Yi Lin

Background
Yi Lin is the older child of Avatar Aang and his wife, Katara; she takes after her father, sharing both his talent at Airbending and his friendly, carefree demeanor. Having spent much of her childhood traveling, she is at home wherever she rests her head. Hearing of Hayoda's call to adventure through her brother, Tseng, and her best friend, Princess Irah, she eagerly joined them on their escapades.

Personality
"“The girl is obsessed,” said Tseng, who sleeps across from Yi Lin in his bunk. “All she talks about is shipping, shipping, shipping. It’s not a stretch to say that it consumes about 90 percent of her day.” 1"

Likely due to their excitement over her being an Airbender, Yi Lin's parents gave her very free rein during her childhood. Her father frequently took her along with him as he traveled the world performing his Avatar duties, and both he and Katara lavished her with attention. This lack of strong parental expectations and discipline hasn't made her particularly spoiled, but it has caused her to be somewhat aimless. Yi Lin is happy to just see new sights, make new friends, and have as much fun as she can. Although she enthusiastically embraces causes that she considers noble, her short attention span prevents her from becoming deeply involved in any particular ideology.

Yi Lin's moral system consists mainly of an unshakable belief in the power of love, which for most of her life has been largely synonymous with friendship. Lately, though, she has begun showing a strong interest in romance. Although she doesn't seem very interested in having relationships herself, and appears oblivious to any advances made toward her, she cheerfully speculates on the love lives of anyone and everyone she meets. She has even begun keeping a secret journal (disguised as a shipping log) in which she records "proof" of her theories; the largest sections are devoted to Ty Lee and Azula, and Toph and Cpt. Tom Tom. An equally large portion is devoted to proving that Hayoda and Irah can't possibly be attracted to one another.

Relationships
Yi Lin is about the same age as Irah, and the two girls have been best friends and confidantes since infancy. The princess is often the first to hear about Yi Lin's loopy theories, matchmaking-related and otherwise.

Although she often scolds him for being boring, Yi Lin loves her brother very much. She knows that no matter how many times he sighs and rolls his eyes at her antics, Tseng will always be there for her.

Yi Lin likes spending time with Yue, especially since her young cousin is always finding interesting new animals to play with. However, she sometimes forgets that Yue isn't as boisterous and agile as she is, and doesn't realize she's left her behind until some time later.

Yi Lin and Hayoda do not always get along very well, likely due to the fact that their personalities are similar in many ways. She may also be harboring some unacknowledged jealousy over the fact that Irah is spending more and more time with him these days.

Yi Lin's newest friend, Princess Nikiru of the Northern Water Tribe, seems to have a bit of a crush on the Airbender girl. Yi Lin, of course, completely fails to pick up on whatever subtext may exist; she is simply happy to have someone around who appreciates the genius of her shipping theories.

Though she holds an affection for Yi Lin and her well-being as with all the kids, Toph tends to find herself most frequently annoyed by the young Airbender- likely because she takes so highly after her father, "Twinkletoes". And like her father, Yi Lin has gained a growing list of nicknames from the blind Earthbender, such as "Baby Bird" or "Jumping Bean."

Possessions
''This is a list of notable possessions this character has, to be used as a reference for future writers and artists. This is not meant to be a comprehensive list.''


 * Glider -- Whether or not Yi Lin has a glider-staff like her father is still up in the air. Some stories, especially early ones, feature one, while others have her considering getting one from Teo's workshop in the Northern Air Temple.  Many of the latest stories do not feature her with a glider, even in situations where one would be helpful, though rasputin_zero's "Such Wonders" features her with one.
 * Perhaps the best way to reconcile things is that Yi Lin had a glider, made by her father, at the start of the kids' adventures, but in the storm that tossed Yi Lin overboard, her glider was destroyed. There was an extended period after which she had no glider, but at some point she met up with Teo and had a new one built for her.
 * Book of Ships -- Yi Lin keeps a record of all her PROOF in a notebook (now expanded to hundreds of pages). She normally keeps it tucked in her sash or in her hands as she wildly scribbles the connections only she can see.  To keep unwanted eyes from prying too closely, the first few pages are covered in childish and cheesy drawings of actual ships.
 * Long before Yi Lin became obsessed with proof, she was an avid writer. When they were kids, Yi Lin the writer and Irah the artist would conjure up all sorts of stories together.  So seeing Yi Lin scribbling furiously in a notebook was nothing out of the ordinary, and by the time the other kids realized her subject matter had shifted to them, it was far too late to stop it.
 * "Season 1" Outfit -- These bright yellow and orange clothes show off Yi Lin's Air nomad heritage, and reflected her cheery personality. She wore this outfit until a storm knocked her overboard to wash up in the Northern Water Tribe.
 * Katara's Necklace -- This Northern Water Tribe necklace was passed down from mother to daughter, and Katara gave it to her daughter.
 * "Season 2" Outfit -- When Princess Nikiru first found an unconscious Yi Lin on the shore, clothes torn and ruined by the waves, she immediately had the fine tailors of the North Pole make a new outfit. Mixed with the familiar orange and yellow is the blue of the Water Tribes. [insert information about princess's favour]
 * Paints -- Either inspired by her father and his Airbending skills, or by an encounter with other The Boy in the Iceberg fans, Yi Lin regularly paints an arrow on her forehead (though she does not put any arrows on her arms or legs). One of the more enjoyable parts of her morning (and one of the more annoying parts of Irah's morning) is taking the time to reapply the paints and get it just right.  Yi Lin keeps several jars of light blue paint on board the Blue Flame.
 * "Masked Shipper" Outfit -- Like her normal "season 2" outfit, except the blue vest is replaced with a tan knee-length coat. Yi Lin also wears fingerless gloves and a folded paper hat.  To conceal her identity, the Masked Shipper attaches a sheet of paper to the front of her hat, usually stained with some hastily-scrawled symbol of love or proof that, thanks to her terrible handwriting and her folding the paper, everyone interprets differently.

Fun Facts

 * Yi Lin is named after a fan-created character from Deviantart.
 * The Airbender arrows that Yi Lin has in some pictures are paint, not real tattoos.
 * Is Yi Lin a vegetarian like her father? Probably not (though this is just the opinion of one contributor).  She gets very passionate about causes she finds important, but her flighty personality makes her drop them once they cease to be interesting.  I'd assume she would have tried it for a few weeks before forgetting about it.
 * Yi Lin will go to any lengths to get her proof, the privacy of the "couple" be damned. Sometimes, she dons new robes, a paper hat, and an ink-blotted page as a "mask" [inspired by Watchmen's Rorschach] and becomes the "Masked Shipper."
 * Yi Lin has one pierced ear, thanks to the encouragement and steady hand of Princess Nikiru. Having a low tolerance for pain, Yi Lin elected to not let the Northern Water Tribe Girl pierce the other one.  Nikiru gave her friend a Water Tribe earring to proudly display on her lobe, though Yi Lin rarely wears it outside the North Pole.

Character Interpretations
Due to the fact that the Gaang Jr. series is run only by a conglomeration of enthusiastic fans, the character personalities were made to be general and open to interpretation. For all of those who are curious or wishing for a more in-depth analysis of the characters, these interpretations have been pulled from the Gaang Jr. discussion board for your connivence. By no means are these interpretations final or even correct. They are simply a resource for any who wish to use them.

Happy-go-lucky Yi Lin. Lovely Yi Lin. Not a care in the world Yi Lin. And, by and large, I like writing this as truth. I also like to presume that she’s bloody good at running away from things. I like Yi Lin, I consider her a hard character to get to in some ways, but maybe that’s why I like her so much. It’s not that she masks what she feels, but I think, on the truly deepest of issues, personal things about friendship, romance and the like, her unique way of working through these processes makes it hard for others to understand her. As a result, I see her as fast at making friends, but having difficulty making it anything more than ‘acquaintance’ level, unlike her bro, who seems more like a ‘bro 4 lyfe’. It is and it isn’t her fault, and, given her tendency to have Katara-like grievances, I imagine she carries her fair share of regrets. She doesn’t mope over them, not unless something has thrown her entirely off course or taken her unawares, but I daresay they’re there. Perhaps the best example I can think of is how she acts like a big sister to Yue, because she hasn’t REALLY been one to Tseng. It’s the kind of thing I expect and this is great about her; displacing her feelings, rather than blocking them off, very airbendery. I guess she doesn’t much get the chance to do everything she wants, so she just looks for things where she can. The same might apply for her bending. She was obviously born for her element; she’s so airbender it hurts. And maybe it has. What’s her relationship with her mother like? Still, she’s vry capable with bending; she could probably go as far as she wants with it, it’s just a case of trying, which she doesn’t do. Now that I think about it that’s a potentially interesting point. Why doesn’t she try? I’ll have to think about that (though the obvious answer is because she doesn’t have, or doesn’t want, to make a commitment like that.) Ah. Maybe that is it. Despite what might seem a damning, insular view of her character, I still see her as a very upbeat, whimsical lass. I just like to think about all this stuff so when it comes to writing her, I can think about how all of this gets translated through the Yi-Lin-processor and comes out all happy on the other side. It doesn’t weigh on her. She’s fine, and she’s probably more comfortable with herself than most anyone on the ship, due to her near insistence on living in the present. That might change over the voyage, and she might learn the benefits of being more responsible and what her responsibilities actually ARE, or should be...but otherwise, she’s alight.
 * submitted by: The Dai Li

Out of all the Gaang Jr., the one I relate most to is Yi Lin. That probably seems weird considering the ridiculous, out-there way in which she’s usually portrayed. I definitely agree that she swings back and forth between obsession and short-attention span more than the average person. Actually, I see her as someone on the verge of growing a great deal as a person into someone much more healthy and balanced mentally. But at the moment, I think she has a great deal of insecurities as a person, and uses her shipping as a way to suppress them. Her relationship with Nikiru is probably the best example of this. Despite the fact that she is best friend, Yi Lin comes of as exceptionally oblivious to Nikiru’s feelings for her. (I’m operating under the assumption that Nikiru does in fact think of Yi Lin as more than just a friend, but doesn’t know how to deal with that). I think she subconsciously holds people at arms length with her flightiness, and breaks relationships down into scientific data to prevent herself from being hurt. I feel like the adventure is, again subconsciously, a way of keeping her friends close. Her confrontations with Hayoda, too, probably stem from her fear of losing Irah to him. I also think that while her parents would never put this pressure on her, growing up knowing that she was now the second-to-last airbender probably affected her greatly. In typical airbender fashion, however, she tends to avoid issues rather than confront them. Like her dad, I see her holding things in. As the adventures continue, I see her eventually having to confront the things she’s been avoiding, and really coming into her own for it. I’m not saying she’ll ever stop being creative, flighty, or excessively joyful. She’ll just start being able to form close relationships and expressing her emotion healthily.
 * submitted by: eldestofthree

Snippets
'''Main listing at Yi Lin Snippets. Also see:'''
 * Pirate Daughter
 * Katajjaq
 * Before the Beauty Contest
 * Trolling Yi Lin

Comics

 * [[Media:Caveof2lovers_color.jpg|Cave of Two Lovers]]. Yi Lin and Irah share a magical moment.
 * [[Media:A_shipper_will_rise.jpg|A Shipper Will Rise]]. The Masked Shipper strikes!
 * [[Media:Azula proof.jpg|This is Proof!]]. Yi Lin knows what's really going on between Azula and Ty Lee.
 * [[Media:Yilin_shipping_comic.jpg|Yi Lin Shipping]]. Nikiru loves Yi Lin's theories, but Irah isn't so sure.
 * [[Media:Justasplanned.jpg|Just As Planned]]. Hayoda stumbles across Yi Lin's shipping journal.
 * [[Media:This is what yi lin actually believes.jpg|This is What Yi Lin Actually Believes]]. She sees the world a little differently from most people.
 * [[Media:A_world_of_proof.jpg|A World of Proof]]. More Yi-Lin-O-Vision!
 * [[Media:AlmostKisses.jpg|Ear Piercing and Almost Kisses]]. Accompanies Mil's story.

Gallery
See Category:Yi Lin for a complete listing.