Dragoncrest Cliffs Epiphany

Chacal lay on the dark sand at Siren's Beach, where the great stone arch covered a strip of the sand in shade. The salt water bath she had taken had helped soothe her healing wounds, and she had pulled a few strips of kelp to lay across her hips and her temple, to seal in a bit of healing moisture. Once they dried, she pulled them off and consumed them; the odd, salty taste of the kelp strangely satisfying. She felt a pup stirring in her belly and huffed; perhaps she was craving salt because of her growing children. 

She had yet to tell @Theo, but had wanted to allow him some time to heal from the shock of battle. And while she dreaded the thought of him ever having to defend the pack's territory again, she knew that it would be best if he learned more, from her, about self defense. She called her son to her, so that they might speak of many things.

Theo heard his mother call him and perked his ears, interested in what she had to say to him. They didn’t interact too much these days, he mostly stuck to his siblings. “ello mama.” He said as he approached her, dipping his head.

Her sweet son greeted her, and she welcomed him alongside her with an affectionate growl. The scars that marked him now looked like deerpaths in the woods; the splitting of fur and skin reminded her of the paths left behind by animals in the wood. She hoped his fur would grow back, so he might not have to carry those scars for the rest of his life, unless he felt in any way proud of them. But in a time of grief, pride was a hard feeling to manage. 

"How be you feelin', my son?
Now de long battle is fought an' won?"

"I be 'appy it is done, but we lost so many." Theo said sadly. "I am proud to 'ave fought in it dow (though), even dow I am younger and maybe should have retreated. I will accept deeze scars and wear dem wit pride dow, showing dat i fought for my pack. But maybe next time, if dere is a next time, i can fight better. I want to learn 'ow to." He said

She had not expected the likes of a warrior to come form her lines- and considering how peaceful their biological father was, it surprised her further to find Theo wanting to step forward and become a fighter. But- her children, they surprised her all the time, and she found herself loving them all the more for their complexities and surprises. Theo had the honour of a warrior- and the self-discipline. While the burden of a warrior was heavy, she believed he could bear it.

"I will teach you, den, 'ow to fight well.
So you may guard our borders, an' protect our claim.
Keep our wolves safe, dis be your aim,
an' give any intruders hell," 

She said, with a faint, but brittle smile. 

"It should be known to you as well, my son-
dat soon dere will be more children, once Spring has begun.
You will 'ave younger siblings to love an' guard."

Theo stood up straighter when she said he could guard the borders, and give hell to intruders. He smirked at that. But then the even more exciting news came. He would have younger siblings! Before his mother even said that he could guard them, that thought came straight to his mind. He would guard his siblings with his life, like he guards Suzu and Eti these days, even though they're his age.

"I will do all dat!" Theo promised. "If I can learned 'ow to fight properly." He added

Her belly might make things more difficult for her, when it came to training her son, but she would at least pass her knowledge on verbally. She stood up, and shook out her pelt, smiling. He seemed to have the right motivations for wanting to learn how to fight- and she could appreciate that. He had proved himself capable and brave when facing the bear, and would have skills to put to use. She considered training him up a bit ore on border patrols- but that might be a task for another day. 

"De first t'ing to learn be your stance;
if you are not balanced, you will not 'ave a chance.
What we will practice first, be almost how to dance,"

She said, with a light smile on her lips. She gestured, and led him into the water, which would provide just enough push and shove with the swell of the waves that might give him a bit of a challenge. 

"Pick up one foot, do not let it touch de ground.
Begin wid me, move wid me, an we will circle 'round.
De waves will push an' drive- but your posture must be sound."

They would begin with him lifting up a forepaw, and holding it to his chest. She would not do the same, as she had several children growing inside her that could also shift at any moment and throw her off balance. The water would work against him- providing not only resistance, but the buffeting of waves that would push and shove at him. Once he was steady, she began to move- expecting him to follow her. She began at a slow pace, moving into the waves, circling around, into shallower waters, watching with glinting eyes to see how he managed.

kinda confused what she wants him to do? hope I grasped this right?

Theo followed his mothers words, noticing how her unborn young prevented her from doing the same. But he followed her into the water, holding a paw to his chest. His legs were shaky and the waves were trying to knock him over but every time he teetered, he caught himself and eventually found balance.

With caution, Theo did as instructed, and despite the surge of the waves, he followed alongside of her as she pivoted in a wide circle. Rotating like this would test him from every angle, giving each of his legs a good workout. Once they done a complete circle, she motioned for him to switch his paws- and began to cut a course in the opposite direction.

Theo nodded and switched to the other side. It started off tricky again, as his body had gotten used to balancing on the first side, but he soon found balance. The waves threatened strongly to knock him over but he stayed strong.

feel free to fade this if you’d like, we could have a newer training one if you want :)

Her son weathered the ebb and flow of waves, unwavering himself like the jagged cliffs that made their home. She smiled and laughed, pleased to see him succeed. 

”Run wid me,” She chimed then, now that Theo was warmed up. She turned and began to bound through the waves along the shore, keen to begin conditioning her son so that he could grow strong and capable as a proctor of Sapphique.

Theo nodded. He loved running and he allowed his tongue to hang from his mouth as he ran through the waves with his mother.