The wind whipped around her, being in the beach was nice, but she could not comprehend what it had to do with training.

Lien watched as her master laid towels on the sand. Fortunately, today was a cloudy day and being under the sun won't make her tan. She started stretching her arms and legs, her posture mimicked that of kung fu stretches.

Everytime the wind would whip up she had to close her eyes in fear of the little grains of sand that might penetrate it. When the wind died down, she huffed and dusted her long, red, silk qi pao, then after flipped her braided black hair to her back.

"Little Lien."

She was nothing but little, but she let her master Fon call him that anyways. She had high respect for the man who has taught her kung fu since she was abandoned at a young age.

"Little Lien, come over."

She jogged over to where her master had set up the towels, seeing that he had sat on one already, she plopped down next to him, the sand flying everywhere. Fon had detected this without opening his eyes, and he had continued to meditate,

"Don't disturb the peace, little one."

Lien grumbled under her breath and blinke at her master who seemed to be sleeping in a sitting position. She stifled a laugh but failed by letting out a snort. Fon peeked an eye open at his mischievous apprentice, and sighed with a small smile, picking a hand up to ruffle her hair affectionately.

"Little Lien, we're here to train."

Lien could not see how they could train by just sitting there, in the beach, where she would be distracted by the children playing and dogs barking as they chased their frisbee.

"Clear your mind, Little Lien."

She sighed and did as told, mimicking her master's indian sit and the circle he formed with his hands.

"Close your eyes as well."

She cursed in her mind, hoping that her master wouldn't be able to detect she had her eyes roaming around the beach, and following a cute dog who wagged its tail while nudging a beach ball. She sighed and let her vision turn black.

How long she stayed like that, she didn't know. But just as she was about to lose interest and open her eyes again, her master spoke,

"This position helps circulate the chi in our body."

This didn't put any relevance into the training, at least not to her.

"That, and it helps us relax. Our cells are regenerated and in turn it stregnthens our muscles."

She merely fidgeted in response.

For a while, Fon had thought his apprentice had fallen asleep, but he felt the small motion and confirmed that she was still in meditation.

"Listen to the waves, Little Lien. Block out everything else. The ocean's voice is the most relaxing sound for our ears."

Easier said than done. This was what her master always had in store for her, things that are easy to say but hard to put action into. For instance, one time he had said to, "Use kung fu to save people, not to hurt them". But how is that done when kung fu involves kicks and punches? Maybe her mind was too shallow to comprehend it.

"The waves Little Lien. The waves."

Lien only grunted in response, this training was slow paced and it was kind of boring. But once she had tuned in to the ocean's voice, it was much easier. It was even a nice feeling, as if the clouds were carrying her off to the heavens.

"Describe the waves."

It was an order, and her lips parted as she listened to the light crash of water on sand.

"Calm. Quiet. Peaceful."

Fon listened to the girl's words, analyzing it silently and found that she had described it in a different way than he expected,

"You've describe them as if they don't have chi, Little Lien."

Lien had to scrunch her nose up to remember how her master had defined "chi". She remembered something about things having "the flow of energy",

"Ummm... Kind...? Gentle... Understanding."

She had described the ocean as if it was a person who had these traits, and Fon smiled, unbeknownst to her. Her master had not said anything after that, and she continued to listen intently, her muscles involuntarily relaxing and her mind going into a peaceful state.

"Now, tell me about a person that reminds you of the ocean."

Fon instructed, feeling relaxed himself. Lien thought and thought about it.

There was I-pin, but, she wasn't quite "calm" when she was fighting. Whenever she would fight using kung fu, her face scrunched up in seriousness.

Then there was countless of other people, the only person she could think of that had that calm attitude was Yuni, but... she didn't want to talk about people that were long gone already.

Then it hit her, and she felt a lump on her throat thatn she swallowed forcefully. There was that man sitting next to her, calm, collected, always patient with her and gentle. She never noticed it until now, and she fought down the feeling she was getting in her stomach as she thought about her master more.

"I-I can't..."

She had said this out loud, trying to will her thoughts about her master away, but to no avail, it only consumed her more. His face when he was intent on teaching her a new move. His smile when he understood that she needed rest, and his soft laugh that was gentle as the waves.

"Little Lien...?"

Fon felt the disturbed aura beside him, though he did not bother opening his eyes, he only asked her to continue.

"The ocean... Reminds me of..."

She bit her lip, willing herself to continue,

"Master Fon..."

Fon was taken aback, and he showed this as his trance was broken, opening his eyes to look at the girl in surprise, though she still had her eyes closed, her lips quivering.

"Master Fon... He's always calm, even when fighting. His face always holds a smile even when under attack. His presence always brings peace, like now."

Lien laughed a little, remembering a small memory in which she was frustrated at having a hard time to complete a kung fu move.

"I'm always reckless, but master is always patient with me. He always understands, and is kind even if I give up on myself. Just like the ocean..."

She ended with a whisper and a small sigh, eyes still closed.

Fon continued to gape at his student, taking in everything that she said, it was then that a smile dawned on his face. He placed a hand atop his student's head, and she opened her eyes in surprise, to meet the gentle gaze of her teacher.

"I'm glad you think about me that way, Lien."

She blushed, averting her gaze to the sand.

"... I just admire master Fon, is all."

Fon chuckled at this, wathcing his apprentice go into the same meditating position, though a red flush was noticeable on her cheeks.

But she was happy. Her master had finally called her "Lien" without the "Little", and this made her insides tingle.