This is a Valentine's Day prompt I put up on Tumblr a while ago, but I figured I should share it here too. Enjoy!

Her parents were kissing and she wasn't sure how much more she could take.

Looking back on it, Jinora wasn't quite sure what possibly possessed her to agree to go on this journey into the city for the so called "Secret Tunnel Parade." Boredom? The urge to get away from her siblings? Insanity?

Probably all three.

Normally, she would have happily stayed at home and read, but she had been working through all the scrolls in her parent's library at an alarming rate. Sure, the historical and educational scrolls were interesting as well, but they just didn't captivate her attention like the stories did. Old legends and myths, tales of lovers and gods and spirits.

When she was old enough, she couldn't wait to come into the city and attend school, spend all her afternoons at the Republic City Public Library. She would go now, but her parents still resolutely refused to tell her where it was. They were convinced she would sneak out and go all by herself. She probably would, but it hardly made a difference. The result was the same: she was only allowed to come into the city if she was chaperoned.

Like now, with her parents, who were kissing.

Covering her eyes with one hand, Jinora turned away and tried to scan the crowd through her fingers. A surprisingly large number of people were here, considering this particular holiday had only been created thirty years ago. Avatar Aang—her grandfather, though it was weird to think of him that way—had started the tradition. According to him, the tradition was started hundreds of years ago by "two people who had, against all odds, overcome warring tribes to be together." According to her grandmother, that wasn't exactly how the story went, but the holiday had been created nonetheless. Today, citizens celebrated by appreciating loved ones and coming to the parade, which featured all sorts of singing acts.

The parade was a rowdy event, and Jinora was surprised that Ikki and Meelo had declined to come. Though she had a sneaking suspicion that they only stayed behind because Korra and Mako were babysitting, and both her younger siblings seemed to enjoy catching them at whatever romantic act they tried to sneak away for.

That left Jinora as the only child to witness her parents' public displays of affection. She kept her hand firmly over her eyes as she followed them, trying to block out the obvious sounds of quick kisses that her parents were sharing. No child needed to see that.

It was her hand over her eyes that kept her from seeing the large brown obstacle in the middle of the road until she had already tripped over it. Only an impulsive burst of airbending kept her on her feet, though she still stumbled a few feet.

Bending down, Jinora picked up the offending object, meaning to throw it in the nearest garbage bin. But, upon examination, it turned out that what she originally thought was garbage was actually a hat. A well worn and somewhat threadbard hat, but a nice hat nonetheless.

Keeping an eye on her parents, who were still slowly following the parade, Jinora tugged the hat over her head, careful to tuck her bun underneath it. She wished there was a mirror or window or something where she could see her reflection, but she was surrounded only by people and plants along the road.

Jinora set about to catch up to her parents, but didn't get two steps until she heard a shout. "Hey!"

She turned around to see a boy, no older than twelve or thirteen, running up behind her. He had brown eyes and dark brown hair that just brushed his shoulders as he ran. He was coming towards her, though she was quite sure she had never met him before.

She opened her mouth to ask him what he wanted, but he beat her to the punch. "That's my hat."

"Excuse me?"

He pointed towards her head. "That. Is my hat."

Jinora had momentarily forgot about the garment on her head. She eyed the boy in front of her. His clothes were torn and dirty, and he had dirt smudged on one cheek. A frown tugged at her lips as she wondered whether or not he had a home. But he certainly had the look of someone who knew his way around the city…

"Hmm," Jinora pulled the hat off her head, balancing it carefully in her hand. Sensing an opportunity, she curled her fingers around it to keep a better grip. "I'll give your hat back…for a price."

The boy's eyes narrowed. "A price?"

"Yes." Jinora inclined her head in a curt nod. "Information."

His glare intensified and he let out an indignant snort. "Do you know who you're talking to? I'm the one who names the prices around here!"

She fought the urge to roll her eyes. The boy couldn't be more than twelve, and she was pretty sure she could take him in a fight. She was an airbender, after all. "Do you want your hat back or not?"

A few seconds passed as his mouth hardened into a flat, angry line. Finally, he relented. "Fine, what's your price?"

Jinora held back a victorious smile. That would be rude, after all. "I'd like to know where the public library is."

A pause. Then, "The library?"

"Yes."

"You're bartering for the location of…the library." His voice was flat.

"Yes."

At this, he threw his arms up in the air, doing a great impersonation of her father when he was angry. "You're crazy!"

Jinora crossed her arms over her chest. "And you're rude. Tell me where the library is and you'll have your hat back."

The boy stared at her a few moments longer, and she fought the urge to take a step back under the scrutiny. To her right, a strangely dressed musical group was passing in the parade, singing something about lovers and tunnels and playing odd stringed instruments. Finally, when she was ready to just throw the hat at him and run away, his face split into a huge smile and he laughed.

"You're pretty tough, you know that?" The effect of his grin was contagious, and Jinora felt a small smile taking over her face as well. "Where are you from? I haven't seen you around before. I'm Skoochy, by the way."

This was all said in rapid succession, and Jinora shook her head briefly trying to process it all. "I'm…Jinora."

He shot her another smile and Jinora stilled. His smile, trained on her, was causing her insides to feel a bit silly, like a spiderfly was dancing a jig in her stomach.

"Jinora? Cool." At that moment, Jinora decided she liked the way he said her name. "Listen, the library is pretty far away from here. But if you want, meet me here tomorrow at midday and I'll take you."

Meet him here? Sneak out of her house when she was supposed to be meditating, and meet a boy she hardly knew in the middle of the city?

Jinora glanced again at the parade, then back at her parents who were obviously still walking along the side, then back at the boy in front of her, who was still grinning at her in the way that made her want to break out into nervous giggles.

"Alright."

If Skoochy was surprised by her response, he didn't show it. Instead he tipped his hat and inclined his head in a crude impersonation of a bow and walked back the other direction, calling back at her over his shoulder. "See you then!"

A smile slowly spreading across her face, Jinora turned and jogged to catch up with her parents, who were still none the wiser about her detour. They would definitely not approve of her plans, but for once she ignored that twisting feeling of guilt. She was almost eleven, and she was the granddaughter of the Avatar and the best waterbender in the nations. She was allowed to be impulsive, sometimes, for a boy she just met.

It was "The Day of Two Lovers," after all.