Terhal

Terhal is a waterbender and hunter of the Southern Water Tribe, younger brother to Rai Kana and lover to Tara Lin. He is an NPC in both chronicles, and mentor to Fi in the second.

Physical Attributes
Terhal is dark-skinned and brown-haired, with blue eyes and somewhat curly hair, usually pulled off his face in a loose ponytail or braid. He is short (5"7) and stocky of build in comparison to his siblings, the rest of whom are lanky and in the case of his elder siblings tall, and in his youth this was a sensitive subject for him. In addition to this, Terhal is not particularly masculine in appearance, having inherited the better part of his looks from his mother Mayna and thus appearing to be a bit of a "prettyboy". However, Terhal's smaller size masks a good deal of physical strength, strength he has no issue bringing to bear if things go awry. His preferred attire is Southern Water Tribe, although more recently his style of dress has been Earth Kingdom due to his travels with his wife Tara. He has recently started to go a little grey around the temples

Personality
Terhal had a rather troubled childhood. Although his sister did her best to keep him in line, Terhal spent a good deal of his time in his childhood flagrantly disregarding any attempts Reelan made at parenting and skiving off training, using his prodigous waterbending talent to pull pranks and generally mess around. He was fairly well liked by others his age, although in his teens he did recieve a fair bit of flack for his feminine-looking facial features. This began to change after the first Fire Nation attack, after which Terhal began to invest himself more into his training in order to protect his family, even moreso after the death of his brother, Kaidas. He matured considerably during this time and in many ways came into his own as a warrior, although his tendency to act outside orders and as a lone agent still remained. As an adult he is probably the most outwardly good-humoured person in his family, displaying an often playful demeanour and playfighting with his young sons as if he were their age rather than their father.

Waterbending
Terhal inherited his mother's gift for waterbending, and uses his bending in combination with his considerable physical strength to execute attacks that rely primarily on blunt force or impact rather than the more agility-based fighting style favoured by his siblings. However, he was never committed to achieving Waterbending Mastery and hence is not capable of the same feats of waterbending as his sister.

Healing
Although initially not trained as a healer, Terhal has picked up the ability to heal in his teens, after witnessing battle firsthand for the first time. Although not a gifted healer, he can deal with fairly minor wounds without much effort.

Weapons Mastery
Terhal is adept with Water Tribe hunting equipment such as hunting spears and uses them to hunt and catch food, a skill he attempted to pass on to his three children with partial success.)

Backstory
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Rai Kana
Of all the siblings, Raikana's relationship with Terhal was the most fractious in their youth. Terhal was a consistent thorn in her side, rambunctious and rebellious, however during Raikana's absence and especially after the death of Kaidas Terhal matures a great deal Although the two pick at each other good naturedly, there is a genuine respect and esteem between them, and when Terhal needs advice on emotional matters it is often Raikana he will go to first, with Myro following.

Tara
Terhal met Tara at the age of fifteen and was almost instantly infatuated with her, recognising in her a similar free-spiritedness that went frustrated in himself. This, however, passed into the back of his mind fairly quickly as he went about the business of rebuilding his former life and grieving the death of his elder brother Kaidas. This continued until the return of Rai Kana, who brought Tara among others back to the Southern Water Tribe. Terhal's previous interest rapidly resurfaced, only to be thwarted when Tara left shortly after Raikana did. Terhal proceeded not to see hide nor hair of Tara for several years, during which he showed no interest in women or marriage, instead attempting (rather unhappily and with limited success) to prepare himself to take Kaidas's place as Uran's successor. This weighed on his mind a good deal-- he never felt himself suited to responsibility or leading,

However, when Tara eventually reappeared, it was to promptly dash any hopes Terhal had of pursuing a relationship with her. Mourning the loss of her lover Seung-gi, and with a very young child, as far as Terhal was concerned Tara was unlikely to ever be interested in an irresponsible and feckless Water Tribe man having trouble living up to his inherited responsibilities. Resigning himself to his own unrequited feelings, he instead chose to become a support person to Tara in a platonic capacity and a father figure to her daughter, Fi, who he felt fiercely protective of due to his own loss of a parent as a young child. Although the responsibilities of leading a tribe ill fitted him, acting as a guardian to Fi certainly did, and his friends and family noticed that his dark mood soon vanished altogether.

However, unknown to Terhal Raikana had divulged his feelings for Tara to the woman herself. The two had a confrontation, ultimately resolving itself in a romantic relationship. However, Tara began to feel the urge to travel shortly after, and this time Terhal went with her, gladly leaving his responsibilities to Myro, who handled them better than he ever could. During this time, the two conceived a pair of twins, Kaidas and Taidan, named for their uncles, and Terhal convinced Tara to settle for a while in the Southern Water Tribe while their kids grew up. Terhal understands Tara's desire to teach her children the ways of her culture, and tries to accomodate her as best as he can, although he draws the line at vegetarianism. In his part, he offered to teach his children how to hunt (and for the twins, Waterbending) and does his best to mentor them in any way he can. He doesn't like leaving them for long periods of time, partially because of his own essentially parentless childhood, although he does understand that Fi in particular is old enough to fly the nest.

He's still completely besotted with Tara. He'd follow her absolutely anywhere, and he's fiercely protective of her and of their children. For Terhal, his family are the most precious thing he has.

Fi
As far as Terhal is concerned, Fi is his daughter. Although Seung-gi sired her, he played no further role than that. It was stepping up to the plate and taking care of Fi that lifted Terhal out of his depression, and anyone who dared insinuated that Fi was not part of Terhal's family was rapidly reprimanded. Fi was what brought him and Tara together, and she is a consistent source of pride and joy for him. It's also a relief to him that she's more earthy in temperament. Terhal is confident in her abilities and that she can take care of herself, although he also hates leaving her behind in Omashu. Being an Absentee Parent isn't his favourite thing in the world-- makes him feel a bit too much like Reelan.

Kaidas II and Taidan
Terhal makes an effort to retain a good relationship with both of his young sons, especially through teaching them waterbending the best way he knew how-- play. Although he relates to Taidan more easily than he does his brother, he also sees a good deal of his own siblings-- Kaidas's appearance, Raikana's caring nature, Myro's calculatingness-- in Kaidas, and tries to encourage Kaidas to take initiative and do things without his brother occasionally.