"Again!" Raphael yelled and I picked up my fists. I took a deep breath, trying to concentrate as Gabriel stepped forward. He gave me a soft smirk before swinging his fist.

He was a guardian I hadn't met before, a random who Raphael had plucked from another class to spar with me one on one because he didn't 'have the energy to deal with me' for much longer.

I gasped and ducked underneath his arm, but it hardly mattered as his other hand came around. It hit me bluntly in the side and I stumbled into the dirt, landing with a thud.

"Kate, use your head!" Raphael hissed as he stepped forward, grabbing my arm to haul me up onto my feet. "He's been using the same combination each time. It's like I'm watching Groundhog Day!"

"You just started training me today!" I growled, crossing my arms. I landed a few punches and my knuckles were already black and blue. "I'm not used to fighting like this."

"Oh yes, should I find you a broken bottle?" He snapped back and I narrowed my eyes. "You won't always have a weapon at your side, and currently, your Meraki is frazzled so you are defenseless. You need to learn to fight hand to hand. It's a necessity and something very vital that you lack."

"How about we teach her like you'd train a new Guardian?" Gabriel said, glancing between us uncomfortably. "You've skipped past a couple of stages, just saying."

"You're dismissed." Raphael said with narrowed eyes as he turned to Gabriel.

"What?"

"Are you deaf? I said dismissed." He growled and Gabriel straightened, giving me a quick glance before turning and retreating back up the hill.

I looked to Raphael as he cracked his neck and flexed his shoulders. "What are you doing?"

"Stretching. You start doing the same. We're taking a step back and doing some cardio. You're weak."

"You think the solution to all this is to do some running?"I said through a clenched jaw. "I want to learn how to fight outside of this drill procedure! I never learned anything in a class room, just as I'm not learning anything now with you throwing punches at me or making me run in circles. Put me in a situation, show me how to solve it, and I'll shadow you. I learn best by example."

Raphael swung one leg at a time, stretching each out. "We won't do anything until you're strong enough to keep up with me. Are you ready? We stop running every day from now on until you can match me the entire way."

"This is ridiculous!" I hissed, reluctantly stretching out my legs and arms as well. "This was a one day type of thing!"

"So, you aren't committed?"

"No! I didn't say..."

"You don't want to learn how to fight? You just wanted to try it? Dip your toe in the water until you learn your meraki?"

"No! I just..."

"Running will make you stronger, and you will fight better if we ever get to that step. Now, we will run a short ten mile set of loops..."

"Ten miles!" I gaped.

"It's short, Kate." Raphael snorted. "Guardians run 20 miles in their sessions, so we are doing half."

"What about sprinting?" I asked. "I'm better at that."

"You won't be fast enough."

"Try me."

"Not the time. Long distances are our starting point, and once you can handle that then you'll do sprints. Now, let's run." Raphael began to jog and I filtered in beside him reluctantly. We turned down a gravel path headed into the woods and I smiled to myself. This wouldn't be too hard.

Little did I know this was only his first gear.

Time dragged on slowly as we ran and when I finally emerged from the woods, I was covered in a cloud of sweat. I powered on, grimacing at the hill upward where Raphael sat. Finn stood beside him, white wings crossed behind him and blonde hair ruffled as they both turned to look down at me.

"Keep up the pace, Stratton!" Raphael called down to me, hardly looking sweaty or out of breath. "You're almost there!"

I wanted to call back something sharp, but I could hardly breath. My lungs burned and every muscle hurt like hell. I felt as though I had been set on fire.

I'd kept up with Raphael for about two miles at the very least, but he kept drawing further and further away until I couldn't see him any longer. He'd told me he wouldn't pace himself for me, and he really hadn't been kidding. That asshole was fast.

He'd told me to run five loops, which I had completed at his request. I wondered how long he'd been done for while I kept doing laps. I made it to the top of the hill and finally stopped. The air felt poisonous as I sucked it in, resting my hands on my knees as I tried to catch my breath. I felt like I was going to be sick.

"I told you to train her in combat, Raph." Finn said with an edge in his voice.

"She's too weak. I'm making her do cardio to build up some muscle and we can try weights as well. Gabriel and I tried to teach her, but it was futile."

"You..." I panted, looking up at him with a glare as I pointed at him. "You... You...!"

"Yes? Spit it out. It's not that hard"

"You won't train... me the... way I... learn best." I stood straight up, putting my hands on the back of my head to open up my chest to breathe. Finn and Raphael watched me, Finn appearing more concerned for me and Raphael more irritable. "You can't just... tell Gabriel to fight me... and not show me how... to defend myself."

"He used the same combination forty-seven times in a row, and you couldn't figure that out? It isn't like I asked you to do advanced algebra without a calculator or a pencil." He snorted.

Finn narrowed his eyes, glancing to Raphael before back to me. "You and I are going to train tomorrow, understand?" I nodded as Finn turned to Raphael. "You're going to watch, yes?"

"Obviously, but I warn you: she is unteachable." Raphael stood and my stomach twisted in a knot, my eyes tingling. He turned his back and retreated up the hill without looking back.

"Hey," Finn turned to me. "Let's get you some water, ok? Your face is really red." He chuckled, but his jaw clenched as I wiped my eyes.

"I tried, I really did..." I stuttered.

"Raphael is hard on his students just as we all are, but he needs to remember what level he is teaching. He wants you to exceed his expectations and to step into the role of the Prodigy he sees in you. He needs to realize that you haven't been training like our younger Guardians and that the best way to help you is to construct the primary building blocks. You'll take off from there, I'm sure of it."

"I'm unteachable." I said, crossing my arms.

"Everyone is teachable. I'm going to help you tomorrow, and this will be solved." Finn smiled at me. "Let's get water and I'll take you to dinner. How are your feet?"

"I think they fell off at mile seven but I don't remember. All I can recall is 'Stratton, look alive! More alive!'" This made him laugh and he shook his head.

"If it gets bad enough, I'll carry you. Deal?" He raised an eyebrow, "Would you like to walk or opt for the former?"

I couldn't keep myself from smiling slightly as I began to walk, Finn falling in beside me. "I'm walking. I'm fully capable."

"That you are." Finn said softly and we walked back up the hill towards the dining hall.

"Kate, I'm not making you run today," Finn said as he stood in front of me the next day, arms crossed. "But, we are going to do some work. I want you focussed on me and what I'm telling you. I'm going to show you how to do certain moves, I will demonstrate with Gabriel, and you will do so as well. Lips closed, eyes open."

I nodded with earnest, and he didn't smile as he stepped forward. Raphael and Gabriel sat on the hill beside us, watching our movements. Finn stood closely in front of me, towering over me enough to block the sun from my eyes. I couldn't help but swallow.

I hadn't seen this intensity in him before or his sheer strength. I remembered the warrior I'd seen in him the first day we'd met, and now he was back, a wall of muscle with huge wings and a skill set that was still a mystery. He was Commander Finn, a high title. He had to be excellent, and from the glimpses I'd already seen, I knew he had to be one of the best. Right?

"First thing, has anyone actually showed you how to throw a punch?" His eyes glanced down at my bruised hand and he looked up to me with a raised eyebrow. "I'm going to show you how to not break your hand. Now, show me how you make a fist."

I held out my hand, making a fist. Finn reached forward, taking my hand in his.

"See, here's our problem. First, you need to take your thumb out of your fist. We're going to move this out and put it between these two fingers," I loosened my thumb, allowing him to move it to the outside. "There. Now, when you throw a punch, you won't break your finger if you hit hard enough, and your thumb is out of the way from any impact. Show me your fist now."

I opened up my hand and reformed the fist he'd just made for me. I looked up to him. "Like this?"

"Good." Finn nodded, and he tapped his fingers where I'd bruised my hand. "To avoid more bruising like this, you need to punch differently. I want you to aim your fist with your first two knuckles forward. Those two knuckles need to be in front of the hand, so you can lower your wrist down to position them forward. Keep your wrist straight to both maximize the force of your punch and avoid snapping your wrist. Don't hit with the top of your hand or your palm."

He took my hand in his, modeling the punch for me. He bent my wrist forward so that my first two knuckles came before my hand and kept my thumb in place outside my fist.

"There you go. Let's start with a simple one. Keep your chin down so that when you aim to throw a punch, your shoulder will rise and protect your chin further. When you actually engage in combat, protecting your chin becomes more important so that you don't get knocked unconscious. Keep your arm level with your shoulders. Now, I'm going to hold up my hands and I want you to show me a punch. It doesn't need to be too hard, just good enough to show me that you're holding your fist correctly."

Finn held up his hand and I kept my fist like he'd showed me. I punched his right hand, surprised how much less it hurt than it did before. I glanced down at my hand before back up to Finn.

"Good. Keep your wrist straight with your arm. I don't want you breaking your wrist." Finn said. "For now I want you aiming at the body and not the head or neck. Those places can knock someone out cold, but you could accidentally punch them in the wrong place and hurt yourself. On the body, aim with your right hand to hit under the heart here and the left near the liver there." He pointed onto his own body to show me.

"So, I shouldn't go for the head at all?"

"Not until you are experienced enough to not hurt yourself in the process. For now, we are just focussing on the body. You can still knock the wind out of someone by hitting them in the sternum, but we'll get there later." Finn nodded and backed away a few steps. "When you punch, I want you to engage your hips as well, because when you roll them into your punch, you'll engage your core and add more power. Got it, Kate?"

I nodded and Finn gestured to Gabriel, who stood immediately. He came to stand beside Finn, Gabriel flinching away from him when he clapped his hands.

"Kate, give him your best punch." Finn replied and took a step back, Gabriel now looking hardly phased.

"I'm not a complete beginner." I warned Gabriel, holding up my fists in the manner Finn taught me.

He could hardly contain his chuckle. "I'm ready when you are."

I narrowed my eyes, glancing to Finn, who only watched me with interest. I looked back to Gabriel, who stood still with his hands behind his back. He didn't look concerned in the least about me having an open target on his chest. What did Finn say? Aim under the heart?

I shot forward, Gabriel's eyes widening in surprise. I felt my fist connect with his chest, a loud crack sounding between us. A warm satisfaction took over me that I'd actually surprised him. I'll show you, Gabriel.

I felt compelled to us the move Malaki had showed me to disarm someone on the streets and from there, I kneeled, bringing my leg around. It knocked Gabriel's left leg clean out from underneath him, his body flying back as he hit the ground.

He cursed loudly, looking up at me with shock. "Well shit, Kate!" He smiled widely and began to laugh. "Damn! If I'd known this was a real fight, I wouldn't have let you take the first punch!"

"You shouldn't have underestimated me, Gabriel." I gave him a small smile, offering him a hand. He took it and I helped him up to his feet.

"She practiced moves her instructor didn't authorize." Raphael said bluntly, looking over me as I stared back to him. Seriously? "A Guardian who can't follow precise orders and wishes to attract attention to themselves is a reckless and dangerous one. I'm returning up the hill, Gabriel with me."

Gabriel scurried to his feet, whispering to me. "I thought you did well." He followed Raphael, giving me a smile as he hurried after the dark-haired guardian.

As the two ascended up the hill, I turned to Finn, who had a small smile of mischief on his lips as he gave me a wink.

I smiled, looking up the hill. "He doesn't like me much, does he?"

Finn only laughed. "I think he's just angry that I might be a better teacher." He shook his head with an eye roll. "Unteachable, my ass!"