All Outta Bubblegum (pup training)

Only two pups spoke up with questions, Artur and Caelia. Caelia asked to see more defenses, with Artur aggressively continuing to follow the guts-falling-out idea. She sighed internally, and resolved to take the boy aside and admonish him to stop tormenting poor Geoffrey, because she knew that was exactly why he insisted on bringing it up. For now, she would treat it as a genuine question.

"The best way to protect your abdomen is to be ready to move at any moment," she told them. "There's nothing you can really do to protect your stomach, without trying to walk around like a crab and that's not practical in a fight. Some wolves tuck their tails against their belly to throw off an attacker's aim, and that can sometimes work, but your tail is better used for balance when you're moving if it's up level with your spine, not tucked." She demonstrated both options, first tucking her tail against her stomach and then flagging it out level with her spine. "But the best method is to be ready to move yourself out of the way of their attack. One way that you can be ready is to hold your weight lightly, with your knees and elbows bent slightly. Don't lock them like that, though, just keep them loose and stay on your toes." She demonstrated, then leaped suddenly sideways, catlike, to show the difference.