Roimata Ngatai

The character of Roimata upon arrival was described as "Beautiful, intelligent and intriguing" and Ruakere stated that Roimata has a "Cutting sense of humour".[4] She is further stated as "kind" and "nice"[11] Ruakere also stated that; "Roimata is pretty cheeky and can run rings around anyone who challenges her, she's also got a very strong sense of right and wrong. Once she gets an idea in her head, it's very difficult for anyone to change her mind."[4] She has also been described as a; "sophisticated, intelligent, and caring woman with a sense of humour."[12] Roimata had issues with her father and was described as, "trying to find her own identity and passions".[6] Roimata's father Henare (George Henare) arrived to the show in early March and Henare described his characters relationship with Roimata, "My character is a likeable man whose daughter is the apple of his eye, so he was a lovely character to play."[13]

Roimata was introduced as a love interest for TK Samuels (Benjamin Mitchell) and to create a love triangle upon the eventual return of his ex-wife, Sarah (Amanda Billing).[1] Upon arriving to the show, Ruakere teased the idea that Roimata would be getting a love interest, "In true Shortland Street style, there's some exciting romance on the cards for Roimata"[4] Roimata found herself attracted to co worker, TK and after his flirtatious manner, eventually began to date him.[3] Ruakere enjoyed working alongside Mitchell, "Ben's taken me under his wing. He's a very generous actor and I'm learning a lot from him."[4] However, after a month of dating, Sarah returned and announced her pregnancy with TK's child.[1] Ruakere described this moment as a "rough time" and explained the wide range of emotions she had to portray during the onscreen relationship.[3] Sarah pleaded with TK to take her back and raise their child,[14] to which he rejected. Ruakere explained, "It's fair to say that TK makes a relatively big decision about his future with either Sarah or Roimata. And no matter the outcome, you can guarantee that there will stunned reaction from all involved."[3] TK and Roimata became engaged, but on the day of the wedding, he ditched her to attend the birth of his daughter.[15][16] They subsequently married each other in an unofficial ceremony.

In early 2012, the relationship was briefly shaken when Roimata realized TK was in on an illegal deal with her father. The couple struggled to work alongside each other in the Emergency Department and Roimata found herself at odds with doctor, Josh Gallagher (Chris Tempest). Following her sexual assault, Roimata began to exclude herself from TK and Mitchell speculated the marriage was at risk.[17] Josh provided support for Roimata when TK couldn't and even comforted her at the scene of the crime, leaving TK suspicious of his motives. Ruakere explained that the sexual assault left the couple at odds, "They are two people lost in the middle of the ocean, splashing around, trying desperately to find each other and make sense of stuff and it's not working. She does all the stages - denial, anger - she's just snapping at him and he can't do anything right."[18] Ruakere explained Roimata's bond with Josh, "Ever since the attack, Roimata has trusted Josh and turned to him for guidance. She can't understand why anyone would think he would be the culprit."[19] Roimata was insulted by TK suspecting Josh of the attack, "Roimata feels TK is undermining her by blaming her pillar of support. Just when she needs TK the most, he can't control his anger".[19] However, when Josh's ex-girlfriend Lana Jacobs (Brooke Williams) announced he had fallen for Roimata, she too suspected he may be the attacker.[19] Roimata soon started to develop feelings for Josh, much to TK's ignorance; Mitchell stated, "Roimata is always reassuring TK that she loves him. But he's starting to wonder how much she means it."[20] In May, Roimata gave into her feelings and began a love affair with Josh.[21] Ruakere was upset when she learned Roimata was going to cheat on TK and hoped for a potential reunion though admitted Roimata needed some serious help after her assault.[22]

In 2012 it was decided that the character of Roimata would be subject of a sexual assault at the hands of Zac Smith (Mike Edward).[23] Edward had been hired on a 6-month contract, but, following the implementation of the storyline, his contract was extended.[23] Sexual assault storylines had previously occurred in Shortland Street (such as the rape of Minnie Crozier (Katrina Devine) in 1998), but Ruakere felt Roimata's was portrayed with "the most depth needed".[24] Ruakere wasn't aware when acting out the storyline that it would have great effect on her immediately afterwards, "this storyline is heavy. I had no idea how much it would affect me until after I'd done it. I knew that to do the scene properly, I needed to feel the fear, to have a real force on me. Of course I didn't want to be hurt, but a sexual assault is every woman's worst nightmare and I knew I had to be as scared as I could be. Although we had practised beforehand so that level of contact wasn't uncomfortable, when the time came and my arm was twisted behind my back, there was no acting required."[25] The scene depicted Roimata pinned face first against a wall and sexually assaulted.[25] She described it as "horrific" and "every women's worst nightmare".[18] Behind the scenes, Zac was always intended to be the perpetrator but the assailant was depicted anonymously so as to create suspense.[26][27] To further the illusion that it was not Zac, directors shot the assault scene with Chris Tempest (Josh Gallagher) actually physically carrying it out, whilst Sam Bunkall (Boyd Rolleston) added the voice over.[26] The trick successfully fooled much of the audience, with many believing it was in fact Beulah Koale's (Jared Afeaki) voice.[28] On screen Zac was interviewed by police when footprints matching his boots were identified at the scene of the crime.[27] Though Zac denied any involvement and was even backed by ex lover, Vasa Levi (Teuila Blakely).[27]

However, on 12 December 2012, Zac was revealed to the audience as the attacker when he threatened Detective Lisa Stone (Caitlin Bossley) and later removed a balaclava to expose his face.[29] The characters soon started to discover the attacker had assaulted Roimata as a personal attack on TK.[30] Further harassments included the assailant breaking into the house and sprawling out Roimata's underwear and later leaving a white feather on the doorstep.[30] As the year ended, Zac poisoned TK[7] and used several tricks to frame Josh for the attack[31] However, with Josh's input, Roimata realised Zac was the attacker and publicly accused him, causing him to lose what little friends he had left.[32] With his dwindling amount of friends, in early 2013 Zac decided to take drastic action in exacting revenge on TK.[32] He kidnapped Roimata, bound and drugged her and locked her in the cellar of 'The I.V.' bar.[7] After Roimata was eventually recovered, Zac was arrested and charged after she collected enough DNA evidence to have him charged.[33] Producer Steven Zanoski praised Ruakere for her dedication to the sexual assault storyline, "I've really admired Shav's dedication to staying true to the emotional depths demanded by the story. From firsthand experience talking to victims of sexual assault, Shavaughn has this week written a letter of protest to the prime minister regarding the government's withdrawal of funding for the sexual violence helpline. This production can be proud that Shavaughn has lent her public profile to promoting awareness around this issue. To me, this says this story was more than just a job for Shavaughn."[34]