Disclaimer: I do not own A: TLA
Chapter 2It had been one hell of a day. I wandered through the trees, contemplating the stupidity and pure chauvinism of the members of my family. I had woken up in the morning to chores, had a short break at lunch, then back to more chores. I escaped for a few hours to watch the Avatar enter the village. I was shocked to see a 15-year-old boy walk through the streets. He looked so vulnerable, not almighty or powerful. I watched him carefully as people whispered about him. I saw from the way he flinched that he heard them. Turning away from what was an undoubtedly anticlimactic parade, I made my way back to guess what? More chores.
After supper, I decided enough was enough. I had worked all day while my younger brother played warrior. He was twelve years old, but he acted more like my father than my little brother. "Kiki, I need this outfit for tomorrow. Clean it for me,"
"Make me," I challenged, getting up from scrubbing some of my own clothes.
"Don't be stupid again," He said exasperatedly, as if I was an unruly child, instead of his fourteen-year-old sister. "Just clean it, okay?"
"No," I said flatly, picking up my beloved sketchbooks and heading outside.
"Kiki, I really need this for warrior training tomorrow!"
"I don't care! I'm telling you, it's not my turn to do the chores tonight, and I definitely don't intend to do them! I have far more important things to do!"
"Like what? Your precious 'studies'?"
"Yes, my precious studies! I don't see why you can't just do your share of the work!" I retorted angrily.
"Because father says-,"
"Like I care what father thinks!"
"Mother does her chores without complaining! Why can't you?"
"Mother shouldn't have to! She's not very well, and you and father just pile more and more work on her!"
"So help her out, and do your share!"
"I've done more than enough of my share of the chores! Why can't you do it?"
"Because I'm a man!"
"Oh, and that makes all the difference. Well, like it or not, you are going to do some work for once,"
"I work! I am a skilled warrior!"
"And the last time we had a war was…?"
"We're here to look after you,"
"You couldn't look after yourself. Two weeks without me or Mama, and you'd starve. And probably smell bad and have no clean clothes. So, as soon as you learn how to do those things for yourself, the sooner you'll be a true warrior," I said coolly, turning and leaving before he could think of a decent argument to answer me with. I always won.
I settled myself down under a tree and began my work. Not my chores, but my real work. I wrote stories and poetry, challenged theories, studied animals, and did just about any exercise I could lay my hands on. It may sound stupid, but seeing as my father wouldn't allow me to go to school, I had to teach myself. I loved it, and made sure I taught myself at least once a week. Needless to say, I was not popular with any of the village men, and even less with the women. They saw me as a troublemaker, who would make an awful wife, and would damage other women's chances if I so much as looked at them. Not that I minded; I was often too busy to be lonely. But when I was lonely, it was the second worst pain I've ever felt. The worst is seeing my frail mother drag herself out of bed every morning to waste her remaining days on this earth working for my ungrateful father and brother. Where I can I do her chores, but when I tell her to rest she insists that it's her duty as a woman and a wife. If that's where marriage gets you, you can keep it. A movement in the nearby bushes caught my attention. I got to my feet, and cautiously made my way over to the bushes. I tried looking through the leaves, but I couldn't see a thing. "Probably just a bird or something," I muttered out loud. Just then there was a loud thud. "Kay… Maybe not,"
I pushed through the bushes and almost screamed at what I saw. A grand red dragon was stood right in front of me, blinking down at me as if deciding whether to eat me or not. "Hey there," I said hesitantly. "You're magnificent," The dragon tossed its head proudly as I said that, and I relaxed a little bit. "I've never seen one of you up close before," I continued, as the dragon's head tilted to one side. I slowly raised a hand. "Can I touch you?" It was stupid, I know, but I loved dragons. I had read all about them, and there was no way I'd pass up the chance to touch one. It inclined its head and bowed down a little until it was within my reach. Slowly I reached up and ran my hand across its skin. It was so warm and dry, not slimy and scaly like most people imagine. It made a contented noise, and I smiled in surprise. I opened my mouth to speak, when I heard an angry voice behind me.
"What do you think you're doing with my dragon?"