This is my first full length story. I hope you guys enjoy it. Reviews are much appreciated. I will do my best to keep my comments before and after each chapter to a minimum.

Me: Ha-ha! I own Avatar!

My sanity: He doesn't… don't listen to him.

Sunlight pierced through a small gap in a pair of velvet curtains. The ray stretched across the dark room, landing on the large bed in the middle. As the sun slowly began to rise, the beam's length grew. It found the scarred face of the bed's current occupant. The unwelcome light caused the man to stir. Not quite ready to get out of bed, he rolled slightly so the sun would no longer be on his eyes. Unfortunately, his movement shook the woman next to him from her sleep. "Zuko?" the woman said sleepily. She opened her eyes and blinked several times. The man grunted in response, causing the woman's eye to twitch slightly. "If you're going to wake me up, then you're waking up as well," she shook the man, earning an agitated groan. As he slowly opened his eyes, he came face to face with the stare of the woman who woke him. He shifted his head to gaze over to the window, confirming it was the light that disturbed him first. He mentally cursed it before turning back to the same stare.

"Why'd you wake me up?" the man questioned.

"Because you woke me up," she countered, shrugging.

"I wanted to sleep in this morning," he rolled his head towards the ceiling and closed his eyes

"So did I, but you ruined that for me. So I figured it's only fair that I do the same," she smirked and the man chuckled.

"You're the worst Mai," he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer.

"Good morning Zuko," Mai cupped her hand over his cheek lovingly, turning his head towards her. Their lips met, both smiling into the kiss. They broke the kiss and Mai rested her head on his chest as they lay in warm embrace. She loved that her boyfriend was a fire bender. It was like having her own personal furnace. Zuko rested his chin on top of her head. Her hair smelled sweet and friendly, clashing with the cold, apathetic personality she projected.

"Your hair smells grea-"

"If you tell anyone, I will end you," Mai moved from the embrace and cut him off with a cold glare. Zuko gulped.

"I won't tell anyone. I promise," Zuko assured, hoping to keep himself from being 'ended', whatever the hell that meant. Sweet Agni, she could be scary when she felt like it.

"Ty Lee pushed me to use it. She said it would brighten my aura or something," Mai sighed.

He took another whiff, "you should ask her for more. It's great." She scoffed at the idea and rolled her eyes, causing Zuko to chuckle. "So," Zuko said as he grunted and sat up, "What do you want to do today?" He draped an arm around her shoulders.

"Aren't you supposed to meet with Feren today?" Mai leaned into him.

Zuko's eyes widened, "Shit! I was supposed to meet him at sunrise!" He shot out of bed and ran towards the door, "he hates when people are late," he muttered. He opened the door and was met by a young woman standing just outside the door preparing to knock. She froze and her face turned beet red. Zuko looked at her, confused, until he looked at himself and took note of his state of dress… or lack thereof.

"He might be more upset if his best friend shows up in underwear," Mai quipped, still laying in bed, supporting her head on her elbow. She was fully amused by this situation. Normally, she'd be upset if someone was ogling her boyfriend, but she couldn't really blame the poor girl. If a well-cut man were to burst from the door she was in front of, wearing nothing but his underwear, she'd be hard-pressed for words too.

"I-I w-was sent by Feren t-to check on you," the messenger averted her gaze, staring at a random pattern on the wall.

"Tell him I am on the way. Sorry about that." Zuko said awkwardly. The woman nodded slightly and quickly walked down the hall, bumping into a maid as she made her way. Zuko closed the door and turned to see Mai covering her mouth and chuckling. "Oh please don't tell the girls."

"Not a chance."

Zuko, now appropriately clothed, was riding in a palanquin to the royal training ground. It was a short walk, but the servants had insisted, much to his annoyance, he not have to walk. It was one of few things he hated about being home. He missed the freedom to walk about where he pleased. What annoyed him more was that he knew Feren was going to give him shit for taking the palanquin. It certainly didn't help that he was already late. A sigh escaped him as he realized just how stressful this day would be.

"We have arrived, Prince Zuko," one of the palanquin bearers said, opening the shade and bowing. Zuko nodded, stepped out and began to survey the outside of the white stone training ground. Crimson walls surrounded the 100 by 200 yard training arena. The walls were decorated with two large, black dragon murals. The murals stretched along the front walls, with the heads of the dragons of the dragons breathing black fire towards the gated entrance. The arch above the gates had Chinese script above it that read "Ch'en Jung Royal Training Ground." Commoners were not allowed to use the grounds, only those of noble blood were given access. There was plenty of space for people to train, spar, and exercise. Smaller walls separated several different sections which had their own purposes. Leaning against the arch was Feren, clearly irritated by his friends tardiness.

"You know, Ko-Ko, you're just asking to get made fun of at this point." Zuko scowled at the name. Once Azula had started calling him Zu-Zu, it didn't take long for Feren to start calling him Ko-Ko. He had later restricted himself from using it unless he was frustrated or, in his words: "if the opportunity presented itself." Given the current situation, he couldn't truly be mad at him.

Feren pushed himself off the wall and stood up straight. He was an even 5 feet and 6 inches, with a healthy brown skin tone. He lacked any sort of facial hair and it didn't look like any was going to show up, much to his dismay. When he and Zuko were younger, Feren had always talked about how he was going to have an epic goatee that would make him the handsomest man the world had ever seen. The hair on top of his head was black and close-cropped. Rather than the fiery yellow eye color that was commonly associated with their nation, his were an onyx black that shined with fluctuating emotion and passion. Their current passion was that of a fairly annoyed teen, if the scowl on his face didn't give that away. Despite how lanky he was, he had an athletic build for a 15-year-old. He wore a tight-fitting, black sleeveless shirt that had a red trim on the seams. His long arms had lean, toned muscles that were more pronounced due to his arms being crossed at the moment. He had on black, loose-fitting pants for optimal movement that were held up by a red leather belt. Attached to the belt on the left side was a medium length katana in a custom black sheath decorated with a golden fire pattern he designed himself. It was one of his favorite possessions. Finally, on his feet were shoes similar to Zuko's, except his were black with a gold trim rather than red. "So," Feren's expression changed to a confident grin, "ready to get your ass kicked? Again."

A similar smirk found its way to Zuko's face, "If I'm not mistake, the record between us is 26 wins for me and 20 for you." Zuko would probably never admit it, but in all honesty, Feren was a far better swordsman than he was. The only reason he had won more was because of the difference in height and the extra point of attack, thanks to his skill with dual swords. The height gave him an advantage in leverage that immediately put Feren on the defensive. If he were to admit this, he'd never hear the end of it. Sometimes, it felt like he was holding back. Those 20 wins were 20 times that he had been overwhelmed. 20 times he had faced a different, more ferocious Feren. For what reason he held back, he would never know, but today, that was going to change.

"Hey, I'm on a win streak right now." Feren brought Zuko out of his thoughts as they began to walk to find an open training ground. Zuko raised an eyebrow at his friend's statement.

"One win doesn't count as a win streak."

"It does if it's the beginning of the greatest streak ever." Zuko couldn't help but laugh at him. As great a swordsman as he was, he was quite the goof, a trait that had been apparent ever since they were kids.

"Is that so?" Feren lightly shoved him, the scowl returning to his face. Zuko laughed again as he stumbled and caught himself. Feren's scowl was just for show. On the inside, Feren was as happy as could be. Zuko was his rival, his best friend, the closest thing he had to a brother, and the person he trusted the most in the world. He and Zuko had been competing for as long as he could remember. While they were evenly matched in most things, when it came to fighting, he knew he was better. For Zuko's sake, though, he held back just a little. He was well aware of the gap between him and his sister, Azula. The girl was a prodigy in every sense of the word, and she never missed out on the chance to run it in her brother's face. He felt that if his friend won against someone else, it would keep him from feeling weak or inferior. The way he clawed and fought was what made Zuko a warrior and what Feren admired about him the most. The two laughing friends arrived at their favorite section, the one farthest from the entrance. The guard nodded at them, recognizing the regulars and opened the iron gates. They walked to the middle of the 20 by 20 yard square and began to stretch lightly.

"Should we do just swordplay or make it interesting with some bending?" Feren asked, drawing the katana from its sheath and swinging it around to loosen up his arms. The combination of swordsmanship and fire bending was one aspect that drew Feren towards the art altogether. That, and swords were just straight up awesome.

"Let's go with just swordplay for today. It'll give you a better chance of coming out on top," Zuko smiled as he drew his dual swords and rested into a stance where his left arm was extended across his body and the right arm resting his sword on his shoulder. Feren twirled his own sword is his right had a few more times before he stopped and held his katana backwards. The end of the hilt was pointed towards the ground, while the blade extended behind him, parallel to his arm. It was a style and stance created entirely by himself. It gave him much more leverage and momentum in his swings and flourishes. He crouched and extended his free hand in front of him, palm out towards his opponent.

A referee, who stood off to the side, stepped forward. They liked their matches to be official, as well as have someone to tell them when to stop so that they wouldn't seriously injure each other. Before the referee started the match, Zuko narrowed his eyes and spoke seriously, "Don't hold back." Feren's eyes widened and then he smiled and nodded. Perhaps his friend had finally caught on.

"FIGHT!"

Post-chapter comments

Next chapter will be my first fight scene and more story. See you in the comments.

By the way, it's pronounced feh-rin

~TM612