GO CRAWL INTO A CAVE NOW.