Avatar Aang was not the last Airbender. When the Fire Nation attacked the Air Temples, dozens of children were smuggled to the Earth Kingdom. But out of forty seven Airbenders, only one survived long.
Yun Hee has always known she was an Airbender. It was impossible to ignore that aspect of herself when she longed for it. Her grandmother was one too, and it was their responsibility to make sure their secret did not get out of their family’s inner circle—certainly not when they lived in the heart of the Fire Nation.
But Yun Hee’s idyllic life came to an end when she caught Princess Azula’s eye. Years later, the young girl was Prince Zuko’s servant, forever trapped in his hellbent quest for the missing Avatar... until a beam of light shot into the skies of the South Pole.
An Airbender will always recognize another Airbender. And Avatar Aang, the last Air Nomad, desperately wanted to form a connection with Yun Hee, the granddaughter of his best friends. So he makes her the offer of a lifetime: Aang will be her Airbending Master, on the condition that Yun Hee joins him and the Water Tribe siblings on their quest to defeat Fire Lord Ozai.
Had the question been for someone else, the answer would’ve been an immediate yes. But Team Avatar didn’t take into account Yun Hee’s love for her homeland or her loyalty to Prince Zuko. She may not be proud of the Fire Nation’s history but she was not ashamed of her people nor her prince, misguided as they were. But could she really let the opportunity go? Was she willing to be a caged bird until the last of her days?
◘ Yun Hee’s appearance: Black hair, pixie cut with bangs. By the end of Book 2, it’s shoulder length. By the events of “The Boiling Rock” in Book 3, it reaches her mid back. Also, she has gray eyes and pale skin. As for clothes, she uses reds and browns (in Book 1, due to her position, she wore a regal-looking vest with gold accents—it originally belonged to a younger Prince Zuko).
◘ Yun Hee’s grandmother—Bu Yong—was a friend of Aang. She survived because their friends Bumi and Kuzon saved her. Then she traveled with them all over the world for many years before settling in the Fire Nation with Kuzon.
◘ According to Aang, Yun Hee physically resembles a younger Bu Yong, except Bu Yong’s hair was brown instead of black. Also, Bu Yong’s defining hairstyle was a long braid accented with a green ribbon (representing her Earth Kingdom origins). The hairstyle is reminiscent to the traditional Korean hairstyle Daeng'gi Meori.
◘ Both Yun Hee and Bu Yong mean “lotus flower”. A lotus flower (or water lily) symbolizes rebirth. In Buddhism, it symbolizes spiritual enlightenment. Also, all the members of Bu Yong’s lineage whose names mean “lotus flower” happen to be Airbenders.
◘ Though initially trained by an untrained teacher (her grandmother), Yun Hee is a prodigious Airbender. Her fighting style leans towards the offensive due to her environment (as Firebenders—and her uncle, an Earthbender—prefer to be on the offensive).
◘ Yun Hee has many characteristics of the Air Nomads: she was born in autumn, has a good sense of humor, does not believe aggression is the answer, possesses hypersensitivity, and snores very loudly.
◘ Personality-wise, Yun Hee is kind but firm. She believes every living organism are on equal footing, thus explaining her reluctance to write off people as “good” or “evil” (often defending Zuko from the Gaang). The exception to this is Princess Azula and other power-hungry individuals.
However, Yun Hee’s kindness does not make her naïve: if anyone ever underestimates or tries to take advantage of her, she is quick to put them in place. When someone dishes on her (or topics she is really defensive about), most of the time she has a good argument at hand.
◘ Yun Hee’s situation [at the beginning of the story] can be blamed on Azula. Technically speaking, however, her position as Zuko’s attendant saved her from a worse fate.
◘ Yun Hee joins Team Avatar at the beginning of Book Two: Earth.
◘ Though Sokka doesn’t trust her at first, they later become best friends. In fact, they are so sync that whenever one of them has a plan (or is in the middle of one), the other can instinctively predict what will follow. Yun Hee also trusts Sokka’s plans a lot, so she often defers to his judgment (unless he’s just being an idiot).
◘ Toph refers to Yun Hee and Sokka as “the dynamic duo” because they often come up with moves that compliment the other’s fighting skills (they’ve got a special move involving Sokka’s boomerang and her airbending).
◘ Toph gets along with Yun Hee better than she does with Katara. This is because while Katara has a motherly personality, Yun Hee is an older sister and has experience with rowdy siblings. It helps a lot that she and Toph have a lot in common too (both grew up isolated without the chance of being true to themselves, unable to reveal the real extent of their bending).
◘ Yun Hee and Azula have got a lot of history together. Azula is, in a way, Yun Hee’s arch-enemy, though Azula feels more strongly for Yun Hee (one can argue Azula was “infatuated” or obsessed with the Airbender). The princess influenced a lot of who Yun Hee is at this point in her life. Also, Yun Hee can always recognize Azula, even from a distance or behind disguises (case in point, Azula wearing the Kyoshi Warriors armor and paint). Sokka dubs it her “Azula-sense”.
◘ Yun Hee’s hometown was far from the Royal Palace, close to the ocean. Her father and uncle were in the town’s business, which was boating. Because of these factors, Yun Hee’s childhood hobby was Windsurfing (in which she secretly airbended).
◘ Yun Hee has two family members around her age: her younger brother Ha Neul and her cousin Ren. Both are Aang’s age. Ha Neul resembles Yun Hee a lot, with people often mixing them up with the other or generally assuming they are twins. SPOILER: This comes into play in the episode, “The Ember Island Players,” where Ha Neul makes an official appearance. Can you guess how he surprises the Gaang?
◘ Yun Hee’s father is Bu-yong’s son. He has a twin brother, who is Ren’s father. The former is an Earthbender, the later a Firebender. Yun Hee’s mother’s ancestors were Waterbenders, though the woman never clarifies whether she came from the South or North Pole.
“Hold that thought” Eliza said simply as she paused before reappearing with a latte, having moved so fast that it had only been a blink “What were you saying?” The hero wondered, blowing on her new beverage and clicking her tongue. The woman unable to keep herself still, zipping and reappearing again with a handful of sugar packets so that she could add them to the drink.
