[center][color=DodgerBlue][h1]Kariya Amaris[/h1][/color] 
[IMG]http://img09.deviantart.net/653c/i/2015/115/2/4/pp_com__yuehei_by_chiuchiu_susu-d8r21f2.png[/IMG]
[color=DodgerBlue][h2]Waterbending Instructor[/h2][/color]
[color=DodgerBlue][b]”You are not the first to underestimate based on my apperance but the elegance of my movements belie their deadly potency."[/b][/color]
[hr]

[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Full Name[/b][/u][/color]
Kariya Amaris


[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Nicknames[/b][/u][/color]
Kari by the children at home, other than that she Kariya doesn't have any nicknames. 

[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Age[/b][/u][/color]
22

[color=DodgerBlue][b][u]Gender[/u][/b][/color]
Female

[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Sexuality[/b][/u][/color]
Heterosexual

[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Abilities[/b][/u][/color]
Instead of looking to blaze a trail to the unknown throughout her training Kariya instead looked to the past and found strength and abilities in traditional teachings. As one would expect Kariya is an exceptional waterbender; both offensively and defensively.  Having picked up the more modern styles of waterbending popularized by both pro-bending and Avatar Korra as a young child, Kariya studied ancient waterbending scrolls and teachings; the kind that women weren’t allowed to learn before the 100 Year War and brought the past into the present. Kariya mastered the forms of waterbending and all of the different applications of those forms until every single form and movement were drilled into her being. 

Where Kariya truly shines though is in the application of her sub-bending skill; healing. Katara left an incredible legacy to the world and Kariya’s dream is to rise and take up the mantle. She has studied just about every form of medicine that exists; from studying the incredible anatomical knowledge of the chi blockers, to observing the movement, flow, and manipulation of chi used by acupuncturists, to reading all of the  texts on healing written by Katara herself and other healers found in the water tribe. She’s the go-to expert on health matters within the White Lotus and many have begun to recognize her as Katara’s successor across the world.

Aside from her bending capabilities, Kariya has trained in the arts of dance since she was a child and dancing has become a second nature to her. She has traveled the world to hone the art and has performed for many nobles. Her dance style utilizes waterbending and the fluid movements found within it to create a spectacle of a show.  Outside of dancing and bending Kariya is a good cook; her traveling experience providing her with a chance to sample many different types of food and take recipes where she could. She has lots of knowledge about animals and different types of herbs found in the wild and is also a fairly fast reader. 
  

[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Fighting Style[/b][/u][/color]
Like any good dancer, Kariya moves to the rhythm as it plays. She is a very evasive fighter, constantly moving and weaving in between enemy attacks and her own launch of offensive skills. Using her acrobatic nature to quickly shift between offense and defense at a moment’s notice and without a single wasted movement.  Like most waterbenders, Kariya uses fluid strikes and sweeping motions to overwhelm her opponent with masses of water and precision strikes. Kariya is also an avid user of ice in combat, especially on the offensive, and frequently switches water between its liquid, gas and solid forms.  


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[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Physical Appearance[/b][/u][/color]
Kariya has the perfect build for both a waterbender and a dancer; she is lithe and elegant, small and supple with strong well-defined legs and fluid arms. As with most members of the water tribe, her skin is a beautiful tan color and although she stands at no more than average in height her well defined feminine assets and figure prevent her from simply shrinking into the background. Her light blue eyes convey energy and warmth, but also a deep passion and willingness for any adventure. When it comes to her mannerisms Kariya is just about what one would expect; she doesn’t waste a single movement, every action refined and elegant without being slow as if she had practiced every little detail one hundred times. Her lips and skin are incredibly soft, well cared for and free of any hardship. Her hair is a deep brown and is worn in many different styles, but currently, she is simply happy with it down in its natural state. When she is embarrassed there is a clear red flush on her cheeks that her complexion does nothing to help her hide, when she is feeling shy she often moves her hair in front of her face. Her expression is usually inviting and kind, but occasionally whimsical and almost childishly playful. Her eyes are her most expressive feature; steely and focused when determined, light and revitalizing when she is happy and a clear picture of emotion when she cries. When it comes to fashion Kariya has sampled the different styles of clothing throughout the globe and has discovered she has no particular preference for any one style of clothing. She prefers things that are blue but beyond that, she isn’t bothered. What really excites Kariya is a good accessory; her outfits and hair are always adorned with different pieces of jewelry or nice hair clips – small little things that Kariya feels helps tie together and personalize a look. 
 

[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Equipment and Personal Belongings[/b][/u][/color]
Two large water skins which are always on her person. Along with a beautiful moon hair ornament which Kariya almost always wears. She has a necklace of a sapphire water tribe symbol for special occasions. 

[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Goal[/b][/u][/color]
Kariya has but one simple goal. She has dedicated her life to becoming an exceptional healer; striving to surpass Katara as the greatest healer to have ever lived and use waterbending to heal the incredibly damaged world. She hopes that by teaching the Avatar and becoming a mentor for the first time will allow her to improve her own skills and as well as continue the traditional of healers passing down their studies. 

[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Secret[/b][/u][/color]
Kariya's elder sister is a General within the United Forces. When the two of them were younger Kariya set out on a journey to find herself and so did her sister. While Kariya's path lead her down the route of dancing and studying the medicine of the world, her sister's path led her straight to San and the United Forces. 

[color=DodgerBlue][b][u]Habits[/u][/b][/color]
When she is standing still for more than a few minutes she starts to shift her weight from side to side. She stretches a lot and often finds herself mock dancing when she is bored. Despite how she might try she is unable to sit completely still, she is always fidgeting with something. Whenever she is talking to a boy who she finds attractive she always plays with her hair.

[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Other[/b][/u][/color]
She is banned from a lot of circus' around the world due to several moments of activism where she used her bending to free the animals held in captivity - as a result of this she is actually wanted as a criminal in one Earth Nation state. She has a polar bear dog named Moro, whom she loves dearly, but has left with her parents given her recent mission. She is obsessed with ghost stories and loves particualrly scary stories - when she was a child she frequently went out in search of the ghosts who plauged the storms of the south and was disappointed to never find them.

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[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Likes[/b][/u][/color]
 o Dancing 
 o Animals
 o Anything blue
 o Learning

[color=DodgerBlue][u][b]Dislikes[/b][/u][/color]
 o Having her movement restricted
 o The color green
 o Bullies
 o Any form of animal cruelty
  
[color=DodgerBlue][b][u]Strengths[/u][/b][/color]
 o Waterbending and Healing
 o Listening
 o Compassionate
 o Evasive

[color=DodgerBlue][b][u]Weaknesses[/u][/b][/color]
 o Confined spaces
 o Gets carried away trying to do the right thing
 o Too trusting and easy to forgive
 o Is too concerned with other people's opinions about her

[color=DodgerBlue][b][u]Personality[/u][/b][/color]
Kariya is above all, a compassionate young woman but she is often held back by her emotions or her concern about the opinion of those around her. She is ingrained with a deep desire to help others which resonates with her to her very core. This compassion is the driving force behind most of the significant choices in Kariya’s life. She is always willing to help those who need it – even if they are not willing to ask for it themselves. Although some do appreciate her genuine effort to help, others have branded her a meddler. Despite her pure intentions, Kariya does have a tendency to get carried away when it comes to her own personal sense of right and wrong. She will go to the ends of the earth to prevent any injustice she sees, but her hot-headed all guns blazing attitude can cause more problems than it solves. Kariya believes that everyone should be passionate about [i]something[/i]. Whatever it is, whatever your belief system, you should be willing to stand up and fight for it. People who are disinterested and remain neutral in everything drive her up the wall. Above all else, Kariya believes in equality and respect for all and repaying the kindness shown to you by the world and taking any opportunity you can to pay it forward. 

She considers herself to be well-mannered and graceful and there wouldn’t be many people rushing to disagree with her. Kariya is kind and tolerant and much like the water is constantly fluid in her interactions with those around her to suit the mood – always willing to go with the flow. She might be more gentle and kind around quieter individuals, but has the energy and willing to keep up with even the most daring adventurer. From all her traveling and time spent at festivals Kariya loves a good party. She becomes almost childlike at any appropriate opportunity to simply let go and have fun. Like many benders, Kariya is very proud of her bending abilities and her accomplishments and believes fully in utilizing bending to its utmost potential for the sake of all, but she does not always acknowledge the damage that bending can cause and the duality of the wonderful ability. 

For all of her positives attributes, Kariya does have some slightly off quirks. Most notably her terrible sense of humor. She is very quick to joke but seems to constantly be off beat from the punchline and it truly is odd what actually seems to make her laugh. Nothing is ever simply funny or amusing to Kariya, it is either hilariously gut-wrenching requiring an ungracious five-minute laughing fit or she doesn’t get it all. She does not shy away with from showing emotion and should someone hurt her feelings she will readily cry. If you manage to make her angry then her temper is as icy as you would expect and although she is quick to forgive, she is never quite as fast with her own apologies. She does not take criticism well and she is very concerned with how people perceive her – fundamentally she just wants to be liked. 

The best way to befriend Kariya is to just ask her to dance for or with you, teach her something or challenge her to a game of Pai Sho. (Although fair warning she was the undisputed champ of the White Lotus waterbenders Pai Sho Tournament.)      

[color=DodgerBlue][b][u]Brief History[/u][/b][/color]

Like Katara and Korra who came before her, Kariya was born in the Southern Water Tribe.  Her parents were traders by nature but welcomed the opportunity to settle down with their beautiful new daughter when Kariya’s mother first fell pregnant. They had a healthy baby girl who they called Kaita. Three years later Kariya was also born and her parents were glad to start their family in the more traditional sense of the word. They were both surprised and thrilled when it turned out that their daughters were both waterbenders. Kariya and Kaita both started instruction in waterbending from a young age and while both were remarkably talented at the art Kaita was always just an edge superior to her sister. Although she could never surpass her sister in regards to combat, Kariya was less interested in using waterbending to harm and more interested in utilizing the art to heal. The stories of Korra and Katara were used to inspire the waterbenders in the south – even though the two of them had passed. 

But heroes never die. The legends and stories of the waterbenders gave birth to a spark of inspiration in Kariya and she became fascinated with the ability to use waterbending to heal injuries – amazing in the duality of bending. Her sister, while sharing her initial enthusiasm, was soon discouraged to find that she was able to heal no matter how much she practiced. This caused a rift between the siblings that Kariya never really noticed. As Kaita continued to master waterbending in her own the chasm only grew. When Kariya was eighteen she realized that she had gone as far as she could go while she was still in the south – so she decided to take a long journey to the north similar to the journey Avatar Aang, Katara and Sokka once took. Kaita, eager to impress and overshadow her sister, set out on a journey as well. The day before they left was the last time Kariya saw her sister, but in time she would come to find out that she went to Republic City and became a soldier in the United Forces. 

Kariya’s own journey took her all around the world. She started off seeking to improve her scholastic knowledge as a healer; the chance to study the many different books and techniques used by different cultures around the world was the single most fascinating opportunity she’d ever had, but while travelling she found so many different pieces of culture and made so many friends that her initial mission started to take…a back seat. It wasn’t until Kariya ended up in Republic City that she found her agenda and passion lit anew. As with many benders Kariya had heard of pro-bending and always dreamed of seeing a match – when her journey brought her to Republic City to study the methods of the best healer in the city and she discovered it was tournament season Kariya couldn’t tear herself away. The Republic City pro-bending arena was everything the girl had hoped for with bright lights, crowds full of cheering fans and some of the best bending that she had ever seen. Complete with dancing and food and drink following the event. The passion inside Kariya was reignited and after staying in Republic City to learn what she could from those willing to teach her and copying the moves of those who weren’t she set back off for the north. 

Kariya’s journey continued much in the same manner. She continued to imitate the dancers and benders she saw in Republic City and picked up other styles of dance and various maneuver’s she could incorporate into her bending. By the time Kariya had made it to the north she was already a master of her own style of bending and was fairly adept at the more modern styles of waterbending. Taking to the more traditional styles of waterbending found in the north with fervor and dedication and she quickly mastered what the instructors had to offer. Frustrated at her lack of a worldly goal or purpose to her journey Kariya continued to travel the world as a healer in hopes that she might find herself or a greater reason for being. Although she did not find exactly what she was looking for Kariya did find the White Lotus. Recruited in for her accomplishments in the healing arts and her mastery of waterbending. Being a White Lotus agent wasn’t as fun as one might expect – there wasn’t much to do aside from attempt to maintain balance but with the force of the United Forces backing San there wasn’t much they could do without the Avatar. While she was with the White Lotus she received a letter from her parents informing her that Katia had risen to the ranks of General within the United Forces. Dismayed at her sisters choice Kariya began to weigh up whether or not she should set out to stop her sister but was instead called upon to mentor the Avatar in the art of Waterbending. 

With a little less than a month to prepare to meet and teach the Avatar everything she knew about Waterbending Kariya launched into preparations. She wasn’t bothered about the short notice given her own lack a goal, but Kariya remains hopeful that mentoring the Avatar will give her what she is searching for – but she mostly hopes to avoid crossing paths with her sister.   

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