Chapter 1 ~ Before the beginning

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***TRIGGER WARNING***

This chapter mentions rape and other subjects that may be uncomfortable for some people.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Y/N, happy birthday to you."

I smiled and blew out the 15 candles on my birthday cake.

"What did you wish for?" Asked Zuri, my 6 year old sister.

"Zuri, don't make your sister uncomfortable." Said my grandmother.

"Don't worry Zuzu." I said, giving her a little kiss on her forehead "I wished for health and prosperity to us and the fire nation."

Grandma turned around, satisfied.

"I actually wished for a boyfriend." I whispered in my sister's ear. "Now come on," I said to everyone "Who wants some cake?"

I cut the single-layered (Your favorite flavor) cake, giving slices to everyone. It was made by my mother, who is one of the chefs of the fire lord himself, so the simple cake tasted divine.

Time skip - 20 minutes 

"Ok everyone, it's present time!" Said grandma.

My first present was from my parents. I unwrapped the gold paper to find a hand sized dagger, which I recognized as my great-grandfather's weapon.

"We said you would have it on your 15th birthday, and we didn't forget" Said my mother with a smile.

I took the dagger out of the gold scabbard and admired it's expert craftsmanship for a second before putting it aside. The next gift was from my aunt, who gave me a ruby bracelet. I also got 10 silver pieces from grandma, a card from my cousins and a painted stone from Zuri.

After the presents, everyone started to leave in groups, thanking my parents for the wonderful time they had, and wishing me a happy birthday. My parents and me started to clean up while Zuri went upstairs to her room.

Time skip - 30 minutes

After having cleaned up, I went to the bathroom to freshen up a bit. I stared at my reflection in the mirror. The person I saw staring back at me was very pretty, with crimson eyes, long shiny hair, smooth skin and soft lips. I had glowed up since last year. When I was 12 the person in the mirror still had the same eyes, hair, lips and skin, yet something about me had changed in the past year.  I knew it from the way the men in the street looked at me. Before they barely looked at me, but now they eyed me everyday as I passed in front of them.

I left the bathroom and went to my room. It was a simple yet pretty room, with a red and white bedspread, my favorite books on a bookshelf, and a soft white rug. The window was facing East, so every morning I got to watch the sunrise as its pink and orange rays danced across my room, turning the white walls magenta. I got changed from my dress to my favorite outfit, a short red skirt, a matching top, tall boots and a pair of thin black gloves. I let my hair loose from the braid it was in and went downstairs.

"I'm going to take a walk." I said to my mom.

"Ok but be home soon, it's getting late."

I left the house and started walking along my usual trail. I passed by the market, the river and my favorite tree. I used to play in it with my friends when I was younger. In the spring, it would bloom with small white flowers. The air always smelled so sweet in the spring. But now it was fall, and the leaves of the tree were on the ground. I picked one up and continued walking.

From the corner of my eye I could see the men looking over at me, but I decided to ignore them.

The sun was setting and the sky was orange and light pink. The clouds were a blinding yellow. It was beautiful. I stopped to gaze at the sky for just a little while.

I felt someone grab my arm.

I turned around quickly to see what had grabbed me. A tall, muscular man stared right at me with a hungry look in his eyes. Two other men were standing behind him, one looked like he could have been the first man's twin, and the second looked like their small cousin, who was shorter and less buff.

I firebended at the man, and he let me go. the second one tried to grab me but I firebended at him again. I was going to run but I felt a fist hit my face and everything turned blurry. My head was spinning and begging me to sit down. I felt a second impact. My vision blurred and I saw the third man hunching over me before I fell unconscious.

Time skip - 25 minutes 

When I woke up it took some time for my head to clear up and figure out where I was. When it did I saw the 3 men hunched in a corner, discussing something. My hands and feet were tied to prevent me from firebending properly.

"Ah you're awake." Said the man who tried to grab me.

"Obviously." I spat.

The twin came up to me and whispered in my ear "Sweetie..."

"Don't call me sweetie." I hissed.

"...You should cooperate, if you do, it will be a lot more enjoyable for you."

I realized what they were going to do to me. No. I would not let it happen.

"I'll "cooperate" if you untie my ropes" I said.

"Good sweetie, you did the right thing." He said, untying the knots.

"Don't call me sweetie." I thought.

As soon as the ropes were loose I firebended at him. He stumbled backwards. The shorter man came towards me, ready to punch me again.

"Not a second time!" I yelled, aiming fire at his left leg. I saw him fall and wince in pain, and I felt a little bit guilty, but then again, he kinda deserved it.

I kicked the door open, and ran as fast as I possibly could towards my house. I only stopped running when I got to the doorstep. I pushed open the door, and ran up to my room before answering any of my mom's questions. I flopped on my bed and I realized how fast I was breathing. My legs and my lungs were sore.

I couldn't go to school tomorrow. Couldn't walk by those three men on my way to school. Couldn't think about what happened, what might of happened. I didn't want this to be my reality.

I grabbed a bag and started packing. I put a change of clothes, my new dagger, some food I had taken from the pantry, all the money I had and the stone Zuri gave me.

Time skip - 4 hours

It was dark outside. I passed by my parents room and whispered a weak goodbye. I did the same for Zuri. I ran to the docks as well as I could with my backpack. I hopped on one of the ships and headed to what looked like a storage room. It was already full. The boat was probably leaving in the morning.

I settled in between a crate of provisions and the wall. Using my pack as a pillow, I tried to take a nap.

A small tear ran from my eye before I fell asleep.

I hope nothing I wrote in here made anyone uncomfortable. If it did, please tell me and I will change/delete it. This is my first time writing a story, so the writing might not be the best.

Hope you enjoyed :)

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