Sunbeam Lair Pride yourself on actions, not words

there she was, pacing near the entrance of the cave. in her body language, nothing reflected anxiety or nervousness, if anything, she was alert. shikoba made it a routine in the weeks that she's been here to check the entrance, check around the cave itself, and sometimes venture out to chase off any competition with the tribe. her small and well-built figure had a long-stride walk pace that covered ground in ease, each scar upon her body writhed like a serpent on her fur.

she would often swing wider to look outside, then swing back in to avoid the chilling cold. this was her job, was it not? as a mercenary, she needed to be ready for anything and be ready to rally her tribe members. however, nothing too big happened out of the blue. with the lack of activity, shikoba decided it would be a good time to give her paws and limbs a rest. the agouti female halted near the outer part of the entrance towards the left side and sat down, holding her head high. she did not reflect a snobbish or arrogant behavior-- she was just being alert. her eyes stared straight ahead of her, though constantly checked to her sides and she would often turn her head to see if anyone was coming. her ears swiveled as well, but for the most part remained pricked forward.

the lone female took a deep breath before releasing it, feeling breezes blow against her from the front, rear, and both sides. she didn't mind.

The entrance of the cave was something she became familiar with. It was one of the first real signs of freedom and expression outside now oppressive walls of the Lair. Despite the fact that it was her home, her domain, she longed to move past the walls. Expand what was rightfully hers. A part of Zennyo rumbled in approval, but a part urged her to cultivate her powers and strength here. 

And so she did, again marking the borders as she had done in her tenderest youth. She was less sloppy about it than before, but it was not perfect. The woman huffed at her inexperience, but kept going in a line until she saw the sentinel.

Airi's eyes lit up with excitement as she saw the scars lining the woman's body. Without pause she ran to her, skidding to a halt in front of her. Teach me to fight! She demanded.

she didn't notice the sound of small paws hitting the ground just yet, the wind howled in her ear too loudly for her to hear such light noises. the native took another deep breath and released it quietly, feeling her own warmth battle the coldness within her body. she was at peace, for there was a perfect balance within her. coldness matched heat, balancing as if the two elements were yin and yang. shikoba hadn't felt in balance for quite some time, so to feel in balance now only told her that she had found a good home. she missed the Ostregas dearly after she ran after one when they left, though she was afraid to think of what had happened to them. were they gone, like her nuclear family?

she shook her head, not wanting to think of what had happened in the past. she couldn't change, so why focus on it? luckily for her, a distraction ran towards her, babbling and demanding her to do something. at first, the native was unsure if the child belonged in the cave, but after regaining some focus, the scent on the child' coat reflected Asterr's. she was her child. shikoba looked at her, dumbfounded by the eagerness and asperity in such a small body. her brow furrowed and almost quirked, the words the child spoke replayed in shikoba's head like an old film. she wanted to learn to... fight?

shikoba stood up, blinking softly as she looked the young vessel over, head tilting as she examined her carefully. "young, small... want to fight?"  she was unsure if a child that age was even ready to fight, play or not. however, shikoba thought back for just a moment, just a moment to when she was that age. smaller than her brothers and sisters but fought like a chieftess. perhaps, this small daughter was just wanting to be like her mother, a defending chieftess. without a second thought, the scarred figure nodded her head, lowering her body and forming a fighting stance. 

"follow movements," she instructed her carefully. the native flattened her ears, raised her tail and hackles up high, and lowered her head, slightly pulling it closer to her rather than extending it. her lips began to peel upwards, exposing her set of white and yellow teeth. her face scrunched up, each scar popping from her face as a warning to others that she has fought many battles and has survived. she waited patiently for the girl to mirror her, her tail wagging a bit.

Airi's request demand is not answered swiftly enough to satiate her desires. The girl snarls at the commoner, nearly kicking snow at her in disgust as she observed the dumbfounded look on her face. How stupid were the wolves here? Yes. Fight! Teach. Me. She says, mockingly slow and accented.

Eventually the wolf gets it, instructing her to mimic the stance she slid effortlessly into. The vessel's nose wriggles in confusion, but Airi eventually complies, her body a microcosm of the older scarred woman's.

ooc: i honestly suck at writing these posts sorry >_<

well, airi got her message to shikoba, one way or another. though the native didn't take kindly to the slight attitude/behavior from the small girl, she just took a breath at her. she'd learn sooner or later that demanding wasn't exactly the best behavior, but shikoba wasn't the child whumper here, that was mom's job. the small girl complied with shikoba's instruction, making her nod in approval. "position before fight," she told her, emphasizing how the position the two held was the foundation of all battle movements.

she druid fluidly began to move, this time, circling the vessel with a fast pace but with a protective position. she would often switch directions, swinging in closer than backing out towards the edge again. "watch enemy close, see weak points, aim."  shikoba continued to circle and circle, drawing in a bit closer and closer, before finally, she could see a weak point (though a child wouldn't really be that strong to begin with.) airi's limbs seemed to be the easiest way to get her down on the ground in order to hold her there. however, this was just training for now, shikoba wouldn't actually put her on the ground. "protect self, predict enemy's move." predicting was possibly the best way for a wolf to escape a situation like this. if they played their cards right, then they would escape with their life.

with a slower charge, the native went to grab the girls limbs in one snatch, giving the girl the chance to either jump out of the way or attack head on. she had cut into the circle sharply in one move, hoping to catch the girl off guard. should the girl succeed, the two would switch places and airi could try her hand at attacking.

She nodded at the woman's repetition, her behavior becoming deadly serious now that something that truly interested her was taking place. She was more confident in her martial prowress than the first woman for sure, the scars on her body proving her worth to Airi. Her eyes already began following the woman's movements, her indigo optics narrowed suspiciously. She wanted to shift her body with every wayward step the woman took, but remained still. Her eyes darted from place to place, trying to find one of these weak points that she spoke of. 

In a slow charge, the woman moved towards her, clearly aiming for her legs. Airi rose to her hind legs briefly, attempting to slam down with her paws on the woman's head, again overestimating her present strength.

good, she understood what shikoba was doing. the native's slow charge was clearly repelled, though not in the best way. she expected the girl to back up, or perhaps shift left or right to avoid the contact. hitting, er- tapping wasn't exactly the best idea, but she threw her a bone at her creativity. shikoba felt the paws make contact with her head, making her lower before quickly rip it away. Airi succeeded in the first part, but now, it was going to get quicker.

originally, she was going to switch places with her, but she wanted to see how well the girl could go as the pace kept getting faster. shikoba began to walk faster, just a bit, switching directions more frequently than before. this time, as she drew closer to airi, her jaws opened and she aimed for the flank, a bit higher than the legs, and a bit quicker too. should the girl succeed, the cycle would continue until the woman forced herself to let airi try.

Airi snarled in frustration, her attack doing little to harm or at least stagger the woman. She felt the woman's head though, which was a victory in itself, but soon the head disappeared. She fell for a moment before she caught herself, feeling her joints rush and hit the ground. Airi shakes herself briefly before her eyes lock onto the woman's form once more, her body taut as she anticipates another attack. 

She notices the attack towards her flanks, and she dodges, but she feels the brush of the warrior woman's fangs against her side. Airi yelps in surprise for a moment, flashing a quick, defiant look, unsure if she should attack or not.

she felt fur brush against her teeth as she had shot forward and hearing the yelp made shikoba nearly pull out and stop the exercise. yet, airi stood strong, though she was unsure. the position she was in told shikoba everything. with that, shikoba gave her the nod of the head, encouraging any kind of movement that would be considered an attack. now was the time airi could really free herself and just let loose. sparring was a great way of staying in shape and burning off some negative energy, vibes, and attitude.

however, an entire lifetime of sparring could save airi from her entitled behavior- she was actually stuck with that.