@Ayvo

This was a day that was rarely afforded to the Vale warden; she awoke without immediately having a task to fulfill. Beyond the usual routine of border marking and checking the caches, there was not much to complete that could not have been done by her brethren. As often as she wanted to fulfill all tasks on her own, she knew that for growth, she needed to allow her fellow wolves to assume responsibility for themselves. It was a learning process, one she assumed she could need to get used to and quickly.

Before the day reached its afternoon peak, the aimless warden found herself walking through the sparse pines of the woodlands. Her nose was not pressed to the ground in search of prey, nor were her eyes constantly shifting between the towering spires for signs of foreign life. She was simply… walking with ease, feeling the earth beneath her heavy paws til again she found peace in the serenity of nature… in a rather desperate attempt to keep her mind off any and all.

The friendly call of her fellow warrior brought a smile to the female’s muzzle as well as a little wag to her tail. It was always a pleasure to see a face of the pack doing well, especially in light of the misfortune that had fallen onto the Vale. Each smile seen after was precious and cherished. It greeting was kindly received, for all she knew, nature could fall upon them as relentlessly as before.

“Good day Ayvo,” the warden smiled as she walked towards him, receiving him kindly with a soft nudge of her muzzle behind his ear. “This day is slow turning, I’m afraid,” she chuckled lightly, taking a short step back to recline to her rear. Her nose quivered with notice for the light tinge of blood that came from her company, sorting quickly that it was not his but from small game found in their woodlands. “I take it hunting has been good for you?” she inquired lightly, more so as a means to carry on a conversation than to test whether or not he was assuming his tasks. She had enough trust in the faction to believe all took care of their duties of their own volition.

She was quite glad to hear of his successful hunt, for that meant he was showing promise in seeing to the well-being of his brethren. Food was a staple just as much as the defense projected by the pack’s warriors, but it was not the only concern of the Alpha female. The overall moral of the pack was just as important to consider. Though by Ayvo’s disposition, she could only conclude that he was rather content. At least enough to fulfill his tasks without the nudge of obligation.

“And your training?” she asked lightly as her ears swiveled forward in interest to hear. “Have you done much more since our session with the group?”

The Alpha applauded the male for his honesty, even if it did lessen her smile somewhat to hear his truth. She did not mind that Ayvo was keeping to himself, only that she had not known of his personal decision sooner. Perhaps she had been too withdrawn from the moral of the pack that she hadn’t taken notice. Or simply he took care to keep this to himself. Either way, she was not pleased about this, though her careful countenance did not display a frown. Only a subtle knit of her brows as she tilted her muzzle with concern.

“It would be nice to see a hunt get organized,” she admitted. “…but is everything alright? A warrior should not got without his training.” Gently her tail pat the ground in thought. “Have none come to you to spar or assist?” She would not have been surprised if this was the case. After all, most were assisting with the recovery of the pack as a whole. Yet even so, the able needed their brethren’s attention as well.

Her tail pat the air gently as he spoke of his wellness, then stroked the ground faster still when he implied his lack of sparring. While perhaps her mate might have considered this a terrible thing, the autumn wolf of the mountain looked to this as an opportunity. Smiling, she immediately pulled herself to stand, minding her stance to ensure its stability before stepping boldly forward.

If there was a means to supply a distraction for the mind, sparring was certainly an able outlet.

“Well then,” she piped, much like a pup would exclaim at the prospects of a game. “We shall have to change that, won’t we?” Lowering her head to rest between her shoulders, she pushed the broad guard forward to protect her neck with the healthy folds. Her tail remained low, at ease by her ankles, but ready to move should she need the extra limb for balance. Her eyes narrowed to Ayvo she her throat shook with a purposeful yet nonthreatening growl.

OOC: Attack of the short posts!

As the male moved swiftly forward, Xi’nuata was ready with a tactic of her own. As he lunged for her side, she bound forward with a quick step keeping her tail resting against her inner thigh for protection, knowing that before her turn she would brandish her back. Swiftly, she turned, catching the graze of his shoulder against her thigh but managed to keep herself upright to face him again.

Again, she reset her defenses, dropping her head between her shoulders and squaring her stance. Her eyes followed her fellow warrior’s movements, but she did not advance. Rather she waited to see how Ayvo would follow through.

Turning around to face him, the warden was met with the stampeded force of bulk and fur. Knowing her agility due to size was lacking, she braced to take the frontal brunt of his attack; their chests clashing, then rising as Ayvo pushed up from the ground against her. Granted their larger sizes made for a possible balance between them, the female too pushed against the ground with her backlegs firmly planted, and raised her forelegs higher by reflex.

Her kept her ears pinned back and held her mouth agape should his teeth seek her face, but attempted a teeter of sorts, hoping to use her weight against her opponent to force him down to either side. Hopefully such a tactic would come in handy should either of them confront a beast of relative proportions and weight.

Shifting her weight had been successful, and to follow, she quickly dropped to stomp her feet near his belly. Her intention was to make him aware of the danger posed by his exposed side, in instinctive lesson that all of their kind were aware of in one form or another. Yet the lesson proved unnecessary as he swiftly rose to regain his footing. To this, the female gave a short bark of praise before resuming her attack.

With him on the defensive, she spared little of her strength, barreling not fully from the front, but angled to the side in an attempt to force her shoulder into his chest. She kept her ears back to protect them from too great of harm, and lowered her brows to cover her eyes without fully closing them. She realized their difference in build and hoped to inspire a ‘wounding’ form of retaliation in him should he come across an enemy of her size and build.

The will to succeed was present, this much she could tell, but it was also apparent that her partner’s technique was lacking. The Alpha made a note of his retaliation, though not in the negative. Rather she paid attention to his angle as fast as she was able without jeopardizing her own footing in turn.

Feeling him push against her, she cantered back and quickly but with a slight teetering to her stance as she tried to keep herself upright. Instead of continuing the motion, she squared her paws and uttered a sound bark for his attention, calling a pause to their spar to address what she had noticed. “You are large,” she stated pointedly but without malice. “But quick. Why do you not use your size to the advantage? Smaller creatures require more care, but larger enemies like us can be downed with precise strikes. You know this,” she assured him. “And with practice you will be reminded. Look at me; what is vulnerable on me that you can reach?”

OOC: If you'd like, we could have a fade out :3

“It is not a matter of ‘if’,” she countered gently, her tail waving kindly as she spoke. Though her expression remained hard and steady, the voice was her tell of a more understanding disposition. “You know you are fast enough,” she pointed, agreeing with his choice of vulnerable points. “Now you must prove that you are, and do what you must to see this through.”

The female lowered her head once more to be at the ready, letting her legs square to hold her stature as her tail slipped protectively between her ankles. “Now prove it,” she announced, before charging toward the white male once again.