𝙒𝙝𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙁𝙡𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙨 ⚠ slow updates ⚠ *editing*

The Palace

*edited 7/31/22*

"Welcome to your new home, Hestia."

A beautiful woman with ebony hair and kind amber eyes smiled down at a young girl who seemed to be no older than ten. The girl in question had dark brown hair that was unkempt from living on the streets, and she had these beautiful ocean-blue eyes, a set of exhaustion bags rested under them. The streets weren't kind to a young girl of mixed race. Most people ignored her exhausted and starving being, minding their business or disgusted by her filthy appearance.

The young girl peered at the royal palace from the small carriage opening. To her, it was just a giant building. She blinked tiredly at the sight and returned her gaze back to the woman in Royal Fire Nation attire.

"Thank you for having me, Fire Lady Ursa," Hestia answered bluntly.

The woman smiled at her as the carriage jostled to a halt. She reached out for Hestia's face, brushing away her wild strands of tangled hair, "I know your life has taken a sudden turn, but I wish for your happiness here. You don't have to worry about being alone. I have a son and daughter around your age."

The carriage is opened, and a man awaited the females to exit. His expression was blatant and also exhausted, but he seemed to hide his emotions well for the sake of his life. As Hestia went to step out of the carriage, she missed a step and took a tumble. Her small body smacked onto the stone ground.

"Oh, goodness!" Lady Ursa rushed out of the carriage to help her. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, Fire Lady Ursa." Hestia, with the help of the Fire Princess, got back to her feet and dusted her dirty clothes off.

"Milady?" A line of servants bowed in respect of their princess, but they eyed Hestia weirdly.

"That's enough," the woman sternly interrupted their hideous thoughts. "I need a bath drawn for Hestia, and new clothes for her as well."

"Yes, Your Highness." A maid bowed and hurried off.

Ursa nodded to the soldier that guarded the carriage and they were off. First, Hestia would need a cleansing. Her hair needed a good brushing, and her skin needed scrubbing. She wanted to doll her up in the finest silks made in the Fire Nation; her own daughter held no interest in dresses or pampering. She wished to seize the moment before it ended.

She glanced at Hestia and frowned slightly. The child would have a difficult time coping with being in the palace after living on the streets for a couple of days. It would not easy, especially after her parent's deaths, which hadn't more than a few days ago. Ursa fought for Hestia to be at the palace. She was there when Hestia was born; her mother was one of her closest friends before she became the Fire Lady. Sylvia, Hestia's mother, was an exceptionally robust fire-bender in their military, but her downfall was eloping with a water-bender from the Southern Water Tribe.

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"Red suits you well, Hestia."

Lady Ursa smiled as she tugged the ties of the outer robes together and knotted them tightly. The dress Lady Ursa put Hestia in, was much like her own, only, it was made for a child, like Hestia. She had been taken to Lady Ursa's chambers to be properly dressed in the Fire Nation clothes.

The young girl slipped on the red shoes before Lady Ursa had her sit by the vanity mirror. Seconds after her bottom touched the cushion of the stool, the Fire Lady began to brush out whatever tangles and knots that resided in her thick hair. She felt a few forceful tugs on her scalp for a couple of minutes until the woman tamed her thick locks into a simple styled braid.

Hestia glared at her reflection. Now clean, she hardly recognized herself, though the bags under her eyes were pretty easy to recognize. Before, she loved her eyes, as they were as blue as the seas. The wondrously beautiful ocean blue eyes in which she inherited from her father. And her dark hair and dark skin. It made her different than the rest of the people who lived in the nation. Not many people were so understanding as Lady Ursa.