| By Ash Witherspoon | See other fanon and fan fiction works from Ash Witherspoon. |
Hǎi, referred to by her grandchildren as "Matriarchal Mother", was the matriarch and leader of the matriarchal Píngjìng clan; being the direct ancestor of the original founder, a Fire Nation native who had married into the Southern Water Tribe, they are respected as the last remnants of the fragmented Southern Water Tribe, and carry a tribalism that is not present in the Fire Nation. Isolated from the rest of the village, over half of the members of the matriarchal clan don`t possess bending; Hǎi is despised by the Southern Water Tribe for possessing firebending, yet has only displayed pacifism in face of their deep-rooted fear. This pacifism would ensure her reign was largely peaceful, though when Prince Zuko discovered her and the rest of the Píngjìng clan in the winter months during the year of 99 AG, he attempted to capture her waterbending grandchildren; infuriated by the disrespect given to her and her clan by the young Fire Nation Prince, she would have almost killed him if not for the intervention of Uncle Iroh.
History[]
Hǎi was born in 19 AG to a high-ranking member of the Píngjìng clan, Lady Shang Píngjìng, and the youngest son of the Southern Water Tribe`s chief, Lord Neji Píngjìng; though related to the Southern Water Tribe`s ruling family through the paternal side of her family, she was looked down upon for her mother`s firebending ancestry. Despite that, she maintained a largely nomadic and peaceful existence; her experience in spiritual matters due to the nature of her lifestyle as well as her pacifism made her highly-regarded among her own clansmen. From a young age, she expressed interest in seeing the outside world; after experiencing the bitterness of the world, after seeing her lover taken from her and subsequently killed due to possessing waterbending abilties, she had been stripped of her joy and innocence.
Years passed, with the Hundred Year War still raging, Hǎi becoming bitter and cynical to anybody outside of her clan members. Her daughter, Kyade would later become an acclaimed healer among their clansmen, as well as the self-proclaimed "mother" of the clan; believing that they would be in more danger if they allowed outsiders in, Hǎi forbade members of the clan from marrying outsiders, believing that they would be fine on their own. From this stubborn attitude developed a unique culture of independence, with the members of the Southern Water Tribe and the members of the Píngjìng clan living separate from each other. Their animosity towards each other was so intense that members of the clan even attacked each other upon seeing each other; Iroh becoming shocked upon witnessing their display of violence. Her waterbending grandchildren, Princess Yun, Princess Yue, and Princess Azure also inherited their maternal grandfather`s waterbending prowess, yet had the same rosemary purple eyes of their maternal grandmother.
Prior to the return of Sozin`s Comet, Aang would be discovered in an iceberg; when Katara and Aang arrived at their home, an abandoned Fire Nation battleship, they were attacked by Hǎi and the rest of the Píngjìng clan who were rightfully upset with intruders walking around in their clan`s territory.
Appearance[]
Like all members of the Píngjìng clan, Hǎi possesses the standard light-brown skin complexion, as well as piercing rosemary-purple eyes that set her apart from most everybody from the Southern Water Tribe; in her youth, she had dark chocolate-brown hair with a hint of black, from the Fire Nation ancestry of her maternal mother`s side of the family. Her hair is styled in the standard Southern Water Tribe hair loopies, with two small strands of her hair of each side of her head being pulled to the back with them being fastened at the back; in contrast her more rebellious female grandchildren wore their hair in the Northern Water Tribe style with their hair being worn in a high ponytail, with two large loops falling to either side of their face, with both strands of their hair on either side being braided. She is usually seen dressed in a dark ocean-blue fur coat, brown fur boots, and wearing a forehead amulet with the symbol of water engraved into it.
Personality[]
Cynical and harsh-tongued, Hǎi was a pacifist at her core and only wanted peace between her clan as well as the other Water Tribes (North and South); though this dream would never be realized during her era, her direct descendants would carry on her legacy. From descriptions by Kanna, Hǎi was incredibly stern and cold-hearted towards members of the Fire Nation, despite possessing a long and distinguished line of relatives related to the Fire Nation Royal Family.
Abilities[]
Though she never actually used firebending in combat, except to incapacitate Zuko from threatening her waterbending grandchildren, she was a competent hand-to-hand combatant; being skilled enough to battle scores of Fire Nation foot-soldiers purely by herself. This feat and smaller feats demostrated by Hǎi outlined her combat prowess as a master firebender, being one of the best; having trained in the opposite condition, normal to most benders. Having adapted to the coldness of her arctic home, Hǎi is perfectly at home in the cold, and is highly unused to warm temperatures, even fainting on one occasion due to the hotness of the weather.
Quotes[]
- (To grandchildren) "Where do you think you`re going?"
- (To Iroh) "A firebender..how quaint...come in. You must be here for something.."
- (To Hakoda) "Your mother, my rival never ventures here due to the fact that me and my clansmen, the Píngjìng clan live here. And for good reason, we have lived off this here land for generations."
- (To Tenma) "Tenma, one day you will leave our encampment and face the world. You must never give up hope or all will be lost."
- (To herself) "I`m a little mad."
Trivia[]
- Hǎi who`s full name is Hǎi'ān draws her name from a city in Nantong, in the eastern Jiangsu province of the Chinese Mainland.
- The literal meaning of the city is 'sea peace', which is quite fitting considering that she lives in an arctic country.
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