Avariella Weller

Avariella Susan Weller is the main protagonist of the story A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words. Currently, she attends Eleanor Roosevelt High School and is a member of its cross country club and track team.

Background
For the first four years of her life, Ava lived with her mother and grandmother in New York City while her mother was finishing up her schooling. After her mother finished her schooling and got her degree, she got a job at a hospital in Newport, Vermont and moved her and Ava there. Once Ava started school, she was enrolled in a series of private Catholic schools in the area up through high school. While in school, Ava became fast friends with Carole Reynolds. The two girls became very close over the years.

However, shortly before the story begins, Ava's mother was killed in a car accident. Ava then moves to live with her grandmother in New York City once again. A couple weeks after she moves to New York, her grandmother tells her where she can find her long-lost father. Having the address, Ava quickly decides that she wants to meet him and sets out for a shop called Second Time Around.

Personality
Many describe Ava as being very polite and kind towards others. She is often very sympathetic of other's situations and tries to offer support in any way she can. Additionally, she tends to worry often about whether she has caused someone else any trouble. This can be seen after she learned that Raphael was in some trouble for revealing himself to her. Learning this quickly prompted her to speak with Master Splinter to try and alleviate some of Raphael's punishment, telling Splinter that it was not entirely Raph's fault that he often visited her.

Furthermore, Ava is often seen as very quite and introverted in comparison to many of her friends and classmates. She often keeps quite and lets other people speak before she does. It is very rare to see her become agitated enough to yell at someone. The only notable time of this occurring is when she briefly yelled at April to stop trying to act like she was her mother. However, a few seconds after she quickly apologized and vacated the apartment, instantly regretting what she had just done. In addition to this, Ava often tries to avoid any sort of conflict with others. Many times she will try to diffuse a situation before it could become something far more violent. However, due to her timid nature she often does not succeed in this pursuit.

Like her father, Ava had a distaste for waking up early in the morning. Even when waking up in the late morning, she is slightly grouching and irritable until fully waking up. She has also been seen speaking with a Brooklyn accent similar to that of Raphael and Casey Jones when she just wakes up.

Another notable part of her personality is the way she speaks. Most of the time Ava attempts to avoid using contractions in her language. She also completely avoids the usage of slang words as well. Such actions show that she is slightly mature beyond her years and seeks to be treated as a responsible and capable young adult. However, her manner of speaking becomes far more relaxed when she is speaking with her friend Carrie and she tends to use more shortened words when speaking with her. This shows just how comfortable she has become around Carrie and how close the two girls have become over the years.

It has also been noticed that her speech patterns change whenever she is either mad or upset with someone. Whenever this happens, she will start to refer to people as Mr. or Miss instead of their first names.

Despite her seemingly fragile appearance, Ava has a difficult time expressing emotions of sadness or pain. This can be seen when Ava keeps a very blank expression during the funerals of her mother and grandmother, only allowing herself to cry once she is by herself. This could be do to her not wishing to be a burden upon anyone else. She hides such emotions in order to prevent her close friends or family from worrying about her. In reality, this only causes people to worry about her well-being even more.

Additionally, something that has really helped to define her personality and how she views life is her love for the television show Friends. She will often reference certain situations in her life to a particular instance on the television show. Many times she tells herself and others that she wishes to have a relationship like the one between Monica and Chandler on the show rather than a relationship like Ross and Rachel. This shows her strong dislike for drama and how she wishes for a strong relationship with someone who can be both her best friend and her significant other. She also tends to identify herself with the character Phoebe often since both of them went a portion of their lives without knowing their respective fathers and have a great love for their respective arts.

Appearance
Avariella has straight, dark brown hair that reaches her middle back. She has large, deep blue eyes set on her round, pale face and framed with thin eyebrows. Additionally, she has a small nose and full lips. In comparision to many of her classmates, she has longer arms and legs dispite her petite build. Due to her constant running, she has very toned and defined legs. Overall, she has a very petite but feminine build.

When dressing casually, she can often be seen wearing a pair of jeans and a tee-shirt. However, sometimes she will wear skirts and dresses. She also wears flat shoes with very minimal jewerly and makeup.

Dressing formally, she will wear a pair of heels. She will also wear slightly more makeup than usual along with a pair of stud-earrings in her ears.

Abilities
Due to her training with Master Splinter, Ava has become competent in the use of a bow and arrows though this ability is more for recreational use rather than for use during battle.

Furthermore, it has been revealed that Avariella has the ability to sense spirits and due to her learning meditation under the tutelage of Leonardo and Master Splinter, when she is in a deep meditative state she also has the ability to communicate with some spirits.

Because of her running for track and cross country all through middle and high school, she is very agile and has a good sense of balance (though this vanishes the moment she is no longer wearing flats).

Family
Avariella's mother. While their relationship is not explored during the series, it can be seen that Ava cares deeply for her mother. She has often referred to her as someone she felt very close to and could trust with anything. After Kayla passed away, Ava mourned her death for weeks and often thought that while gone, her mother was watching over her from heaven.
 * Kayla Weller

Avariella's maternal grandmother. During the series it can be seen that she cares greatly for her grandmother. She has made a couple comments about how she hates leaving her home alone, showing that she worries about her grandmother's safety in the city. When Clara passed away, Ava mourned her loss and even turned to the guidance of Master Splinter for help during this trying time.
 * Clara Weller

Avariella's father. After meeting him, Ava initially saw the man as a friend rather than as a parent. Furthermore, it was shown that Ava held the fact that her father wasn't around during the first years of her life against him at first despite knowing it was her mother's choice.
 * Casey Jones

However, as time passed, she did begin to see Casey as her father and has started to address him as such. It can also be seen that they both greatly care about each other's well-being.

Avariella's step-mother. When they first met shortly after Ava's arrival in New York City due to her search for her father, the two women quickly formed a friendship with one another. As time passed on, Ava became increasingly comfortable around her and has even started to see her as an older sister/mother figures, often going to her when she has something she wishes to speak about that is bothering her.
 * April O'Neal

School Friends
Avariella's childhood friend.
 * Carole Reynolds

After starting at Eleanor Roosevelt High School, Selena is the first person she meets after the two of them crash into each other in the hallway on their way to their respective classes.
 * Selena Darley

A friend of Selena's that she introduced to Avariella.
 * Isabella Holland


 * Nicholas Darley

TMNT
In contrast to how many people view Splinter, Ava does not see the elderly rat as a father figure. She has actually come to see him as more of a grandfather instead. This is because he immensely reminds her of her late grandmother. So as a grandfather-like figure as well as her teacher, she greatly respects him. Oftentimes, especially after the death of her grandmother, Ava would go to Master Splinter to talk about what was going on.
 * Splinter


 * Leonardo

Avariella's boyfriend.
 * Raphael


 * Donatello


 * Michelangelo

Quotes

 * (To Raphael): "I am pretty sure that it does."
 * (To Raphael): "After all, it is very difficult for one to determine his or her level of cuddliness. And by my observations you are in fact very, very cuddly Mister Hamato."
 * (To Casey): "Is that your problem with this? That Raphael is not human? Are you serious? How can you say that? He is your friend Mr. Jones. Whether he is human or not should have no influence on the matter. He is a good person. That is all that should matter.”
 * (To Raphael): "I would do the same for you... I love you, Hamato Raphael."

Etymology
Avariella:
 * Gender: Female
 * Origin: American
 * Meaning: small, strong woman
 * Pronunciation: Ay-Vah-Ree-Ellah

Susan:
 * Gender: Female
 * Form of Susanna
 * Origin: Hebrew
 * Meaning: Lily
 * Pronunciation: SU zan

Trivia

 * The lily flower is Ava's favorite flower.
 * Ava has a high disliking for horror movies along with anything that is meant to frighten her.
 * Her favorite kind of novels are mystery and romances. She also has a fondness for the character Sherlock Holmes.
 * As a child, her favorite color was purple and then it changed to blue. However, now her favorite color is red.
 * A band whose music best correspondes with Ava's personality is Meg & Dia. A song by them can be found on the soundtrack of the 2007 TMNT movie.
 * Many of the pictures used to portray Avariella are images of Emily Rudd.