The Concubine's Apprentice (an Avatar: The Last Airbender Fanfiction Zuko x OC)

Chapter 3: Sibling Rivalry

As she was accustomed to, Chiyo woke up before the sun had risen. She dressed herself in loose red pants and a white undershirt, walking barefoot to the mirror of her vanity. She brushed her unruly, wavy locks into a messy bun atop her head. She stared at the mirror and recited the words Lady Suiren had always told her. "Practice makes perfect." And with a final smile, she set off to the gardens.

There was something magical about the gardens before sunrise. The morning dew hung heavy and fresh on the leaves, the scent of the foliage thick in the air, everything quiet except for the occasional chirping of songbirds. She breathed in deeply, feeling the soft grass on her bare feet before she started her stretch.

'Arms up, stretch, flick wrist, then reach...' She had done this routine every day since she was five. It was as normal as breathing. 'Bring them down slowly, and touch the ground..."

"Why do I have to stretch every day, Lady Suiren?" Chiyo pouted as she woke up one morning. "I already stretched yesterday and the day before that... Can't I sleep in today?"

The lady had pulled the covers roughly from her ward, earning a grunt in return. "Chiyo, if you do not stretch, your body will become weak and rickety like Lo and Li's. Would you like that?" That immediately got Chiyo to get up and fix her bed.

Afterwards, they went to their personal training room. There, the Lady Suiren stretched with her pupil for a good hour before the actual training started.

"Whenever you stretch, Chiyo, you control your breathing. In...and out...Stretch, and breathe in.... then exhale to relax... This helps build stamina, Chiyo."

"What's stamina?"

Suiren thought of a way to make the child understand today's lesson. Grabbing a book from the shelf, she placed it gently on top of Chiyo's head. "Lift one of your feet up, and bend your other leg. Make sure this book doesn't fall off."

Chiyo gawked at her teacher but did so nonetheless, trusting her fully. In a matter of seconds, she came tumbling down, flat on her side, the book smacking her in the face. "Ow...."

The teacher helped her student up while trying to reign in her laughter, and dusted her off. "Once you have stretched a million times over, Chiyo, you can stay in that position for over an hour and never falter. That is stamina."

The pupil looked up at her teacher and understood. Everything Suiren says is right. And so with a new found determination, she began stretching right away.