Yue

Princess Yue was the sixteen-year-old daughter of Chief Arnook, ruler of the North Pole's Northern Water Tribe. She is one of Sokka's love interests during the series.



History
Yue was born with a terrible sickness, and her parents feared she would die. Arnook prayed to the Moon Spirit, and placed her in the Tribe's Spirit Oasis. The Moon Spirit gifted her with part of its own life force, curing her and turning her hair white as a side-effect. Thus, her parents named her Yue, after the moon.

Upon arriving at the Northern Water Tribe, Sokka was smitten with her at first sight, and the two soon began to arrange meetings. An affection budded between the two, but unfortunately Yue was bound to an arranged marriage to Hahn, a shallow young warrior with more love for high status than for Yue. Sokka and Yue came to realize their love for each other, but Yue could not bear to continue their meetings because they conflicted so with her duty to her tribe. Both of their feelings persisted, and during Admiral Zhao's siege of the Northern Water Tribe, Sokka was ordered by Arnook to act as Yue's bodyguard.



Yue helps Aang to enter the Spirit World by leading him and Katara to the spirit oasis. Later, when Aang has been captured by Zuko, she accompanies Katara and Sokka in tracking the two of them down on Appa. Upon their return to the spirit oasis, they were confronted by Zhao, who fatally struck the Moon Spirit's corporeal form, leaving all Waterbenders powerless without the moon's influence. Yue once again acted to carry out her duty to her tribe, and sacrificed herself in order to give back the life the Moon Spirit had given her when she was a newborn. Her sacrifice came against Sokka's protests, but in the end the young warrior was unable to stop her. Yue died in Sokka's arms, and her spirit appeared before him shortly after, and the two shared a final kiss before she vanished completely.



Several times following her death, Yue's influence on Sokka returns. In "The Swamp", Sokka, under the place's magical influence, sees a vision of her. The vision of Yue angrily tells Sokka that he failed to protect her, perhaps a manifestation of his fear that she truly felt this way. In "The Desert", Sokka directly refers to the moon as Yue in the intoxicated state brought about by drinking cactus juice. Finally, when Sokka and Suki nearly kiss in "The Serpent's Pass", a waning gibbous moon is visible in the background, alluding to Yue's presence, and Sokka's memories of Yue's death prompt him to act overly protective of Suki. In the episode "The Puppetmaster", Sokka yells at Toph when she suggests that the moon spirit might be harming people, saying that the moon spirit "rules the skies with lunar goodness" showing that he still cares deeply for her.

During a part in the play in "The Ember Island Players" in which the episode "The Siege of the North, Part 2" is parodied on it, Yue is shown being played as someone who, as the play Sokka says, is the "only person to take his mind off food", before she floats away on a crescent moon prop. In the audience, Sokka is crying as Suki tells him he never told her that he had made-out with a moon spirit. Sokka shushes her, still crying, showing that he still really cares for her and that this is the only part he liked.

In the online game, Escape from the Spirit World, Aang meets Yue in the Spirit World. She informs him of the damage that has taken place to the Avatar Spirit and how to return to his body, further instructing him to seek out the past four Avatars while avoiding Koh, the Face Stealer. She later appears to Aang once more in "The Awakening", to encourage him not to lose hope and to continue fighting. She then presumably assists him in his impressive feat of Waterbending to get himself to safety, utilizing her powers as the Moon Spirit.

Waterbending Abilities


There has been arguments about Princess Yue's abilities. When she was introduced in "The Waterbending Master", Yue didn't exhibit any Waterbending ability, not even healing abilities, the only aspect of Waterbending taught to women in the Northern Water Tribe, despite being a spiritual person. After offering her life to give the Moon Spirit new life, she is shown to restore the Waterbenders power. During her short appearance in "The Awakening", after renewing Aang's faith, she aids him in getting to safety, enlarging the wave he creates. Due to becoming the moon spirit, it can be assumed that she has gained the spirit's waterbending abilities.

Relatives

 * Arnook (father)
 * Yue's Mother

Trivia

 * "Yue" (月, yuè) means "moon" in Chinese, though it's pronounced differently-- "yu-A," instead of the 'proper' way-"yu-eh?"
 * The name also means 'tragic accident' in Japanese (夕映), and is traditionally given to Japanese children who die shortly after birth.