Chapter Two: Work
Firebender training was difficult for a little girl, but as the Crown Princess of the Fire Nation she had to do it as a child. Zuko and Mai had reluctantly hired a master firebender to teach her. Zuko remembered his training as a child. It had been difficult for him, although for Azula it had been easy. . He didn't want his daughter to be like Azula, though. That was one of his biggest fears. Honoura didn't seem to be heading that direction, though, and Zuko was glad.
Honoura seemed to like her training, though, which could be taken as a good thing or a bad thing. Zuko and Mai assumed good faith and took it as a good thing. While she wasn't a prodigy, she was good for her age and worked hard. Zuko liked that. She worked hard instead of being like Azula, who had just been lucky. He recalled his father's words.
"Azula was born lucky. You were lucky to have been born."
He would never say anything like that to Honoura. He was the one who was lucky to have her as a daughter, and Mai felt the same way.
On top of firebending training, Honoura also had school. She was academically smart and made friends quickly, although she preferred to play with her best friends, Kya, Bumi, Lin, and Tenzin. The children of her dad's friends, Uncle Aang, Aunt Katara, Aunt Toph, and Uncle the Duke. She also had an Aunt Ty Lee, an Aunt Suki and an Uncle Sokka, but they didn't have kids. She also had an Uncle Iroh, but he was old. Bumi didn't bend, but the children always made sure to include him in their games. Honoura liked him a lot, but he seemed to like Lin a lot more, which made Honoura feel a little jealous.
Of course, her parents had her put school ahead of play time and Honoura knew why, but she still liked playing more. While she was good in school, she still found it really boring, as most children did. She hated doing homework and despite being good in academics, some things eluded her. Her parents hired a tutor, which helped her a lot. She excelled in history― but that was to be expected; her family had saved the world.
Honoura was okay with firebending training over play time, or at the very least she could stand it more than homework. It was something to look forward to near he end of the day, learning to move like and to warrior dance, and to bring fire out of her body. She loved looking at the fire, watching it glow and burn, the flickering flame hypnotising her. Her sifu and parents warned her that fire wasn't something to be taken lightly, not something that she should simply play with, but Honoura only half listened. She couldn't resist its beauty.
She had fallen in love.
While she learned firebending, her mother had shown her the art of knives. How to pin things to a tree, how to defend herself should she be in a situation where firebending was impossible. Aunt Ty Lee knew how to block one's chi and Mai had made sure that just in cade that should happen to her daughter that the girl would be able to still fight. Honoura was the Crown Princess and she had to know how to defend herself in the most hopeless of situations.
Honoura worked her hardest to excel in all subjects. To do her best. She wasn't perfect of course, and she messed up a lot, but her parents and family cheered her on and were always there for her. When he visited, Uncle Iroh would always make her tea and give her advice. His proverbs were confusing a lot of the time, but occasionally she understood them. The two would also play pai sho, although her uncle always won. She wasn't very good at it, but Iroh told her that she would get better eventually and that it took many, many years to master the game. Sometimes she would get frustrated and knock the board over, but Iroh was patient and kind.
"Your father didn't realise the important of pai sho for many years," he would tell her, "But the game is part of your family history." Honoura had no idea what he was talking about, but she would scowl and continue playing the game. Learning firebending, knife throwing, pai sho, and academics all at the same time was really hard, and sometimes she felt like she was drowning in all of it, but thankfully pai sho was only when Uncle Iroh visited or when Zuko, Mai, and Honoura visited Ba Sing Se. She was the little girl who would someday be the Fire Lord, but it was all so hard at times. But it was expected of her.
And so she worked. And worked. And worked.