Abram Snowshoe's prediction that the arrival of visitors from Abu Dhabi and Olympia would mean more business proved accurate. The evening dinner crowd was larger than usual, so much so that people were waiting in line for tables. Anisa was required to pull double-duty; serving drinks at the bar to those waiting to be seated and helping out with the serving as well.

After the hectic evening, morning came early for the doe as she was called on to help out in the kitchen, pre-preparing lunch for the expected surge of Bazaar shoppers. Sometime during the morning, a package arrived for Anisa containing two keys and a note from Aaron saying he was overwhelmed at the Apothecary and wouldn't be able to schedule a time for lessons just yet.

Her main excuse for getting away gone, Anisa was pressed into more kitchen duty by Beatrice, who claimed Bessy was better at playing hostess for Abu Dhabians (although Anisa couldn't help but suspect it was just to refresh her cooking skills). On the one paw, she wouldn't have to deal with a hectic crowd of foreigners, but on the other she didn't get to see them much either.

After a few days though, the crowds began to thin. There were still plenty of travelers filling the tables, but not an unmanageable number. Even the regular patrons were returning now that there wasn't a wait for tables.

Back at her normal station, Anisa wipes down the bar, occasionally fetching drinks and food for the individuals choosing to sit there. The doe's body is sore from the above average amount of work for the past few days, but it doesn't impede on her very much.

A familiar regular enters the tavern and waves to the doe. "Hey Anisa," Aaron says, mustering up a smile. "Been a busy few days, hasn't it? I'd noticed the lines outside before."

The white rabbit looks up, and smiles to the buck, wiping a spot off for him at the bar. "You know it. I think if I have to run around anymore, my legs'll fall off, not to mention all the picky eaters." She sets her rag aside, and pours a mug of mateh for Aaron. "So, how've you been? Thanks for the keys, by the way."

Taking a seat at the bar, Aaron sniffs the strong drink. "My fingers feel ready to fall off. Abu Dhabians always think they're about to catch a cold up here, and Olympians worry about 'tropical diseases'. I've given up trying to educate them, and just make lots of herbal tea and powders for them."

"Tropical diseases?" Anisa's ear flops, "We're tropical? Could have fooled me. Has to be good for business though." The Lapi grins. "So, hungry for anything today? Mamma's made a batch of fried eggplant, and its pretty good."

"That sounds good!" Aaron says, mood and ears perking up. "I've been living on pastries the last few days. Oh, and when would you like to start those lessons?"

The doe writes the order down on a little pad, and slides it into the serving window. "Whenever works best for you, I can almost always con my way out of work anymore. Probably one of these mornings though, I need to keep working or else I'll run out of cash. Daddy makes sure you earn your keep."

"Morning is good for me, since I'll be warmed up from my run anyway," Aaron says. "Just not tomorrow morning. I think we both could use a good night's sleep." Grinning, he adds, "And I finally have a bed to sleep in too. Makes it hard to wake up on time."

Anisa pulls a stool up to her side of the bar, and takes a seat, rising her small frame up several feet. "Sounds like a good plan, I'll probably be passed out tomorrow." Pouring herself a cup of mateh, the Lapine takes a sip. "I should have you work here for a day, that'd thicken your skin quite a bit. But seriously, I think we'll start out with the basics."

"Like blocking, I hope?" the buck asks as he takes a sip from his own mug. "Oh, I think Spring Meadow is coming by morning after tomorrow too, to check my yard and tell me what will grow best there."

The snow colored bunny smirks, "Like blocking, yeah. Not much good if you keep taking hits to yourself." The doe's ears perk up at the mention of Spring Meadow. "She is? I'll have to meet up with her!" The rabbit places her elbows on the bar, resting her chin in a paw. "How long is she gonna be in town, or did she get a job here?"

"She's got a few gigs lined up, so isn't planning on taking off anytime soon," Aaron says. "Xander's left already though, at least for a little while, to check out Half Valley."

"That's too bad, I would have liked to see him too." Anisa takes another swig of her drink, grimacing slightly. "I hope they stay together, they're a cute couple. So what's on your itinerary, just more work I take it?"

"For the time being, yeah," Aaron says. "I've planned things out so that I'll have time to get settled into the house before having to run off somewhere again." After another sip, he says, "I still haven't had a chance to really look at furniture, beyond the bedroom set."

Anisa pulls a brush from her apron, and absentmindedly starts in on her ears – which she's not supposed to do while on the clock. "If you need any help, I can lend you a paw. Mamma and Bessy might have fun tagging along too, they're really into that kind of stuff. Probably could give you better advice than I could."

Aaron grins, "I'd take Jasmine if one of us didn't need to be in the shop. Your family isn't prone to over-decorating are they?"

"No, just tasteful, old fashioned Lapi fare," replies the doe. "Bessy might try to sneak in some frilly stuff, but Mamma has a good head about this kind of thing. She had to decorate for seven men, after all."

"Oh, in that case decorating for one bachelor should be easy," Aaron quips.

Anisa grins, "She hasn't got to do it in years, I bet she'd jump at the chance." Another sip of the mateh. "That is, if you want their help. I'm not trying to push them on you or anything."

"I can use all the help I can get," Aaron admits. "I'm probably the first person in my family to even have a house that doesn't move."

There's a knock from the serving window, and Quinn says, "Eggplant special!"

The doe's ears swivel backward at the sound of a plate being placed on the serving window shelf, and she hops down from her stool to retrieve it. "Here you go, nice warm eggplant." Placing it in front of the buck, the doe rubs her paws on her apron. "I've got to go take care of a few things in the kitchen real quick, and while I'm back there I'll ask Mamma and Bessy what they think."

Wearing a light blue shirt and a pair of black trousers, the doe has discarded her dress for the time being, for obvious reasons of course. She also carries a small brown sack. Knocking on the door, the rabbit waits for an answer.

The door is answered by a gray-furred Lapi doe in the robes of an Earth Mage. "Anisa!" cries Spring Meadow. "Come on in! Aaron just took off on his run, he wasn't even awake until I showed up, can you believe it?"

"Meadow!" Anisa reaches over and gives the other doe a hug in greeting. "Its good to see you again! He was still asleep? Figures! He told me he would have already been awake and had his run by the time I got here." The Lapi walks inside the house, and reaching into the sack, pulls out two berry muffins. "One of these was supposed to be his, but since it'll get cold by the time he gets back, you can have it." She grins, "it'll teach him to sleep in."

Grinning, the other doe accepts the muffin. "Thanks! The food at the Guild is free, and tastes about the same as airship fodder."

Not much has changed in this part of the house. There are crates being used as makeshift furniture, but nothing else.

"What've you been up to?" Meadow asks, getting crumbs on her robe. "I heard you made some sort of big score off the College?"

"Mamma just made these this morning, so they should be nice and fresh still." Taking a seat on one of the crates, the white doe takes a bite out of her own muffin. "Oh, the usual. Work, work, and more work." She grins at the mention of score. "Yep! You remember Mage Shift? Well, I made a deal with him for that dream pendant. In return for giving it to the College," the grin widens, "I got all of the old college's gym equipment! How hopping is that? I could even afford a fraction of that stuff on my own."

Meadow's eyes go wide, and she has to swallow a mouthful of muffin before responding. "Hey, I remember some of that stuff. I guess that's where those floor-mats are from that are up in Aaron's dressing room then?"

Anisa nods! "Plus the weights, lifting machines, treadmills… all of it!" She takes another bite of her pastry. "Some of it's abit old, but its still in fairly good condition. Finding a place to put it was the bigger problem, but Aaron lent me some space for now. The mats are to teach him to spar, and to dance too."

Laughing and spraying a few more crumbs, Meadow says, "Aaron's gonna learn to dance? I mean, I know he can do that ballroom stuff, but so can a trained Dromodon. What're you gonna do with all that equipment, sell it to a Noble?"

The white doe shakes her head, her ears flopping against her head. "Oh, Dagh no! This is too great a score just to sell it away to some blue-blood who'll never appreciate it!" The rabbit pulls her ever-handy brush from her pocket, and works on fixing her now frazzled ears. "I'm thinking of opening Gym of some sort, like a business. Although, I don't know how well it'd do, and I don't know much about business." The Lapi grimaces.

"Are there any gyms out there already?" Meadow asks, canting her ears questioningly. "I can't imagine one in the Bazaar, but all those Darkside toughs must work out somewhere."

Anisa taps the brush to her chin, flopping an ear in thought. "There's none in the Bazaar, I know that. I wouldn't know about Darkside though, I not so hare-brained that I don't know to steer clear of that place." She shrugs, "Even if there is, I don't think we'd compete much. I'd hope to get more of the civilized crowd. Family people who just want to stay in shape. Darkside thugs need not apply."

"That makes sense," the gray doe says. "Maybe something on Merchant's Street." After the last bite of her muffin, she asks, "So, what did Aaron bribe you with to get your help moving his junk? I'm getting a bubble-bath for checking his yard for garden possibilities."

The white doe grins, "He lent me the space, I didn't think to try and con him out of anything else. Wish I had now." She stifles a giggle. "But I just like to help out, it’s neat to get to see the inside of a house in the Scholar's Quarters, this place is amazing!"

Meadow nods, "It's pretty big, about what I'd expect for a Collegia faculty member. A senior one anyway. Have you seen his bedroom stuff yet? I've been looking through his junk while I was waiting for you."

"I saw his bedroom, but didn't actually get to see his stuff." Anisa gives a mischievous smile. "What'd you find, or should we take a look see?"

"Come see," Meadow says, grinning.

The white Lapi crams the last of the muffin into her mouth, and leaps down from the crate. "Time to explore the mysteries of Guy Stuff! I hope he's not like my brothers!" She follows along behind the gray doe.

Upstairs, the master bedroom still seems bare, despite the addition of a large Olympian-style four-poster canopied bed with matching night table and standing wardrobe. Crates are still used for chairs and temporary tables though, including one near the entry to the dressing room stacked with towels and other exercise supplies.

The bed is made… sort of. Clearly Aaron hasn't gotten the hang of how to make it look neat yet. There's a small open jewelry box sitting on the bedcover near the foot as well.

"I was looking through this stuff," Meadow admits as she sits on the bed, gesturing to the open box. "Aaron isn't from a big family, but he should know that if you don't lock it away then it's the same as giving permission to look at it, right?"

Smoothing out a spot on the bed, Anisa takes a seat, "Of course he should, his fault if he doesn't! Then again, who knows what living in a family that small is like." She grins, and peers inside the jewelry box. "I didn't think men kept these sort of things. What's he got in there?"

"Abu Dhabian stuff it looks like," Meadow says, pulling out some earrings, clips, and fine-linked metal chains meant to hang in loops from Lapi ears. "I think this is buck jewelry, but I'm not sure. It would explain why he doesn't ever wear it though."

Some of the recent travelers Anisa has seen did indeed wear similar jewelry, even the bucks. Although they only wore it on their left ears.

Anisa twitches her nose at the strange trinkets. "My parents wouldn't even let me get my ears pierced growing up, I'm kinda surprised Aaron kept this stuff." Grinning, she takes one of the earrings and places it next to her ear. "Stunning, don't you think?" The doe roots around inside the box herself. "One of these days we should make him wear this stuff, then have a mage make some sort of picture to blackmail him with."

Meadow giggles, but shakes her head. "Have you ever seen Aaron's left ear? He can barely keep it up as it is; it'd never hold any of this. Now, if you got him into a dress and had him wear it on his right ear it'd be different!"

The white doe laughs, "We don't want to scar the poor boy!" Placing the earring back in the box, she lays back on the bed. "He must keep it in case his family shows up some day, or it has sentimental value. If anything, we can blackmail him just for having a jewelry box!"

Looking up into the canopy, one can't help but notice that it's actually an Olympian tapestry.

"He's impossible to blackmail, I've tried," Meadow says.

The tapestry is divided into four sections, each depicting some aspect of Lapi life in Olympia. The first panel depicts Lapis working in fields and harvesting crops, milling grain and preparing food. The second frame shows them engaged in trade, working as craftsmen and casting magic.

The third section displays Lapis at leisure; dancing, performing music, bathing, creating art and… making more Lapis. The final panel shows Lapi warriors – both armed and unarmed, armored and bare-furred – engaged in brutal combat. All of the warriors are clearly women.

Anisa blinks, doing a sort of inward double take as she looks upwards at the canopy. "What the… Did you see this?" The doe points upwards, staring at the canopy with nose twitching rapidly. "How weird, this must be one of the things he inherited. Look at that last panel, are those what I think they are?"

Looking up, Meadow studies the tapestry. "Olympian Amazons," she says. "I think I saw this same tapestry when I tagged along with Xander a few years ago to a reunion in Olympia."

"Amazons?" Anisa looks to Meadow curiously. "What are those? I guess I don't know much about Olympia, to be honest."

Meadow lays back next to Anisa. "Some tribe where the women do all the fighting. They're even bigger and get to have more than one husband, although I can't imagine what the point of that would be."

The white doe's eyes go wide, and she turns her head to look at Meadow. "The women do the fighting? So they're the ones in charge basically?" She laughs, "I'd have to show this to my brothers, it'd put them in their place. And yeah, more than one husband? Eww."

"I think it's a status thing, like how merchants in Abu Dhabi have harems," Meadow says. "I remember Xander saying that Aaron's brother couldn't come to the reunion because he's got like ten kids or something and a bunch of wives, and it just wouldn't sit well with the local branch of the family."

"That doesn't mean Aaron has more than one dad, does it?" Anisa grimaces, "that'd be weird. It kinda makes you glad to be on Rephidim, none of that multiple spouses stuff. Remind me to avoid the surface for a while."

"He only had one dad when I was there," the gray doe says. "The men in that part of Olympia are different, like they all take that Cold Shower potion all the time," she adds, gesturing vaguely to the crate covered in exercise supplies.

Anisa lifts herself up on her elbows, and looks to the crate the other doe motions to. "Cold Shower potion?" She turns to Meadow, looking completely confused. "What in the name of the First Ones is that? Some kind of bubble bath?"

The crate is covered with easily recognizable supplies: towels, bandages, liniment, iodine… and an oddly twisted blue glass bottle. Anisa recalls seeing her own brother Ben carrying one into the bathroom whenever he was getting ready to go see his girlfriend. Some sort of mouthwash, he told her.

"You know," Meadow says, turning on her side. "That stuff bucks take to keep from going all rabbity when they're worked up. Xander used to go through a bottle a day when he was practicing big fire rituals."

The white doe gets up from the bed, and walks over to the crate. Picking up the bottle, she uncorks it and takes a sniff. "I've seen my brothers use this stuff, but I thought it was just cologne or something." She looks back to Meadow, "going all rabbity? You mean, like it keeps them from getting scared or something?"

The potion has a strong minty scent… just like mouthwash.

"No, from getting all aggressive and grabby," Meadow says, sitting up. "When the adrenaline gets pumping, it's fight, flee or… get slapped by a doe. Xander says it's really important for fire magic, since that really gets the blood pumping and there's no willpower left to devote to self-control."

Anisa walks back over to the bed with the bottle, sitting down with a smirk. "So it makes them into actual civilized people, they sure as Dagh need it." The doe swirls it around, watching the liquid slosh. "I wonder why we don't need anything like this then, besides the obvious I guess. It must be a pain having to keep up with this stuff."

Meadow shrugs. "I figure it has something to do with does maturing faster. Boys take longer because they have to learn all that self-control. Anyway, it's good to know your brothers use it, they must care about their girlfriends then."

"Also makes it easier to figure out who to dance with," the Earth Mage says, grinning. "Just smell their breath!"

"It must also mean Olympian bucks act more like does, if they act like they use this stuff all the time. That's just plain weird." Anisa's fur frizzles momentarily, then she replaces the cork to the bottle. "Yeah, they may be lunks, but they're good guys. Good thing Aaron uses it too, I'm kinda curious to see what happens if we hide it." The doe giggles mischievously.

"I can't believe I've lived with men all my life and never knew about this stuff." The white doe shakes her head.

Meadow giggles, and says, "Nothing much, I bet. I know Aaron has good self-control. He's probably just got it out because you're gonna teach him how to fight, and it makes sense to keep a clear head for that."

"You expect them to know about all the stuff we use?" Meadow laughs.

Anisa nods. "You're probably right. I may be a better fighter than him, but I don't want him to go all berserk on me or anything." She grins, "I guess not. But if that's all they have to keep up with, they're lucky."

"Just make sure all your brothers use it when they go out," Meadow advises. "Otherwise, you'll know what to get 'em for gifts."

There's a thump from downstairs as the front door opens and closes, and the sound of Lapi feet on the stairs soon afterwards.

"Now that I know about it, I'm gonna enforce its use!" The snowy doe grins, and places the bottle by the jewelry box. At the sound of the door, her ears shoot up in alarm. "Quick! We'd better put this stuff up!"

"Right!" whispers Meadow, and snatches up the jewelry box and sticks it in the lower drawer of the standing wardrobe.

Anisa grabs up the bottle, and sprints to the crate, trying to quickly stuff it back into the nook she took it from.

Aaron walks through the door, looking flushed and a bit sweaty. He's only wearing a pair of green running shorts, and has a waterskin slung across his shoulder, along with the door key on a string around his neck. He blinks at the two does standing in different parts of the room and asks, "Why do you both look guilty? You didn't put itching powder in my sheets did you?"

"Just rummaging through your underwear, honest!" promises Spring Meadow. "And I also checked your bathroom, and you don't have the bubble-bath I like. I told you I wanted the lilac scented one."

The white doe slicks her ears back, then places her paws behind her back innocently. She grins, nodding along with Meadow. "And just admiring your bed canopy, your mom must be a smart lady." She giggles.

"I'll bring in some from the shop tonight then," Aaron says, sitting on the edge of the bed and looking exasperated. "Did you do the reading already? Oh, hello Anisa… oh, that old thing." He looks up at the canopy. "Nothing like waking up to a view of carnage."

"I was waiting for you to get back before starting the reading," Meadow says, walking back over and leaning on one of the bedposts. "That way I'll be handy in case you need to be carried to the hospital."

The white Lapine giggles, "I figured you'd like waking up to see scantily clad women every morning!" Stretching, the doe walks over to the mats. "So, ready for your first lesson?"

"Ha ha," the buck says, getting up to grab a towel and drop off the waterskin and key. "Yup! Sorry to have kept you waiting, Anisa." He joins her on the mats, and gestures to the padded gloves and other safety gear. "What should I put on?"

"Much as I'd like to watch this, I'll go start my reading now," Meadow says. "Should be warmer outside… honestly I don't see how you can run in the cold dressed like that Aaron," she comments as she heads out of the room.

"Nothing, yet," replies Anisa. "Today we're starting off on basic, basic stuff, like how to punch correctly. I couldn't help but notice your form was wrong during our match back in Caroban, you hit like a girl." She giggles again, waving to Meadow as she leaves.

Aaron twitches his whiskers, "All the fighters I know are girls though."

Taking up a stance on the mat, the doe waves Aaron over beside her. "Here, stand like me – legs spaced shoulder length apart, and don't lock your knees. All the fighters you know are girls?" She shakes out her arms, then does another backstretch. "Like who?"

The buck matches the stance, bobbing up and down on his knees to show they're limber. "Uh, well… you. My mom. Couple of Khattas… "

"Normally we'd stretch first, but since you've been out running you should be fine." Anisa continues her own stretches. "Your mom? I guess she's one of those Amazons, like in the Tapestry?"

Aaron's ears go up. "You know about them? Yeah, she's an Amazon. Doesn't fight anymore though, since my dad… domesticated her, I guess."

The doe does a few practice jabs, then nods to the buck. "Meadow told me about them, women warriors or somesuch?" She grins, balancing on one leg as her final stretch. "Sounds like just my kind of place. Minus the killing and stuff that is."

"They'd eat you alive out there, Anisa," Aaron teases.

"They'd have to get hold of me first, then they'd have to KO me" retorts Anisa. "Okay, first things first. Put your arms up over your chest like this, and keep your hands in fists. This makes it easier to block if someone takes a swing at you. Make sure you keep your wrists straight too, I've known people who've broken theirs because they overlook that little thing."

Aaron brings his arms up like Anisa does, and matches the stance more or less, although his feet aren't planted right anymore.

The doe tsks. "Look at your feet, you've lost the stance." She points to Aaron's legs. "If you stand like that, it'll be easy for someone to knock you over. You hafta watch that."

"Oh, right," the buck says, and pays more attention to his reflection this time. He gets his feet under his shoulders and unlocks his knees.

"Alright, much better. Now, every species has traits that they can use when they fight," Anisa says, "Khattas have claws, Nagas have their tails to whip with, and so on. For us Lapi, we're fast, and you have to make sure you use that to your advantage." The doe starts to hop in place, up in down in a steady rhythm. "This is called the 'dance', it'll help you move around quickly in a fight, and keep your opponent guessing. Just kinda hop naturally, and use your legs like springs." She grins, "If you don't know how to do this, we'll have a mage turn you into a Gallee."

Aaron snorts, and bounces up and down easily. "I guess this helps against taller opponents too, huh?"

The doe nods. "Yes, but you don't wanna jump too high unless you're going to attack. If you make the hops too spaced apart, you leave yourself wide open and helpless in midair. Now, try this." Shifting her legs, the doe jumps slightly to her right, then back to her original position, and continues to go back and forth. "This teaches you to bob and weave, and how to keep your weight placed correctly."

After studying the movements for a few jumps, Aaron tries it himself. It takes a few tries before he can land where he started and still rebound right away.

"There you go! Now try doing it in all directions." Demonstrating, Anisa hops forward, then back, then to her left, followed by a forward hop again. "This is the rest of the dance. You don't wanna stay in one place too long, or people will open up on you, and most other species will take a Lapi out fast if you let yourself get hit too many times."

Aaron blinks at the display, and then tries it himself. He does passably well until he tries to jump back, when he lands on his tail after landing on his heels wrong.

Anisa scoots to a halt, and stifles a giggle as she helps the buck to his feet. "Another thing to know about Lapi physiology when fighting – we tend to be bottom heavy, so make sure you don't overcompensate on your movements."

"Don't over- hey! If I called you bottom-heavy you'd smack me," Aaron says as he resumes his stance.

"You bet your ears I would," laughs the doe, "but I said we, not just you. All Lapis are that way somewhat. If you're gonna use your body correctly, you have to know how its put together and how it moves. That's a fundamental to fighting," she winks, "and dancing."

"This is how they dance now too?" the buck asks as he starts bouncing around again. "I suppose it comes naturally after awhile, once you find your balance."

"Good fighting and good dancing go paw in paw, most people don't realize that." Anisa takes up her own stance again, and watches Aaron do a few more hops. "Good, you're getting the hang of it. Now go back to the original stance, without dancing. Time to learn the blocks."

Aaron settles back into the standing stance, makes sure his knees are loose, and checks that his wrists are set. "Okay."

The doe nods once more. "Now, keeping your left arm down to block your chest, quickly raise your right forearm up and out near your forehead, keeping your fist inward to your body. That's a high block, and comes in handy against people taller than you." The rabbit smirks, "in other words, you'll use it quite a bit."

Trying to follow the directions, Aaron gets his right arm up. "What do I do with my fist again?"

"Keep it and the inside of your forearms pointed to your body, like this." Anisa demonstrates. "Otherwise, you'll get hit in the muscle under your arm, and that hurts quite a bit."

The buck turns his forearm so the back is facing outwards. "Okay, that makes sense. I guess it hurts less if your arm gets driven into your face then too?"

Anisa grins, "If you do it right, that won't happen. Now, do the same, only lower down and out from right in front of you. That's a front light block, and it'll keep side attacks from getting you."

Aaron drops his right arm to chest level. "Like this?"

"Like that, but a little bit higher," replies the doe. "More parallel with your neck, like this." She demonstrates. "This is for middle to light attacks though. If someone just makes a straight powerful attack at you, you need to block it even better." The white Lapine puts her fists up in front of her face, making a wall with her forearms that guards her face and chest. She also adjusts her stance to put most of her weight on her right leg, leaning back a bit. "This is a heavy guard, and you only really wanna use it when the opponent gets the better of you. It'll keep you from getting hurt, but it’s hard to make an attack flow from it."

Aaron mimics the block, taking a moment to realize that he has to shift his weight too. "Does this deflect the force, or just absorb it?"

"This absorbs it," says Anisa. "You use it when deflecting isn't an option, and a good fighter will make sure you get plenty of those. See how it feels? You can tell why you only want to use it when you absolutely have to."

"I feel off-balance," the buck says. "You can't recover from this very easily, can you?"

Anisa shakes her head. "Nope, that's why it’s a last resort block." The doe retakes her original stance. "The last block is the low block, and it’s fairly straight forward." She makes a motion as though she was punching downwards, but keeps her arm in place. "This comes in handy if someone tries to kick you, and if you get into many Lapi brawls, that's almost certain." The doe smirks, "like if someone forgets to take his Cold Shower, or such."

"They bite too though," Aaron says, as if speaking from experience. How many of those scars are bites? He punches his arm straight down, keeping it turned so the back is facing out.

"Not much to help against bites. Now, practice a few times with both arms, and try to get a feel for making it move naturally." The doe goes from block to block, slowly starting back into her hopping rhythm. "One you feel comfortable, try combining it with the dance, pretending that someone's swinging at you."

"All at once?" Aaron asks, but starts going through the blocks, watching in the mirror so he can correct himself. He doesn't try the dance at the same time yet though.

"You two are making me dizzy," says Spring Meadow, peeking around the wall. "I'm done Aaron, got a list written up and everything. I'll be back tomorrow to claim my bath! I'm sick of the dorm showers."

Anisa smirks. "This is only the beginning, it’s the easy stuff. If you can't do the blocks, you'll have trouble with the punches, and if you can't handle those then you definitely won't be able to handle the kicks." The doe stops long enough to wave to Spring Meadow. "Seeya Meadow, come by the Tavern and I'll treat you to lunch tomorrow!"

"Hey, that sounds good!" Meadow says, smiling brightly!

"Thanks Springer," Aaron says, but keeps practicing in the mirror. "Just leave the list on the bed. I'll make sure to get your soap tonight too!"

"No problem Aaron," the Earth Mage says. As she heads out, she calls back, "Oh, and I hope you like squash!"

The snowy doe grins, and calls out to Meadow, "I'll bet it beats the dorm food! See you tomorrow!" Breathing heavily, the Lapine comes to a halt, and watches Aaron's progress. "You're doing good, just keep it up! If you can learn to bob and weave well enough, you can minimize your blocks, and focus more on attacking. We'll start that tomorrow."

The buck finally stops, and stretches. "Okay, I'll practice jumping around before then. But right now, I think I'd better take a shower and get to the shop. I'll try to be awake on time tomorrow though!"

Anisa laughs, "You'd better be, or I'll make you fight me tomorrow." The doe looks into Aaron's room, and out the window. "It looks like about time for me to get going too, the breakfast rush should be starting about now and Daddy'll have my ears if I'm late." Grabbing a towel and wiping her face off, the doe then tosses it to the ground, and makes a jog to the door. "See you tomorrow, and keep practicing!"

"I will, thanks!" Aaron calls after the doe.