Daiyu; Fire Princess

[Daiyu]

Name: Daiyu

Age: 16

Gender: Female

Profession: Fire Princess

Nation: Fire Nation

Bending:

Wild and beautiful, Daiyu’s bending mirrors the personality of its wielder perfectly. Whilst she is currently considered a low-level adept at the style, she practises constantly in the hopes of bettering her technique. Her control is not yet as refined as her brothers, as she values strength and ferocity over precision and finesse. The fire she uses is slightly darker than average, but bears no distinctive qualities.
When fighting with her firebending, Daiyu is almost constantly on the offensive, using fast punches and kicks to support and encourage her flames.

Appearance:

Daiyu stands at five feet and five inches, and weighs about one hundred and twenty-five pounds, which gives her a lean, slender physique. She is considerably attractive, taking after her mother in her looks, with high cheekbones and fair skin. Her eyes are almond shaped and light golden in colour, often glimmering with mischief or the hint of a challenge. Her dark hair is normally swept back from her face in a topknot, though it is long when it hangs loose – when she is dressed formally, two bangs hang either side of her face, which makes her look a little softer.

She has few scars, thanks to her privileged, and rather sheltered upbringing. The only one of note is a tiny diagonal cut, which divides her right eyebrow. It is only really noticeable when one is up close to her.

Clothing:

In court and on formal occasions, Daiyu wears the attire attributed to her station as Fire Princess. Normally, this consists of a red, long-sleeved shirt, and black pants, both with gold detail on the seams. If it is a serious matter rather than a simple day in court, she wears black plate armour over the top – this consists of a chestpiece, gauntlets and high boots, which the pants tuck into. The armour is thick metal, and is quite heavy – hence why she only wears it only in very special circumstances.

In her daily life, Daiyu simplifies things by wearing a basic red sleeveless cheongsam top, made of silk and with detailed golden dragons sewn into the lower right area. Her black pants are cropped, and tied loosely at the hip with a red sash. She wears basic sandals on her feet, which means she can move quickly, and is not hampered by trailing garments.

Weapons:

Daiyu does not use weapons. In her early teenage years, her mother insisted that she have some practise with a longsword, in case she was ever in a situation where her bending was not enough. These lessons have put her at a skill level that could barely be called novice – she knows only the very basics and nothing else.

Personality:

Independent and a little reckless, Daiyu is a young woman just starting to come to terms with her responsibilities. She is a bit hot-tempered and quick to anger, but recent years have taught her to not demand an agni kai with every person who disagrees with her – the scar on her face is a permanent reminder that she should keep her emotions in check.

She is sarcastic and slightly dangerous; after years spent entertaining herself in the palace, she is incredibly curious as to the outside world, and greatly desires to see what lies beyond the city and the Fire Nation.

Having played second fiddle to Piao for her entire life, Daiyu cannot help but be a little jealous of her brother. His responsibilities are far greater than her own, and he has power and a real role to play in the future. She worries that she will fade into obscurity as he achieves more success.

In addition, she envies him for the role their father played in his life – she always felt sidelined by him, as the heir to the throne, and wishes that the deceased Fire Lord had paid more attention to her. Of course, she does not blame Piao for this, and even feels guilty about it, because her envy has no real justification in her eyes.

Daiyu has an analytical, logical mind, thanks to her lessons. She is a capable strategist, though she finds it difficult to modify tactics in on-the-spot scenarios. She has a lot of sparring experience as well, which has allowed her to learn a lot of techniques for taking down opponents with different skills.

A considerable fighter, Daiyu would defend those she cares about with her life. In spite of their recent distance from each other, she is fiercely protective of Piao, and will not tolerate anything that threatens him, either verbally or physically. She is well aware that he can fight his own battles, but she still feels the need to look out for her elder brother, and their mother in particular.

History:

Daiyu was born as the second child of the Fire Nation’s royal family. She had one elder sibling, a brother named Piao. The nation rejoiced when she was born, and there were celebrations and festivities as there always are when a baby comes into the world safely.
As an infant and a child, Daiyu was doted on, like her brother. She need only snap her fingers, and someone would be at her beck and call. She need only wish for something, and it would be hers. While Fire Lord Zhen did not interact much with her due to state business, she idolised her mother’s grace and beauty, and attempted to emulate her at every opportunity.

The princess’ upbringing ensured that she was always aware of what was going on in and around the Fire Nation – the Fire Lord valued the interests of his people highly, and made sure that his children did the same. They were, after all, the next generation of figureheads for the country.
As she grew, Daiyu discovered her firebending – it did not come naturally to her at first, and she had great trouble controlling the great arcs and plumes that would suddenly issue from her fingertips at the slightest gesture. She was soon placed under a mentor, who would teach her every aspect of her new talents and how to use them wisely.

When she finally began to harness her power, Daiyu’s confidence grew. At the age of twelve, she was steadily becoming more reckless, despite her parents’ concern. She would spend entire days sparring, either alone or with her teacher, throwing herself into becoming the best firebender on the planet. It was a distant and nigh-impossible goal, but she kept at it until her knuckles were bloody and her body ached from the constant work outs.

Worried that he was steering her in the wrong direction, her mentor returned to the drawing board with her. From him, she learned the history of her country, of the legends and stories that had been passed through families and generations of her people. She found herself enthralled by his words and how he wove the old tales, and took it upon herself to research them in her own time. She found old scrolls with strange scripts, decorated with beautiful images of phoenixes and dragons. She spent a lot of time reading, which took her mind off fighting, much to her parents’ relief.

She and Piao were no longer as close as they were as children – he was busy learning how to rule, and she was busy with her lessons. It saddened her, how fast and how smooth their separation was, but she made no effort to bridge the gap between them – there would always be tomorrow after all. It was not that she didn’t care, but she didn’t want to distract him and their father from whatever it was that they were doing. Still, it did affect her, and there were times when she wanted to ask for Piao’s advice on something but just did not really know when it would be appropriate.

At the age of fourteen, Daiyu realised that her father was not as strong as he used to be. He seemed to be frailer, more delicate. He did not seem like the invincible leader of her childhood anymore, but a mortal man. To avoid recognising this, she spent more of her time sparring and reading, unable to face the fact that the Fire Lord was slowly dying.
She was acutely aware of how her mother was reacting to it though, and, as his condition worsened, it had a knockdown effect on the princess. She withdrew into herself, trying to ignore it.

Even though she had known what was going on, it was still a complete shock when he finally died. Zhen had not been the most proactive father when it came to his daughter, but Daiyu still felt his absence like an arrow to the heart. It was as though something had been torn away from her core, and she could not replace it.
In the year following his death, Daiyu’s recklessness resurfaced. She would fight anyone who slandered the memory of her father or her family.

She lost many of these fights, though none had such an impact as one duel against a former soldier. She did not expect him to be as vicious and relentless as he was, and she almost lost her eye before she yielded to him – a cut across her right brow remains to this day as a permanent testament to her foolishness.
In addition, she also became increasingly inquisitive about the world outside the Fire Nation; she had heard so many stories about the might of the other kingdoms, and privately wished to witness them for herself.

Now, Daiyu stands beside Piao, ever the supportive sibling. She feels she must wonder though – what lies beyond the city walls?

Roleplay Sample:
[From a now-defunct site I used to own, where I played Azula]

"I don't think you understand,"
The man cowered before her, and Azula had no qualms in admitting that she liked it. She liked how he cringed each time she spoke, as though every word were a physical blow that he had to avoid. A cruel smirk graced her lips.
Know your betters, fool.

[/color]

She didn't know who he was. An Earth Kingdom peasant, one of the less fortunate members of the community. One of the others said something behind her, but she resolutely ignored them.

Two steps to the left. The princess moved, her captive's head tracking her. He was terrified that she would go out of view and surprise him. She flicked her hand, smoke issuing from the tips of her fingers.
"I will not ask again, so think carefully before you answer me," She told him, golden eyes burning with frustration she refused to express in any other way.

Again, the person behind her spoke. Without turning around to look at them, Azula cast her hand backwards, a tendril of flame lashing in their direction as a warning.

She towered above him, grovelling as he was. Good. Let him be intimidated.
"Where. Is. The. Avatar," Each word was carefully enunciated as though she were speaking to an idiot. He had, so far, given her two different answers.

The first was a callous 'I don't know' before he had realised who he was speaking to. Then an incomprehensible sound - and she really didn't have time for that sort of blubbering. The smoke at her hands blossomed into a small flame. His brown eyes were wide as he began to shake.

"North! He went north, to the next town! Please, just don't hurt me!"
The Blue Dragon stared at him with now undisguised contempt, one delicate eyebrow slightly raised.
"Shut up," She told him idly, turning to nod at her companions. They spun their mounts around to face their new destination.

Azula turned as well, placing a hand on her own hissing Mongoose Dragon, but paused for just a moment.
"Your disloyalty to your country says a lot about you. We can't have you running that mouth off if someone else comes along with a bit of flash and bang, can we?"

It was rhetorical. His eyes dilating, the man stared up at her once more.
"Luckily, that's easily remedied," She murmured. In a smooth, fluid movement born of years of training, she raised her hand. It came down in a fast arc, lightning crackling at her fingertips.

The sweet electricity pulsed through her arm, thrilling her and filling her with energy. Her eyes narrowed and she felt her bending channelling the lightning from her veins and into the unfortunate man. His body convulsed like a puppet with cut strings, and he yelped in pain before falling to the floor, still.

Leaving the corpse where it was, Azula took the reins of her beast in her hands, and hauled herself astride it. He would serve even in death - though only as an example.[/blockquote]


Did you read the Rules?: Avatar Roku rocks my socks~[/size]

[Piao]

Outstanding! Welcome aboard