| "I could have had a great mentor in you. The Avatar and the Fire Lady, working together as allies." |
| — Kyoshi musing about Huazo.[1] |
Lady Huazo was the leader of the Saowon clan, as well as the former mistress of Fire Lord Chaeryu. During the Camellia-Peony War, Huazo supported the royal claim of her illegitimate son, Chaejin.[3]
History[]
As royal mistress[]
Huazo and Chaeryu fell in love as teenagers, which was not considered proper for a Fire Lord and his future partner. To retreat from the stresses of court, the couple usually retreated to the wilderness. Chaeryu would pack as little as possible on their journeys, wishing to be close to nature, and he and Huazo would often bicker.
At some point, Chaeryu came to believe that he could do better than Huazo. The Saowon clan was weak at the time, and Huazo was not well-received in the capital as mistress of the Fire Lord. Chaeryu's ministers, many of whom were from the Sei'naka clan, instead promoted Lady Sulan of the Keohso clan, introducing her to Chaeryu at a garden party. As soon as he laid eyes on the woman, any lingering thoughts of Huazo vanished.[1]
Despite being replaced by her in Chaeryu's eyes, Huazo never hated Sulan. By this point, she was pregnant with Chaeryu's first child, a fact she would later take great pleasure in revealing to the Fire Lord due to the embarrassment it caused him. She gave birth to a son named Chaejin, who was acknowledged by Chaeryu to avoid dishonoring Huazo and the Saowon clan.[4] Sulan became pregnant with a son of Chaeryu's herself some time later, and arranged with him to have the child named Zoryu, unaware that this would be considered a heinous insult since the name's first character had traditionally been used only by the Saowon clan. After Sulan died in childbirth and Huazo learned of the name, she was less offended than she was incredulous that the late Fire Lady could be so foolish and naïve, convincing Chaejin to anger her family's rival clan just so she could give her son a name that sounded pretty.[1]
Chaejin and Zoryu were initially playmates, but Chaeryu later sent Huazo's son away to the Fire Sages and excluded him from the line of succession, forbidding anyone to talk about the matter for the remainder of his reign.[4]
As clan leader[]
Huazo rose to become the leader of her clan, and worked diligently to improve their fortunes. She considered their successes to be some of the greatest of a clan leader in history. The Saowon clan rose to the wealthiest and most powerful in the Fire Nation, buying lands and properties across the Fire Islands.[1] The Saowon also gained spiritual influence over the Fire Sages, and Huazo's uncle was appointed the next High Sage ahead of the designated successor, Nyahitha of the Bhanti.
After Chaeryu's death, Chaejin was invited back to court as a representative of the Fire Sages, and began to gather allies to press his claim on the throne, while Huazo continued to consolidate wealth and power across the islands. The poor harvests and fisheries under Zoryu's reign were greatly opportune for the Saowon, as it appeared as if the spirits themselves were displeased with the Fire Lord.[4]
Journey to North Chung-Ling[]
In 295 BG, Huazo purchased a salt-making operation and vacation house from Master Linsu of North Chung-Ling, attempting to celebrate the Festival of Szeto in the city with her vanguard. By purchasing land on the traditional Keohso stronghold of Shuhon Island, she attempted to goad the rival clan into attacking her own, therefore justifying a war of retaliation where Chaejin could be put on the throne.[3]
Arriving at North Chung-Ling's fairground, Huazo exited her palanquin and approached the festival's sponsor, Sanshur Keohso. Despite Sanshur's steadfastness that not an inch of the island would be sold to her, she revealed her purchase of properties in the city, and her intention to celebrate the festival in North Chung-Ling. When Sanshur inquired as to the presence of her guardsmen, she claimed, they were necessary for her own protection after Yun's attack on the palace the previous night. As she turned away, a member of her vanguard spat on the ground, gravely insulting the Keohso.
The Keohso launched rocks at Huazo's turned back in response to the insult, although they were deflected by Avatar Kyoshi's earthbending as she, Hei-Ran, and Rangi joined the fight. Huazo appeared delighted to see the former headmistress once more, but grew shocked as soon as she noticed Hei-Ran's severed topknot. She promised that despite Hei-Ran's social dishonor, they would remain friends, yet reached to pat Hei-Ran on the head in the manner of rewarding a child or pet. Huazo proceeded to greet Kyoshi, introducing the Avatar to her niece Koulin, supposedly a good friend of Rangi from their days at the academy. After instilling a note of jealousy in the Avatar, Huazo returned to her palanquin with her niece, departing from the scene.[3]
The following morning, a supposedly spiritual message promoting Chaejin as Fire Lord was found in the town's melonyam fields. Outraged, Sanshur gathered his clansmen's fighters in the center of town, edging a battle line closer to Huazo's Saowon guardsmen. Kyoshi arrived moments later, and an amused Huazo asked her to interpret the message. Kyoshi ordered both clans to stand down, but neither obeyed her command. Rangi pleaded to Koulin for help, but after the Saowon woman insulted her and her mother, the lieutenant punched her in the face, instigating a fight between the two clans. Huazo departed the scene at this moment, trusting in her niece to handle matters.[5] Unbeknownst to her, the supposed spiritual message was actually the result of Yun - who had used the distraction of the fight to try and murder Hei-Ran - creatively salting the melonyam fields with his earthbending.[6]
Kidnapping by Kyoshi[]
The next day, Huazo attempted to discreetly leave Shuhon Island while keeping her other forces stationed to meet Keohso aggression, but was intercepted at the pier by Kyoshi and Atuat. Having come to believe that Yun was working with the Saowon clan because of how their actions had constantly benefitted each other - and because Yun's use of salt in the melonyam fields implicated Huazo due to her recent purchase of Linsu's salt-making operation - the Avatar asked Huazo about his whereabouts. When Huazo denied any knowledge, the Avatar lifted her island-hopping ferry with a great wave, bringing it out to sea and freezing it in ice. After Huazo denied knowledge about Yun again, Kyoshi demanded that Huazo come with her alone to Capital Island. The matriarch gleefully told her guards to spread word of her false imprisonment to her allies while allowing herself to be taken, believing that Kyosh's decision would only strengthen the position of the Saowon in the coming war.[6]
As Huazo flew with Kyoshi and Jinpa on Yingyong, she adopted an informal tone, complaining about her hunger and reminiscing about her early years at court, and Chaeryu leaving her for Sulan. At the story's end, she remarked that were it not for Sulan, Chaeryu could have had a Fire Lady capable of replicating the prosperity of the Saowon clan across the entire Fire Nation, with Kyoshi silently admitting that she could have had a great mentor and ally in Huazo within such a continuity. The group arrived at a rocky shore out of view of First Lord's Harbor, and the lady grew confused at not being brought to the palace, before she was left at a house that had been built into a crag, making it impossible to enter or exit without a sky bison or highly advanced bending.[1]
Hours later, Kyoshi returned to the house with Chaejin, Huazo screaming in surprise at her son's presence. She repeated her lack of knowledge about Yun, and Kyoshi continued to threaten her, creating cracks in the cliffside that supported the house with her earthbending. Chaejin denied any knowledge of Yun, and growing enraged, Kyoshi held him over Yingyong's saddle, threatening to drop him into the sea. Huazo shrieked for Kyoshi to let go of her son and, after being guided away from vengeance by a vision of Avatar Kuruk, Kyoshi released both of them, now realizing they truly knew nothing about Yun. She released Chaejin onto Huazo's platform, levitating the stone up to the top of the cliffs, and allowed Huazo and Chaejin to flee.[7]
Despite the Saowon's lack of involvement with Yun, Zoryu managed to feign their guilt when a double of Yun confessed to conspiring with the clan. An immediate purge of the clan began in the capital, bringing the war to an end before it had truly started.[8] Zoryu initially wished to execute the entire clan, but was forced into showing them mercy by Kyoshi.[9] Although Zoryu attempted to renege on the promise, Lao Ge's warning made sure that he would spare the Saowon. Huazo and Chaejin were kept as hostages in the capital, with their relatives in Ma'inka being unable to act militarily without risking their lives.[10]
While she and Chaejin were kept under house arrest by Fire Lord Zoryu,[11] Huazo managed to escape. The Keohso clan tasked a group of people with helping to track her down and bring her back, offering cash in return. The Saowon clan also began to search for the fugitive.[12]
Physical description[]
Huazo had a thin, puckered face and wore extremely expensive clothes.[3]
Personality[]
As the leader of the Saowon clan, Lady Huazo was intelligent and persistent. She put in a monumental effort to get Chaejin on the Fire Nation throne, even though she ultimately lost the conflict. Though they became prisoners of Fire Lord Zoryu after their defeat, she remained patient and determined. Huazo cared deeply about power, hierarchy, and appearances. She did not doubt to resort to more forceful tools to get what she wanted, such as blackmail.[2]
Relatives[]
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| Chaeryu |
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| Chaejin |
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| Koulin |
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Appearances[]
Chronicles of the AvatarThe Shadow of Kyoshi
Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game |
| Preceded by Unknown, eventually Duke Zolian |
Leader of the Saowon clan Years unknown |
Succeeded by Unknown |
References[]
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