ultraviolence | avatar, the last airbender

15

KIARA MADE A DEAL WITH HERSELF to never fall in love again. She decided that she has broken her rules too many times and she refused to do it again. She hated the way it made her feel. Kiara noticed that when she fell, she fell hard. No more she told herself. To protect her peace and her heart.

By now, it's been about two weeks since the group left the North Pole. They stopped in a small earth kingdom village on the coast. Aang and Katara were practicing water bending in a nearby stream while Kiara and Sokka were tasked with buying food for the week. However, Sokka strayed away from Kiara. Sokka was currently chatting up three girls at once. He had his arm propped up against the wall trying to smooth talk them. One of the girls had reddish brown hair that was cut to her shoulders, the other had short black hair in a bob, and the one in the middle had light brown curly hair. Kiara noticed that Sokka wasn't charming them as much as he thought he was. The girls couldn't look any less interested in him.

"Look, none of us are going to out with you," The middle one with curly hair said snidely.

"Yeah," The one with reddish brown hair chimed in. "Have you even been on a real date?" The three girls snickered loudly.

Kiara saw that Sokka was flustered. He stumbled over his words trying to find something to say. Then, Kiara had an idea. She walked over to Sokka. The three girls saw Kiara coming before Sokka did. Kiara kept an angry expression on her face and tapped him harshly on the shoulder. When Sokka turned around, Kiara slapped his face. The girls gasped as Sokka held his cheek.

"W-What did you do that for?" He asked, extremely confused.

Kiara then grabbed onto the neckline Sokka's shirt and pulled him closer, until their faces were only inches apart. "Just trust me," She whispered. Then, she closed her eyes pressed her lips onto his. Sokka was surprised at first, but kissed back almost immediately. Kiara kept her hands by his collarbone and Sokka placed his hands on her cheeks. The two kissed for a few moments before Kiara pulled away and slapped him again. Sokka yelped and held his cheek again. "Why didn't you call me back? We spend a beautiful night together and then suddenly I don't hear from you?" Kiara asked angrily.

"Uh...I'm sorry?" Sokka asked, though it sounded more like a question.

Kiara shook her head and sighed. "I should have listened to my friends about you. You're a total player! I've spent too many nights pining over you and I'm done. Goodbye, Sokka," She said before turning around and briskly walking away.

Just before Kiara was out of earshot, she heard the one curly brown haired girl say. "So, when do you want to hang out?" Kiara smiled to herself. She was glad that her plan worked and that Sokka would probably have more than one date. As she walked back to the fruit stand she was shopping at, something caught her eye.

On the wall, there was a poster hanging up. It was faded and one of the pins holding it to the wall was missing. Kiara approached it. It said:
Portraits for ten silver pieces, by Chihiro. 236 Suieren Way.

Kiara's stomach dropped. She reread the contents of the poster over and over again. Chihiro was her mother's name. Her mother was also a gifted painter. Although she didn't paint a lot in Kiara's childhood, Kiara's childhood home in the Fire Nation was neatly decorated with old works of art painted by her mother. It had to have been her. She immediately ripped the poster from the wall and read over it nearly a thousand times.

"If you're wanting a portrait, try another artist," Kiara heard a small voice say. She turned around and saw a small elderly woman sitting on a rocking chair in front of what Kiara assumed was her house, knitting a sweater.

"Excuse me?" Kiara asked.

"The artist, dear," The old lady repeated. "Haven't seen her in a couple years. Oh...what was her name again..."