.hush.
By age nine, Zuko has already decided that he does not like girls. They giggle far too much, worry about getting their kimonos muddy, and blush on an alarmingly regular basis whenever he walks by. Worst of all are his sister and her friends, who never miss an opportunity to humiliate him in their games.
So it's a complete and utter accident when he happens to spy on one. Really, it is.
After his firebending lessons are over for the day, he wanders into his favorite garden to relax under the sloping apple tree in the center, only to stop dead in his tracks. A slight female, whose dark hair buns are tied with garishly pink ribbons, is already there, but she isn't sitting down- she stands several paces away, removes a gleaming silver knife from the folds of her robe, and throws it at the trunk. It strikes precisely and quivers there- her mouth curves upwards, and she goes to remove it. That's when she notices him.
"Prince Zuko!" Mai exclaims. "I didn't see you there."
He shrugs, trying to hide his intrigue. "Where'd you get the knife from?" Noblewomen, he knows, do not often learn combat skills so young- firebenders are a rare exception.
"I stole it. Not from here!" she hurriedly clarifies, blushing a little. "I went down to the kitchens one day and grabbed it off a counter. I was bored."
"That's... pretty cool," he admits. He always thought that Ayakura Mai was as plain as wallpaper, part of Azula's shadow, but maybe she isn't quite as annoying as he thought. "Can I try?"
"Sure," Mai acquiesces, giving him a strange look- most of those who wield flame do not supplement their skill with metal. He takes the blade from her grasp, tries to replicate her toss, and ends up sending the knife sailing backwards, narrowly missing his ponytail and gracelessly embedding itself into the shrubbery.
She laughs, an odd sound coming from such a dour girl, as she observes his distinct pout. "Maybe you'd be better off with swords or something."
"My cousin Lu Ten did say he'll teach me how to fight with daos when he comes home from Ba Sing Se." Attempting to salvage what's left of his pride, he to dislodge the knife from a particularly stubborn branch. "I could find you a shuriken, or a sai," he offers once he returns, handing it back. "We have a ton in the armory."
"Thanks," she says, but her face suddenly clouds over. "You won't tell anyone, right? My governess would kill me if she found out."
"Of course I won't!" he promises indignantly. Does she really think of him as a snitch? "It'll just be... our secret."
"Our secret," Mai repeats with a rare smile, one he returns.
A/N: I suck at keeping up with this collection. Please, accept Day Five as a peace offering.