As a girl, Noo-ri lived his life reserved and holding onto the comment sense of a girl.

If you wore a skirt, you don't climb trees. The fabric would get in the way anyways, and most definitely your arms wouldn't be strong enough. The loose sleeves would be a menace. If you got too many scratches on your hands, it would impede your work.

No one wanted blood-stained clothing or foods, after all.

In his past life, climbing trees were drill number one of Shuten's faction. They spent weeks simply climbing trees until they could do it in their sleep, to prepare for ambushes and scouts. It was second nature to him, but he had to hold back on it as a girl.

But now, he was no longer tied to girlhood. He was no longer bound by gender borders. Now he lived in the forest-- so he had to act like a man even if he didn't want to, simply to survive.

And he loved it.

He hiked up his skirt, baring his pale thighs. How vulgar, but who was there to see? He tugged his sleeves to his shoulder. How uncouth, but did it matter?

The heat can burn him. The wood can scale his skin, and he would be perfectly fine with it.

He did not care for injuries. He did not need to care for scars and wounds anymore.

He was free.

Looking out into the world as if it was his first time realizing that fact, a smile bloomed onto his face and he laughed.

-

Taking his blade and gathering his hair into a ponytail, he leaned the blade into the bundle and lopped it right off.

He could still tie the top half of it, so it wouldn't look too much like an explosion of curls, but it was much less of a hassle now. It was messy and needed trimming, but he would take what he got.

He grasped a handful of fallen hair, when he realized something.

His hair was brown.

It was a peculiar shade. it was dark enough to pass for black, but when he looked closer into each lock in his hands, it was undeniably brown. He had never noticed, it was a small but visible difference.

Had everyone else around him noticed this too? Then they would be able to track him if they found this bundle of hair. After all, it was a discernible trait.

His clothes, too. He would have to find the first place he could to change out of them, at least the colours. But they would recognize his face.

He can't afford to have people recognize him before he reached Wind Lands.

So he took his dagger, stood over the river-- he pointed the blade to his face and took a deep breath.

He had just enough clean cloth left over to bind a wound, after all.

-

Being a rogue was easy when you had the memories of a soldier drilled into survival. It was tough to avoid the fire tribe civilians when he wandered too near a village, and his clothes inevitably stank, but he lived frugally for a few weeks without too much trouble.

He wondered how long he had been in the forest.

The mountains never seemed to end, the forests seemed eternal after days of nothing but it. His feet were tired from days of scaling walls, and the lack of care was taking a toll on his fingers.

Occasionally he would turn around, sensing a follower in his tracks. But he would find no one, and dismiss it as a passing wind.

Setting up traps and eating forest animals, he got used to living in the forest.

Maybe he should just live here from now on... no, he wouldn't survive the winter. But it was fine for now-- after all, the hardest part was just getting started.

Standing in the capital of Wind Lands, Fuuga, Noo-ri felt very small.

Every article of his clothing was caked in dust. He wore a cloak over his head to hide his face, but as he descended the mountain, he didn't dare enter the city.

He just didn't fit in with civilians right now.

So he trailed the borders, heading up towards the castle-- though, truthfully, he wasn't too sure what he could do from there.

The amount of trees were comforting. Lord Shuten really loved tall places. The fresh air, the warm chatter of the city-- they were a peaceful sight one didn't see in Fire Lands.

It was a beautiful city. As to be expected from Lord Shuten.

"Hold it, you suspicious fellow!"

And the world whirled back into motion. All of a sudden, guards encircled him, glaives in hand and voices booming loud.

Noo-ri flinched back against a tree, tugging the hood down over his face.

"Name yourself and your purpose here!"

Were they the guards? Then they must have had an eye on Noo-ri for a while now... Wind Tribe people weren't known to be vigilant observers, after all.

Noo-ri looked around. Most of them were young-- but Noo-ri was too. They did not look like weak soldiers, so Noo-ri simply couldn't charge through them...

He looked up.

"Boo," a voice said above him, and Noo-ri squeaked soundlessly at the black-haired boy that was on the branch right above him. When had he climbed up there?

Falling to his bottom, Noo-ri tensed, realizing he had nowhere to run. Now what?

A blond among the guards stepped forward, speak behind him as he stared at the intruder rather curiously. He was as young and Noo-ri was.

He leaned uncomfortably (and so naively) close to Noo-ri, trying to see past the hood. Noo-ri tugged it down further so only his mouth was visible.

"What's with you, can't you talk?" he asked.

Noo-ri took the chance to furiously shake his head.

There's a silence after that. He didn't hear whispers, so he lifted the hood slightly so he could get an idea of the situation outside-- only to find all of them staring back at him from two inches away.

"Oh, I saw her face!"

"Her eyes are green... That's just like Tae-yeon!"

"I couldn't see the other side of her face... is she hiding more of it under there?"

"Well, at least she doesn't look like a threat..."

Noo-ri shrank into himself, confused. One minute they were stern and glaring, now they're treating him nicely? Is it because they think he's a girl...? They sure have overly lax security... as expected from Lord Shuten's descent...

Above them, the boy hollered, "you know Lord Mun-dok will get angry if we pick up another stray, right?"

(I am not a kitten!)

"Then are you going to leave her here, Tae-woo? You fail as a man!" someone called out, but there was no heat in his tone. Instead, it was playful and taunting. "Just look at her!" he gestured at Noo-ri as if it explained something.

Somehow, that made Tae-woo falter. "But," he was flustered, "alright then, but you're going to tell Lord Mun-dok about this."

Noo-ri sat there, not too sure what was going on.

"Now then..." attention was shifted back to Noo-ri. The one that spoke to him now was a light-haired girl with a kind face, "you, where did you come from?"

Where did you come from?

(Where exactly, he wondered, did he come from?)

Noo-ri looked up toward the sky-- and he reached a hand toward it.

(I come from the will of the gods above.)

The Wind Tribe guards exchanged curious looks. Then the girl smiled and took Noo-ri's hands in hers, comfortingly rubbing against every chapped skin and rough callus.

"If you have nowhere to go... want to come back with us?"