Chapter Text
In a world separated by wind and trees, the rules of life change with the climate.
To the North, where the snow covered the mountains like powdered sugar, and winters forged strength into the bones of its people just as blacksmiths do to blades, men and women were as equals. Their survival outweighed the need to follow tradition. Both genders took part in hunting, housework, and the raising of children. They fought and died alongside each other, defending their home from beasts and invaders. The one thing that differentiated the two was the whispers of rare tales, in which women were said to bond with wolves. Foreigners claimed that they were only myths, but the people of the north knew the truth behind the legends. Of the women who moved as shadows through the snowdrifts with fangs at their side.
While in the South, tradition wasn’t pushed aside due to the climate. The sun warmed the land allowing the kingdom to thrive, building castles that were ruled by men. Politics flowed like the wine that warmed their blood, and tradition was upheld with an iron fist. Women were born to bring honor to their families with quiet obedience, through marriage and bearing heirs. At times, a clever woman could gain power through her husband, cause, as the saying goes, the man may be the head, but the woman controls the neck. Any power she obtains is never in her name but her husband’s. And if a woman decides to speak out and resist against their ways of life? She was seen as an inconvenience that needed to be corrected.
Between the two nations, the vast forest of Ravaa separated them. It lay unclaimed, untouched by any nation, no one dared draw borders. It was sacred land. Ravaa was known as one of the most powerful witches ever known. She had faced off against a dark sorcerer known as Vatuu. The battle raged on across the land, he had convinced humanity to wipe out all magical creatures. But Ravaa wouldn’t allow it. So with the help of other witches and warlocks, they brought to life the sacred forest. That worked as a sanctuary for all creatures, big and small. Anyone wishing to do them harm would face the rage of nature. In the end, Ravaa defeated Vatuu with the help of Wan, Yangchen, Kuruk, Kyoshi, and Roku, five brave warriors from all the land. Their names have gone down in history.
Each nation after that battle was separated, either by vast forests or the ocean. Traversing across either alone was dangerous, especially for women. But there was one type of soul that passed through the lands unharmed. The healers, whether man or woman, peasant or noble, carried no alliance but to life itself. They were welcomed and respected by all. No one dared cross them, not because they could cure what swords and words could not, but because it would be unwise to wrong the person who held your life in their hands.
It’s in this world where Lin Beifong didn’t agree with the way of life in the Southern Kingdom. Her life had been carved out and planned from the moment of her birth. Who she was to wed, how many heirs she was to produce, even how she would present herself in the royal court as the wife of the king’s spiritual counselor.
But Lin wanted nothing to do with that life. She enjoyed working with her hands, either in the fields or carving small sculptures out of wood.
Her mother allowed it until she reached the age when it was time to meet her betrothed.
Counselor Tenzin at their first meeting had thought her hands to be too rough and her voice too firm. He’d recommended a lotion that did miracles in turning rough skin to silky smooth.
Lin had given him a piece of her mind on his recommendation and many other matters of tradition she disagreed with. Tenzin, displeased with this, had informed Toph that if her daughter did not learn the ways of being an obedient woman, the marriage would be off.
That sparked a fight between the three beifong women. Toph and Suyin tried to convince Lin that she had to conform to the folds of tradition, but she wouldn’t listen. In anger, Su grabbed one of her sister’s carving tools and threw it in her direction, not with the intent to hurt her but to indicate that such things were not part of a woman’s reality. But Su’s aim was off, and she ended up hitting and scaring Lin on her right cheek.
The betrayal Lin felt was unfathomable, especially when her mother asked if she was happy now, since surely the counselor wouldn’t want her marred face as his wife.
She the shed they had cornered her in and went to her room, locking herself in, refusing to hear her sister’s excuses for apologies, as she collected all her belongings. By nightfall, she had fled the city, with only what she could carry on her back, disguised as a man. No one ever questioned the coming and going of men.
Lin sought out solitude, freedom. A place where she could carve more than wood, but a life of her own.
And for a time, she travelled, searching for a place to call her own. Far from the southern kingdom, closer to the east coast in Ravaa forest, she did. Her only company, the trees, the occasional magical creature who’d give her a curious look before moving along, and the rhythm of her tools against stone and wood.
Until one day, a warlock in a fancy red waistcoat moved in across the worn-down path.