It took her a few days to get settled into the castle after Ezra brought her here, the feeling of being in the enclosed walls and rooms a little weird after only living out in the forests where her father had settled down with her. Still, even though she had never seen these places before they still felt oddly familiar. Her father had told her plenty of stories about his time in The Hallows, including how he had been there at its founding and how he led the pack after Resin passed and before Artorias took over. He had given her lots of details about the castle, the gardens, the plains, even the land nearby that was dotted with huge bones of mysterious creatures. She kept finding things that reminded her of his stories and it was kind of bitter sweet in a way, but she was happy to finally be able to see the places that she had only imagined for so long.

One of the wolves that she had been the most excited to meet was the alpha himself, the one that had inspired her to give sword wielding a try. She had only met him very briefly when they first arrived, Ezra of course introducing her as they were getting settled in, but she was absolutely dying to see Artorias in action with Embershard. Her father had done his best to teach her himself, of course, but with his deteriorating health and his lack of experience wielding a weapon like that there had only been so much he could have shown her. He still encouraged her all the same, finding a trader with the sword she now carried proudly and encouraging her efforts to learn herself by trial and error.

She hung around the castle grounds, waiting patiently and checking out the lush gardens, while she waited for Artorias to return from his usual rounds and duties. Eventually she spotted him walking through the castle gates with her brother and she grinned as she trotted over to them, her leather armor covering a portion of her torso and her sword sheathed across her back. "Hello, Artorias, sir," she said politely with a dip of her head. She looked over at Ezra who excused himself with a chuckle and Aylin gave him a grateful smile before she turned her attention back to the blue-hued man in front of her. "If it's not too much trouble and you're not too busy would you mind giving me a lesson on wielding a sword?" she asked hopefully, her tail wagging gently behind her as she looked up at him with bright silver eyes.

"Aylin Adravendi"

There had never been a question in Artorias' mind of letting the Adravendi trio back to rest in the Hallows while they made up their minds whether they wished to rejoin the pack or continue on their own path. Ezra and Syanna had been fast friends of the Lord of Cinder for years and he couldn't ever imagine a time when he would deny them a thing. It also allowed him plenty of time to catch up with them and meet the newest Adravendi, the last remnants of Ulric's line, Aylin. She was a young and chipper girl with a bravado for adventure and a contagious confidence about her. She reminded Artorias of Ulric in many ways, and though the memories brought about melancholy and sadness, they also brought a smile to his face to think of how proud Ulric would be of all of them. He just hoped the rest of Ezra's family was faring as well as they had.

Returning to Hearthstone from his walk with Ezra, he was met by the enthusiastic young girl in question who had apparently spend gods knew how long waiting for him in the gardens. The coming of spring had turned the lush gardenscape into a vivid canvas of flowers and buds, and the draping branches of the iconic wisteria trees were alight with their violet blooms. The girl was dressed in full battle barding, a leather cuirass covering her torso and a sword slung across her back. Artorias raised a curious brow as she intercepted them, a chuckle rumbling in his chest. "Good morning, Aylin. Heading off to war?" he teased her playfully, an easy smile lopsided on his lips. He gave Ezra a parting nod as his friend excused himself so the two of them could talk, and Aylin wasted no time explaining what she wanted from him. So she wanted sword fighting lessons, eh? That didn't surprise the Lord of Cinder much; he didn't think any other wolf in Auster or Boreas was as renowned as he was for his peculiar combat styles. And she had been so polite too.

"Y'know, when I saw you arrive at Hearthstone with that sword on your back, I wondered how long it would be before you asked me that," said Artorias with another chuckle. His eyes were alight with delight as he nodded to her request. "I have time right now, so long as you don't mind a duo lesson with my daughter. We can go over some basics and then we can have a group lesson if you'd like." Art sent Corbin off to find Ember and motioned for Aylin to follow him with a tilt of his head, then began to leisurely walk his way out past the castle walls and headed for the outdoor sparring arenas. The weather was much drier and sunnier than the winter had been, and the sunlight was a welcoming warmth on his dark coat. A gentle coastal breeze carried over their lands, making the perfect day to spend outdoors doing a little physical training. Stepping up to and into the sparring ring, Artorias turned to face Aylin and motioned to her sword on her back. "All right, let's see what you're working with. We'll see what you know so far while we wait for Ember to arrive." Artorias was eager to see what Aylin was wielding and how much she knew already.

"Artorias" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"

Aylin responded to Art's comment about her being ready to go to war with a wide grin, chuckling as her tail wagged behind her. "You can never be too ready!" she insisted with amusement. That was mostly true, though in reality she wore her armor and kept her sword with her more often than not because it was one of the few things she had that had been gifts from her father and it felt good to have them with her. Art's comment about how when she had shown up with her sword he had wondered how long it would take for her to ask for a lesson made her laugh again. "Well... When Dad's stories about you made me want to try out a sword to begin with... It really was just a matter of time," she admitted fondly. It was a bit surreal finally getting to talk to someone she had heard so much about, much less get to have him as a tutor. She immediately grinned with excitement as soon as he mentioned that he had time to give her a lesson right now even before he added the contingency of including his daughter. "Yeah! That sounds great!" she replied without hesitation.

She followed him over to the sparring rings she had spotted during her brother's tour around the castle grounds, feeling a mix of excitement and nervousness as she stood across from Artorias. It felt like a long time dream come true, but she also had no idea how the method she had mostly figured out herself by trial and error would stack up. He motioned to her sword and she nodded in agreement before turning her head to draw her weapon, pulling free the silver steel bastard sword. It was a fairly simple and straight forward blade–especially compared to some of the more intricate weapons she had spotted on some of the fighters here–but it was sturdy and well made. The grip was wrapped in a dark brown leather and the sloped pieces of the cross guard had subtle engravings of vines and leaves. Her hold on the blade was easy and confident. She had spent hours and hours getting used to the weight and trying out different swings and such on her own. Whether or not those swings were good or done properly she was sure she was about to find out.

There were some basic things that her father had been more confident about teaching her–things like a firm, defensive stance and how to size up an opponent. She easily settled into a fighting stance, but it was everything that followed that felt a bit questionable for her. After making sure there was plenty of space between her and Artorias so that she wouldn't accidentally catch him with her blade, she gave it an experimental swing, sending it into a wide arc in front of her. The movement wasn't wobbly and she was able to stop the movement of the blade well enough as she went back to her original position, but the path of the blade was a little lopsided probably didn't have enough force to do the damage the honed blade was capable of. Her silver gaze went to his curiously, hopeful and eager to learn. "How was that?" she questioned, her words slightly muffled and distorted around her sword.

"Aylin Adravendi"

Aylin was a spunky spitfire of a fae, and she reminded Artorias very much of himself when he got his paws on his first blade. It brought an amused smile to the aging Aegis' face. He was flattered by her admiration of him and of Ulric's praises that inspired her to be like him in the first place. He would have to make sure he was always worthy of that admiration and that accolade. Their lesson began, and almost immediately Artorias could see Ulric's lessons in her stances, in the way she moved. It brought back flashes of memories of when he trained with the Adravendi, and it made him smile wistfully. Aylin's moves were basic, amateur, but they showed promise and enough polish to tell him that she had been practicing them for a long time. Good; it meant he was working with someone with passion.

When Aylin asked how her demonstration was, Artorias gave an approving nod of his head. "Not bad given you're pretty much self taught! You've got a good grip on the hilt, a confident swing and follow through. You just need a little more finesse and honing on the in-between from start to finish." Artorias stepped closer to Aylin, gesturing to her sword. "May I...?" When the young swordsman handed her weapon to him, Artorias carefully picked up the blade in his paws, holding it with reverence as he inspected it from tip to pommel. He studied the detailing, the edging of the blade, measured the weight and balance of it. Then he wrapped his jaws around the grip and hefted it up. It was a bit heavier than his sword—one of the nicer perks of Carpathian steel—but it was well balanced and didn't feel cumbersome in his grasp.

Stepping back to put some space between them, Artorias took an experimental swing of the sword, arcing it through the air with grace. The blade was a silver blur as the veteran swordsman swung it back and forth, turning it to and fro in his jaws to create magnificent arcs, parries, and swings, the sword almost whistling as it carved through the air. Back and forth, back and forth he swung the sword, testing every facet of the weapon. He twirled the blade, catching it in his teeth again, and then moved back over to Aylin to return her sword to her. "This is a fine blade," complimented the Aegis with an approving smile. "It could use a bit of honing, but it's well made and well cared for." Once Aylin had taken her sword back, Artorias tilted his head and asked, "Does it have a name?"

"Artorias" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"

Aylin's chest swelled with a bit of pride as Artorias gave her a brief assessment of her pose and movements. It was reaffirming to hear that his view of her skills matched her own so at least the knew that she wasn't delusional about her abilities. She was confident, but she never wanted to be unrealistic about what she had to work on. She nodded in agreement when he mentioned needing more honing and finesse on certain things. At least she was finally here to work with the master so she could get just that! She was surprised when he stepped forward and requested her sword form her, but she made no objections, handing over the blade for him to examine. She wasn't entirely sure where her father had gotten the sword from before he gifted it to her so she didn't have any details about its make or origin. It was a bit of a mystery in that regard, but she was proud of the blade regardless. There was an odd nervousness while she watched Art look it over with a scrutinizing eye, almost like she was afraid that he'd find something wrong with it.

Eventually he look the grip between his teeth and began to swing and move with the blade and Aylin watched with awe, admiring how easily he handled the blade as if it was just an extension of himself. The blade swished through the air with a quiet whistle as it cut through with each motion and she made sure to take advantage of the moment, making notes and observations on how he was holding the blade and what kind of moves he chose to do with it. She knew there was only so much she could learn just from watching, but it was still good ideas and inspiration regardless. She took the sword as he returned it to her, grinning happily as he approved of the blade, feeling some relief when he complimented its make. She wasn't sure how to hone it, but she was sure Artorias did so perhaps she could bug him for another lesson sometime soon to learn how to do that as well. When he asked whether or not the sword had a name she gave him a slightly bashful grin and glanced down at the blade that she held in one paw with the point of the blade resting lightly on the ground to free up her mouth for talking. "Not yet... I've been trying to think of something just right, but it hasn't come to me yet."

"Aylin Adravendi"

While he was usually far more humble about himself, his skills with a sword were the one place where Artorias permitted himself a small bit of showmanship. He had put a lot of work into his craft, poured his heart and soul into his training as a pup and yearling. If it could inspire the younger generation to take after him, he didn't see the harm in showing off every now and again. Aylin looked fascinated by the way he handled her sword, and it seemed the point of his demonstration had landed successfully—any sword could be a masterful tool when in the hands of a skilled swordsman. Her sword was no less effective or dangerous than his was, simply because it was different. Aylin had all the tools needed to make herself a deadly swordsman. To the question of her sword's name, Aylin hesitated, admitting that she hadn't thought of the right thing just yet. Artorias simply nodded his head in understanding. "Naming your weapon is like naming a part of yourself. Take your time, find what feels right to you." She had so much time to consider and reconsider.

With his assessment of Aylin and her sword completed, Artorias turned his attention once more to the training dummies he had set up for himself and Ember. He walked over to the pair and stuck a third one into the ground for Aylin. With the way Ember swung her swords, he knew it would only be a matter of time before hers was decimated, so each of them having their own target would make things less... messy. "We're going over the fundamentals of sword fighting today, so you'll fit right in with Ember. Basics and some more advanced techniques, but we can move at our own pace," he explained to Aylin while they waited for his daughter to arrive. "Now we just need... ah, here she is!"

"Artorias" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"

Ember had been intercepted by Corbin as she prepared for her combat lessons with her father. The message the raven brought to her surprised her and, if she was being honest, slightly disappointed her. She looked forward to her one on one lessons with Artorias, and to hear that another would be joining her meant she wouldn't get that time all to herself now. Was it selfish? A bit. But there was no protesting against her sire when he was the alpha and also the Hallows' premiere instructor when it came to all things sword fighting. So, with a bit of a harrumph, Ember gathered up the three sparring swords instead of two and made her way down to the training yard with Corbin.

When she arrived, the first thing she noticed was the new girl. Ember had no idea who she was, but she must have shown up with Ezra and Syanna, since she had the faint smell of both with her, and the smell of the Hallows on her meant she was no stranger or visitor from another pack. Her father was setting up a third dummy as she approached the arena and greeted her with a smile as she stepped up to the two, casting a sideways glance at the taller fae about her age, maybe a smidge older. Ember dropped all three swords to the sandy ground and dipped her head to her father. "Ready to begin, Dad!" she said and glanced up at the stranger next to her. "Who's she? A new student?" Ugh, she wasn't about to have to redo the remedial lessons because of this newcomer, was she?

"Ember Carpathius"

Aylin smiled at Artorias' understanding about her hesitancy to pick a name for her sword. Perhaps she was just being indecisive over the whole thing, but Art seemed to understand the importance of a sword's name so that validated her a bit. She waited as Artorias sat out a third training dummy, nodding at he mentioned the topics they would go over once his daughter arrived. As if speaking of her summoned the Carpatian young woman, Ember approached them carrying three practice swords. Aylin picked up on the vibe that Ember was perhaps a little less than thrilled that she was going to be a part of the lesson since she only regarded her with a bit of a sideways glance and never really addressed her directly, instead asking her father if she was a new student.

She could have let it bother her, but she was far too excited to finally be getting some real instruction and practice with a blade to care. She picked up her sword and slid it back into the scabbard on her back before giving Ember a grin. "Aylin Advavendi. A pleasure to meet you, Ember." She smirked as she added, "And yes... I suppose you could call me a new student." She turned her silver gaze back toward Artorias then with a small nod, indicating she was ready to get started as well.

"Aylin Adravendi"