Mud Wrestling

Amusement was so rare to capture these days, but Caelia’s distaste brought a faint bubble of it to the surface. The hesitation in her agreement wasn’t unnoticed, but Aurielle didn’t begrudge the young woman her reservations.

She listened to Caelia’s explanation of what all Gwen had taught them in the short time she’d gotten to enjoy motherhood, and Aurielle nodded as Caelia finished. “That’s a very good foundation to go off of. First, before we spar, I’ll run you through a few basic attacks on firm ground here.”

She shifted in her stance, showing the balanced position of her paws, as she gestured with her muzzle at her feet. “One of the most important things will be balance during your attacks. Your tail will act as some measure of balance, a natural rudder. When you go to stomp someone’s paw or scratch at them, you should remember to shift your weight to the rest of your paws to remain balanced, so that you aren’t leaning into your attack. If you’re leaning into it, you have the chance of toppling if you were leaning into your opponent’s body, for instance.”

She demonstrated against an invisible enemy, shifting her weight smoothly to her other three paws as her left front paw snapped sharply upward then down in a hard slamming stomp into the ground.

As she looked over the younger woman, she continued, “You’re a lighter built wolf, so your advantage is usually agility. Don’t let a larger opponent get you trapped where you can’t retreat to attack again. I myself am mostly limited to slashing and dashing, as my canines are both a fine weapon, and a handicap. If I get them caught the wrong way, I might snap one. I’m not entirely certain if that will happen for sure, but why risk it?”

She demonstrated again against an opponent, miming the slashing of fangs toward a throat, automatically swaying back almost as soon as the potential blow landed, tail fluttering like a pennant behind her as she moved.

Finally, she stood, nodding to Caelia as she said, “Now you demonstrate back to me, and add in what you think should go into your own attacks. Everyone’s style is a bit different.”

Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think