Nelu worked the clay between his paws, working out the air bubbles and picking out bits of debris. He'd settled in the courtyard on the stone patio with the warmth of the sun on his back fighting off any winter chill. He'd seen some of the bowls and other pottery items around the castle and decided that he wanted to try making something. Nearby the ravens were on the brick wall again. They were mostly chattering at each other, invested in their own business, but one blue-eyed raven would pause in his conversation every so often to watch the young wolf. This didn't go unnoticed by Nelu but he wasn't concerned. He just focused on rolling and working with his clay, getting it to a malleable state.

Mercury was keeping an eye out for the little sprouts. Both to watch over them, and to offer any playful introductions to any that wanted it. They were popping up all over the castle now that they were given freedom from their birthing den. As he made his way into the courtyard, the vanguard spotted a pale wolf, the young creature looked intend on rolling something between his paws.

Moving closer, Mercury realised it was clay. A brow raised in surprise, he closed the distance between them. Seating himself before the small creature. “Well, that looks pretty fun. What are you making?” He asked, pointing with his nose at the clay between her paws.

"Speech"

The clay squished between his toes in a most delightful way. Once he was done kneading it he started to roll it into a ball. Bowls were kind of round and a ball was kind of round so that seemed like a good place to start. His ears twitched at the sound of movement and he looked up to see a large, dark-pelted male. Unafraid he simply gazed up curiously at the man as the other asked what he was making. "Well, I'm trying to make a bowl. It's not there yet, but I'll figure it out. My name is Nelu, what's yours? Are you a guard or something?" He hadn't met any of the wolves outside his family though he understood the concept of the pack and that the Hallows wolves wouldn't hurt him.

Mercury lowered himself down a little more, so that he could talk to the wolf and see what he was doing without towering over him. A bowl? He wondered if he was going to paint it once he had heated it. “The best way to get that bowl shape is to find something circular to push into the ball to get that shape” He suggested as he watched her work. It was interesting to see one of Art’s children interested in something that wasn’t sword-play.

“I’m Mercury, and i’m one of your dad’s Vanguards - That means I’m both a warrior, and charged with protecting you and your siblings” He explained patiently.

"Speech"

Nelu considered the man's advice before nodding his head. "Yes, that makes sense." He glanced about looking for something sufficiently round that he could use, eyes fixing on a stone in particular that had an oblong shape that would work well for his bowl. Nelu got to his feet and scrambled over to the rock, using his paws to roll the wobbly stone over to his bowl.

The man introduced himself as Mercury, one of the vanguards who was charged with protecting him and his siblings. "I see, have you seen a lot of battles? What kinds of creatures have you had to fight?" Nelu had an interest in battle though he had yet to really pursue it much. The boy placed his paw on one side of the clay bowl and the other on the stone before pushing them together. He then carefully peeled the stone out to reveal a small, clay bowl. He set about smoothing the top edge before looking back to Mercury.

Mercury grinned as Nelu found himself a stone in the courtyard, and used it to press out the shape in the clay. It had been a very, very long time since he had played with clay as a child himself. His people had always valued art, and he had tried his hand at a few different mediums, before settling on the windchimes that were so beloved of his people.

He raised a brow at the boy's next question. Perhaps he did have an interest in warfare, like his older siblings. “I have been in a few fights, but I haven’t been in a raid before - which are more of a battle, with multiple opponents on either side. I’ve taken on large cats, and coyotes, and on one memorable occasion, a crocodile” He explained ast the pup soothed out his clay.

"Speech"

With the bowl satisfactorily smoothed, Nelu set it aside to dry, turning his full focus to Mercury as the man explained that he'd fought a number of different times, including in a raid and against a crocodile. Nelu nodded. "I see, you sound like a very accomplished warrior." He cocked his little head to the side, teal eyes gleaming up at the larger man. "Sir, I wonder, would you be willing to teach me some of the basics of battle?" Nelu knew his father was also a great warrior and that such skills would be valuable for the pack and his family. It would seem a shame not to take this opportunity to learn if he could. Some times it was almost overwhelming how much there was to learn in this world.

The youngling was very polite, and who was Mercury to turn down a pup curious in learning? “I’d love to” He agreed warmly. He waited until Nelu was fully finished with the bowl, and could safely place it aside. He didn’t want the pups' work to go to waste. “Let’s head out to the courtyard” He suggested, leading them away from the glasshouse and plots, where they would have more room to work.

He set himself into a stance, turning to face the white wolf. Where to begin? Nelu had asked for the basics, and every good fighter started with their own body. “Do you know how to set a defensive stance?”


"Speech"

Nelu nodded and scampered after Mercury as he headed into the courtyard. As the pup waddled after the older man he tried to remember what he knew so far. Truth be told it wasn't a lot. So when Mercury asked if he knew how to set a defensive stance he hesitated. "Not exactly, I know I want to be steady." He settled his weight evenly across his limbs, widening his stance just slightly before looking up expectantly at Mercury. He knew there was probably a lot more to setting ones defenses than this but he hoped that he was off to a good start. "Is this close?" Nelu should've paid more attention when watching his dad spar. He made a mental note to take more mental notes when watching the older wolves sparring.

The young pup's hesitation didn’t phase Mercury. He would just need to figure out what Nelu knew, and then build from there. “Steady is good” He agreed easily, keeping his voice encouraging as he smiled at the small white wolf.

He watched with a critical eye as they set their stances. Spreading their wade, widening their paws. It was definitely a good start, but there was a little more they could work on. He walked around the pup, and gently tapped his ears, and above his eyes. “That’s great, now fold back your ears, and narrow your eyes. You want to make them more difficult targets for your opponent.” he explained

"Speech"

Nelu held still as the older man examined his form, confirming that steady was good. He assumed this meant his stance was acceptable but there was more to work on. He quickly nodded, following the older warrior's instructions. Nelu pinned his ears back and narrowed his eyes. His tail twitched for a moment as he thought through the comment of easy targets. Every so often his siblings would pull his tail. Aster was particularly fond of that and it seemed an easy way to control his movement, especially as young pup. "Should I do something with my tail to? Where do enemies like to attack most?" Maybe if he kept that in mind it would be easier to remember what he needed to do with his defenses.