Repeat After Me

The exasperated look Tamsyn gave her while she shook her head made Juniper grin and giggle, always finding a lot of fun in pushing her parents' buttons, even if it wasn't intentional. Tam reminded her that training would take time, and that she would need to learn all the pieces of fighting to be able to put them together in one great combo in a real fight. Then her mother playfully bopped her hip and reminded her that fighting started with a solid, stable fighting stance, aka not the wiggly butt pose she was in currently. Juniper huffed, then gave her mother a maliciously compliant smirk as she dropped her entire back half to the ground so she was now lying on the grass, grinning wide and giggling once more. It seemed that Tam would be dealing with an energetic and playful Juniper today! After another look from her mother, she bounced back up into a more appropriate fighting stance, her paws spread and level with her shoulders, her head lowered to straighten her neck to her back, and her little fluffy tail tucked between her legs. When her mother checked her posture by nudging each of her tiny legs and she didn't topple over, Juniper gave her mom a proud smile. See? She did remember!

Tamsyn praised her, then brought up the subject of dodges. Juniper listened to her mother intently while the former General explained the mechanics behind a good dodge. The little girl's smaller size and greater agility and speed would be key to her dodging skills, as well as her ability to maintain her footing. It all sounded simple enough on paper, and when Tamsyn demonstrated with her own dodges, Juniper's tail began to wag behind her. That didn't seem so hard! She could do that too! Coiling up her tiny muscles, Juniper chewed on her tongue while she tried to get the feeling just right. Then she let the spring inside her loose, bouncing to the right with a burst of energy that sent her sailing. Juniper tried to catch herself with her paws, but it was trickier than she realized, and would up with her paws slipping out beneath her on the grass until the pup was flopped on the ground with each of her legs going in a different direction. Juniper yipped in surprise, but quickly picked herself back up off the ground. She was not one to be defeated so easily!

Back on her tiny paws, Juniper's silly expression was wiped off her face now, replaced by fierce determination to get this right and make her mom proud. She focused hard, tensing up her muscles again, waiting, waiting... then springing to the side. Again the pup flew to the side, and again her paws hit the grass and began to slip. But this time, Juniper managed to pull them back together, landing in a lopsided version of her battle stance, but remaining upright this time. She gasped and grinned, turning bright mint green eyes up to her dam whom she resembled almost perfectly. "I didn't fall that time! How was that, Mama?" she asked with her tail wagging a mile a minute behind her.

"Juniper of the Sea"