By time she burst through the first trees of the forest her breathing was becoming uneven and labored. She had sprinted halfway across campus and was still throwing herself headlong into the activity as she made her way to the large black tree they had all agreed to meet at. Zeph didn't bother to lift a hand to brush away the low hanging branches of the trees she came across, her thoughts were in such a far off place it didn't matter right now.

When she actually looked around herself she skid to a stop. She had almost past their meeting place, but since she had run the whole was, there was plenty of time. An arm shifted so she could glance at her watch as she jogged over to the tree and settled for slowly pacing circles around it to cool herself off and let her muscles relax. Surely they would be here soon and could help her take her mind off this new turn of events that left her feeling sick.

Finally when her breathing returned to normal Zeph settled at the base of the tree and leaned back against it with her eyes closed. Both hands lifted to rub at her eyes that had dried on the way here. "C'mon you guys.. I need you."

When her eyes opened her expression was perfectly neutral though the anger that was settling in showed in the depths of her crimson hues and as her hands dropped to her sides they clenched into tight fists.

Bless me with the Leaf off of the tree
On it I see The freedom reign
We are falling, The light is calling
Tears inside me Calm me down
Midnight calling Mist of resolving
Crown me, with the Pure green leaf
Praise to my father, Blessed by the water
Black night, dark sky, The devils cry

J U N E
╜───────╓

June arrived only moments after Zeph, and her arrival was nothing planned or perfected. She came in her battle gear sure, but that was customary for these meetings. Battles would be fought, so she would dress for the occasion. This time, however, she brought a towel for wiping sweat - or blood - off. Today was the day she planned to start the others on some hand to hand.

The sight she saw upon her arrival was less than desirable. Her martial artist inside was easily able to read body language, and this was clearly troubled body language. She had formed fists at nothing, and was slouching. Very different from the last few times they had met. This wouldn't go unnoticed or unspoken.

"You look like you're ready to kill something." she spoke up. "Channel that into some adrenaline and you'll be fine, but don't stew. You gotta redirect that feeling, whatever it is."

She threw her bag down, and then placed the towel on top of it.

"I brought us some sports drinks and some, uh, fluid rags. You're gonna need'em. I'm starting you down my road today."

Raion arrived as this conversation was beginning, with her own battle gear and a blade.

"No need for that today Lion." said June. "Today you learn. Both of you. Who wants to step into the ring first?"

Raion said nothing, feeling uneasy for some reason. Ah, well. Everyone had a reason for something. She decided this meant it was her choice.

"Zeph, get over here."

╖───────╓
K O H M A

Zephyra nodded briskly in welcome to the demon eyed girl and rolled her shoulders to straighten her posture. It was becoming of a warrior to be seen brooding. Yet, she didn't quite trust her voice so another nod was given as an affirmative of her words as well as Raion's arrival while she set out to stretch. The full on run had helped with that quite a bit, but she also needed her upper body to keep from cramping for surely this would be a long session. A deep breath was taken in as she tried to clear her thoughts and she kept her glare toward the ground so not to put off her new found friends.

The redhead dropped into a crouch as June explained what they would be doing today and crossed an arm over her chest to pull against her back muscles. Had she been a little more watchful she might have picked up on Raion's unease, but she was too busy focusing on the pull of each muscle.

Hearing her name, Zeph finally looked up then raised from her position to stand at her full height. Her voice seemed to have lost its lit for a far more serious tone. "Fine by me."

The Gael quickly wrapped her long hair up into a ponytail as she walked toward June. Her gaze had softened slightly as she tried to shake the anger that was most directed toward herself, but in the depths of those pools the emotion still boiled. Another deep breath and she relaxed her muscles once more as she took an almost sideways stance and lifted onto the balls of her feet. Her arms hung by her sides for a moment before lifting, bent at the elbows in a defensive curl at her hips.

Bless me with the Leaf off of the tree
On it I see The freedom reign
We are falling, The light is calling
Tears inside me Calm me down
Midnight calling Mist of resolving
Crown me, with the Pure green leaf
Praise to my father, Blessed by the water
Black night, dark sky, The devils cry

J U N E
╜───────╓

Ah, good. She was ready. Raion seemed to be off to the side doing some stretches of her own, not really focusing on the two in front of her at all. That was fine, as long as she didn't get in the way. June immediately took to her prior stance, however a limp arm was not present. Scarily enough she synchronized both arms into the same position, completely leaving her front open.

"Two things to start. One, put your favorite high energy song on in your head. Once you've got that..."

She tensed herself, preparing to take the full impact of her opponent.

"Punch me full force. I need to know what I'm working with."

June was a lot of things, but she wasn't stupid. She had already sized up her opponent before,and determined herself capable of tanking a punch or two from her without much problem. It was still a curiosity though. The way she would teach depended entirely on the power of the hit. If Zeph was barely felt, she would teach her Krav first. If it was slightly painful, she would begin with Capoeira. If it knocked her on her bottom, she would begin with the Muay Thai. The power determined the practice, as it did with a few others. She knew Zeph was no slouch with a blade, and that meant she had to be dextrous at least, but her physical power was yet to be seen, and truth be told June hadn't expected anything seriously painful.

"Right in the gut. Try and knock the wind out of me if you can."

╖───────╓
K O H M A

A quick dip of her head was her acknowledgment of her words as a song instantly came to mind and Ivan Moody's sultry voice raced in her ears in time with her heartbeat. It took a bit of control to keep from mouthing the words of The Pride as her stance subtly shifted. Most wouldn't expect Five Finger Death Punch to be the young Gael's go to band, but the dark, angry music had a home in her heart and had been a good partner to her during her standalone workouts. It also seemed appropriate at the moment.

"I hope you're sure about this.."

Zeph flexed her right hand a few times, but June wanted her absolute best and that meant using her dominant hand. Without breaking her gaze away from June's face, she stepped forward, her feet barely stirring the forest floor under their light steps. She had never fully outright punched anyone before and this felt a little awkward, especially since it was a friend she was hitting, but she drew back her left hand. The appendage never lifted above waist level as she cocked her hips, ready to put her all into it. Zephyra clenched her teeth and finally took her swing, planting her balled fist into the whitette's diaphragm. Instead of going for a straight out swing she put her momentum into a slightly upper movement shoving the muscle up toward her lungs while her shoulders twisted to put the force of her full body into the hit. This twist was soon followed by her hips which added all the power of her lower body into it as well.

Bless me with the Leaf off of the tree
On it I see The freedom reign
We are falling, The light is calling
Tears inside me Calm me down
Midnight calling Mist of resolving
Crown me, with the Pure green leaf
Praise to my father, Blessed by the water
Black night, dark sky, The devils cry

J U N E
╜───────╓

A strike like that would have been too much for most students. Raion paid attention to that part, breaking from her apparent workout routine - she was doing crunches hanging from the lowest branch she could - and the whole of the area seemed to stay still a moment. Most students here would have been on their backs coughing up blood or something from that. But this was June we were talking about, and if she was anything around here, it was the most durable. Her scars proved that. She definitely felt the blow, though. It hurt more than she expected, but she contained herself well. Using an old trick she learned from her early days in kickboxing before deciding to abandon it to breathe out on every impact to prevent losing wind. It made the pain more intense but she was able to endure the blow much better and didn't seem out of breath at all.

"Not bad." she said, a cocky smile finding her features to mask the actuality of the pain. "Alright, I'm starting you with Capoeira. I'm sure you've heard of it. Ah, but first."

That's right, it was pretty hot out. Her makeup would run eventually anyway doing this kind of activity, and she knew this day would come eventually. That's why she prepared. Grabbing one of her rags, she quickly wiped her face off. When she pulled away, there was a darker pink scar going across her left eye and dipping into her cheek. It was imprecise and looked as though it hadn't ever healed properly, but sealed itself anyway.

"Let's get to work. Show me your range of motion."

╖───────╓
K O H M A

Zeph shook out her hand as she stepped back, her mind having gone blank of her problems as the irritating pain probed the depths of her psyche. She frowned at the dull sensation then glanced from the appendage which dropped to her side, to her instructor. A slight smile quirked up a corner of her lips as she murmured her thanks.

"Your stomach feels like a brick wall, just so you know. I can't imagine what punching Raion in the jaw would feel like."

The girl slowly turned her head to catch the other redhead's reaction to her joke as she straightened her shirt. Her mood seemed to be improving by the minute, but that deepset anger would probably linger for much longer than a session with her friends if things weren't resolved. That said, she wouldn't let someone else bring down her time with the two whom were becoming closer to her than any before.

As June turned back toward her, the Gael's eyebrows rose toward her hair line. "My, you cover that well."

Her posture was more relaxed now, but still ready for anything thrown at her. Zeph tipped her head as she studied the scar. "But why do you cover it? It adds good character. Rougishly handsome, some might say."

So, June wanted to see her mobility? That could be arranged. But what exactly did she want? Instead of going off in a flit of acrobatics, she pressed the woman for a more specific movements she would like to see.

Bless me with the Leaf off of the tree
On it I see The freedom reign
We are falling, The light is calling
Tears inside me Calm me down
Midnight calling Mist of resolving
Crown me, with the Pure green leaf
Praise to my father, Blessed by the water
Black night, dark sky, The devils cry

J U N E
╜───────╓

While Raion huffed and did her upside down crunches even harder, June was taken back. A compliment about this... Hideous thing? She hated the fact that someone was seeing this, and it fueled her need to fight even more. But she wouldn't let that get the better of her. She could control herself. More than she could say about her filth wretch of a cousin. That despicable trash, how dare she-- No June. Stop. Breathe. She closed her eyes and her expression returned to a playful one.

"You can thank the Lulim chancellor for this one. And I hide it because it's got some weight, same as the rest, which are also her fault." she responded with an admittedly forced smirk. "Now, motion is key for Capoeira. You have to handle yourself in a triangle shape. There are only three points at which you should touch the ground - diagonally behind both of your legs, and immediately in front of you. The motions are more like dancing than fighting, because the style originated from that in Brazil."

To demonstrate, she began to form the motions very slowly. Her feet only touched the space diagonally behind them, and they alternated rather than planted. She did not stop that motion.

"Your arms need to be on par with your legs. It's a style for the agile. Handstanding is a big part of this." and to demonstrate, she did so, then pushed herself back up and in front of Zeph.

"Attacks come from the rhythm. You feel them more than they're taught."

╖───────╓
K O H M A

Zeph knew when someone was trying to dodge a subject so she let it drop with a nod. Her body imitated June's as she showed her the basic forms and her eyes flashed with recognition. She hadn't gone through any of the strenuous training, but her tutor had started with her. The woman hadn't given her any name but jokingly called it Breakdance defense. That was why the name hadn't clicked with her. The tall girl paused when June went into the handstand, she waited until she was back on her feet before easily following her example. She was actually thankful for the gymnastics her mother had forced her to participate in at a younger age as she placed herself in a perfectly straight handstand. Zeph held it for a few moments before tucking her legs down against her body. She stayed in that position a few more moments she then stretched her legs horizontally, one out straight the other bent a little so she would be placed back into a beginning form as she stood, one arm in front of her, the other behind.

"Like that, right?"

Her bright orbs locked on the girl before her ready for her next motions or comments on how it could have been done better. Being a perfectionist herself, she didn't expect to have done it exactly the way June wanted to see. It had been many months since the single session she had with Bridgette after all. And that session had been mostly focused on dodging techniques she could use in non-standard fencing tournaments.

Bless me with the Leaf off of the tree
On it I see The freedom reign
We are falling, The light is calling
Tears inside me Calm me down
Midnight calling Mist of resolving
Crown me, with the Pure green leaf
Praise to my father, Blessed by the water
Black night, dark sky, The devils cry

J U N E
╜───────╓

She seemed to have the basic principles down, which was good. June nodded, but also waved a finger in a semi scolding way.

"You have the motions, but you're missing one key thing. You can't ever stop moving. You constantly shift between the first two point son the triangle. You see how often I stay moving when we fight? That's what I need you to do."

An idea came to her then, and she decided it would be fun. Zeph was probably bored of the lectures, so June decided to get something else accomplished today. Raion looked occupied so she wasn't likely to want in on this. Her own attacks would have to suffice. She found herself in more a Muay Thai stance for the time being, and her eyes narrowed.

"Now, to get you used to the stances I'm going to attack you. Dodge while retaining form. You'll see, it comes more naturally than you'd think as long as you have the triangle down."

June launched herself at Zeph with a surprising lack of holding back. This blow would do some serious damage if she hit - It was a fakeout dash with her arms raised defensively, but far enough apart that she would grab her opponent's head and bring it down into the real attack, a rising knee. She was quite the animal to watch in battle, as if all her senses of humanity vanished and were replaced with a beast.

Raion watched them between her hanging crunches, which she was now counting out loud in an attempt to block out the noise of the fight. She was on 46 so far, and quite content to keep doing more.

╖───────╓
K O H M A

With the distraction of her thoughts on her lack of fluid movement and Raion's counting Zeph almost missed the part of June attacking her. Just a split second too late to move, the redhead found her head in a tight grasp and moving downward. Adrenaline soared through her veins as she anticipated the hard hit, but her hands weren't going to idoly sit by and let the blow land full force. Both appendages grabbed hold of the limb coming her direction, one on top the other below. But her strength could only do so much to momentum and she felt her nose crunch as well as heard it. The redhead didn't let the blood that was now pouring from both nostrils deter her as she side stepped jerked her head aside and with all her might shoved up with her lower hand as the upper swept skyward and disengaged June's hands from her head. The movement was supposed to use June's momentum against her and flip her backwards.

Zephyra brought a hand up to her nose, swiping at the blood before locating June with naturally tearful hues.

(I'm putting two options, so whichever way it turned out you can go from that.)
----
Finding the girl on the ground, she felt a bit proud, but didn't let that get to her. She stretched out her clean hand, an offering to help her up. As soon as it was grasped she leaned back and hauled her to her feet. The thing was she didn't let go, instead, she stepped back and whipped in a circle, arching her leg up to contact with the side of her head. She easily aligned her center of gravity so that if her leg was caught she could twist her upper body and finish the movement with a little jump so send her free leg at the woman. So much for defending in this matchup.

---

Seeing that she was still on her feet, Zeph narrowed her eyes, forcing away the pain as she took up her defensive stance, ready this time. But she didn't wait for June to attack, instead she advanced, unheeding to any words of a break to clean herself up, if there were any. Crimson hues now dulled with her pain flaired to life as she thought of what had happened earlier. Her movements were much more fluid now that she wasn't thinking of them. A hand swept out before her and she brought a booted foot up in an arch for June's head, knowing full well it would miss her by inches even if she didn't move back. The movement was only meant to give her speed though, as it spun her around, but this time, instead of her right foot remaining planted it lifted as her body contorted and sent a harder kick in June's direction.

Bless me with the Leaf off of the tree
On it I see The freedom reign
We are falling, The light is calling
Tears inside me Calm me down
Midnight calling Mist of resolving
Crown me, with the Pure green leaf
Praise to my father, Blessed by the water
Black night, dark sky, The devils cry

J U N E
╜───────╓

((Went with option 1))

The surprise of the retaliation caught her, and she did have to tumble backward to keep from taking too much damage at the start. What followed was pretty good too, and she had to admit she was getting a bit into this.

"heh. You just jumping right in? Alright, I'll take this dance." she smirked and allowed herself to be pulled up, half expecting the next move. She raised a wrist to catch the blow at the woman's ankle and held it in that position, waiting for the next move. It came pretty quickly in the form of another kick, to which she responded by stepping back quickly and, as if to mentor her in the style, she adopted some Capoeira into her own stance, somersaulting out of the way, meeting a ready position on the way back down.

"Show me a good time then." she beckoned, waving the girl in. "I promise I won't break anything."

╖───────╓
K O H M A

Her stance fell back into the one June had demonstrated as she turned her head and spat out some of the blood that had drained from her nose. Her lips curled downward in disgust before her gaze swept back to her friend. She really had no words to speak to her, so she charged back in.

A quick cartwheel and she was right up next to her. Her right hand shot forward toward her stomach as she dropped into a crouching position and in the same motion she stood, using her legs to put more force into the blow. Of course, she expected June to sidestep it so she whipped around, forming her right hand into a fist that aimed for her cheek.

It was getting seriously difficult to think past the throbbing on her face so instead she just let her body flow in what felt right. Since Zeph didn't even know her next move it made it harder to read her body language. The bloodied girl sidestepped, retaking form before once again dropping to the ground. She placed her right hand against the ground and used it to pivot so she could sweep a leg toward June's ankles. Then the other planted into the soft dirt to force her body into a quick handstand once her back was to the whitette, sending both feet at the girl's chest.

By now the Gael was panting softly since she couldn't breathe through her nose and this was the most hand to hand she had done in a very long time.

Bless me with the Leaf off of the tree
On it I see The freedom reign
We are falling, The light is calling
Tears inside me Calm me down
Midnight calling Mist of resolving
Crown me, with the Pure green leaf
Praise to my father, Blessed by the water
Black night, dark sky, The devils cry

J U N E
╜───────╓

Her movements were erratic and seemed to lack a certain finesse that the redhead normally had. June capitalized on this by allowing herself a moment to slow down and think. She wouldn't dodge this time, merely block. As the first punch came in, she put out a hand to stop it, and the second was handled in much the same way. She had intentionally done so by crossing her own arms, and used the momentum provided to pull, then throw back the limbs.

"Bravado is fun, but I think you know you fight better when you think." she taunted. The sweep that came in after made for a surprise almost as much as the punches, but it was nothing a small hop couldn't handle. She was harder to read this way for sure, but there wasn't much that a body trained to react to even the slightest flinches couldn't handle. The final kick of the attack did catch her off guard slightly, and she barely had time to move before it clipped one of her arms. Yeah, it didn't matter how much force the kick had, those shoes would add to the impact's pain. She certainly had to reel the arm back for a moment, but as anybody who did this regularly knew you had to fight through pain and deal it back until you couldn't move anymore.

All she needed was an opening, and one blow would end this. Dodging and blocking were fine for now, but she would have to attack back eventually, so she decided to try for some smaller hits that may cause her opponent to stumble and open up. Her first retaliation attack had to be carefully placed. She decided to bait a block, and went in for a hook with her right hand. With any luck, she could draw out the other girl's own arm. That was all she needed.

╖───────╓
K O H M A

A sneer was the only response gave as she moved back to her feet. It was obviously a taunt to get her to attack out of sheer anger. Instead, she returned to her feet and bounced on her toes a few times to relax her burning muscles and shake off the pain. Her arms raised, ready to block anything. June didn't disappoint, of course. As the right hook closed in her mind kicked back into overdrive. Multiple scenarios running in the split second that it would take the fist to make contact. Instead of blocking the blow, she ducked under it and rushed forward. After closing the little distance her shoulder pressed against the girl's stomach and she threw her whole weight into it as her leg slid between June's and hooked around one of them. Her lips barely moving with the upbeat song in her head.

'It's time to get in the game.
Fight 'til it hurts then do it again.
I'm staying straight to the core, ain't no room for second place.
Go big or go home!
Rise!
It's dog eat dog.
Man versus beast.
The strong will survive.
I've got no time for the weak.
It's time to rise up, man up, get back up, never been and won't be broken.
Dust off and then come back for more.
You've got to reach down, dig deep, and break ground.
Show them all you won't be beaten.'

As they crashed to the ground, Zeph wrestled to keep the upper hand. She knew she was at a disadvantage with this girl, but there was a burning determination in her eyes. The redhead would draw blood from her opponent at least once in this fight as she mastered the fundamentals of hand to hand. With a goal set in place it was a lot easier to focus and think past the pain. She could do this.