In the months following his return to Spirane, Sleekwing had by and large been focused on regaining his former composure and overall strength. Over the winter he had lost a significant amount of weight, and much of that had been muscle mass that had deteriorated as he lay in a den within the valley, consumed by fatigue and with a mind muddled by sickness. When spring had melted away the snow his sickness seemed to dissolve as well and Kiyomi had delivered him home. She had chosen to remain and call Spirane home too, and in the seasons that followed he had showed her much and more of the mountainous region. He had used these tours as a way to rebuild his musculature, climbing to peaks and descending into valleys. And when they were not together he took to running the borders as he once had, regaining his stamina. As autumn pulled the leaves from the trees, the castellan of Spirane was practically back to his old form, and he was insurmountably glad for it. He was finally starting to feel like himself again.

The heather streaked male heard Devit’s call and made his way to meet the lad without delay. The boy was two now, and Sleekwing had long ago been informed of his desire to join the armament. He was unsure what had caused such a long delay in his pursuing the task set forth to him, but it mattered little, for he clearly wished to put things in motion to assure his place in the pack now. When Sleekwing arrived at the location chosen by Devit, he nodded his approval, finding the setting satisfactory. It was a small clearing, but not so diminutive as it inhibit their ability to spar. It would keep them at close quarters, which was good for learning to fight. Being put under pressure had taught Sleekwing many things in his younger days, when he and Alcide would brawl.

Sleekwing moved around the edge of the clearing, sizing up the boy. He was still youthful, but there was a lot of potential in a juvenile body such as his to develop into a fine young warrior. When the older male stood broad side to Devit, he stopped. They were aligned nose to tail with a gap of at least five feet between them. “You wish to spar? Then show me what you are made of,” he said, not moving from his stance. It was something that he preferred to do whenever he took on a new student, to allow them the first chance to strike and show what they were capable of, what came naturally to them. Sometimes he would turn the table and attack first, to see how they preferred to dodge or take a hit, but in most cases he positioned himself as such. It gave the student a range of points to attack, and where they went first could tell much about their instincts for battle.