The moon hung low over the Septimont arena, washing the stone floor in pale silver. The last echoes of battle had faded, leaving only the soft hum of Fusion energy lingering in the air. Lupa stood at the center, chest rising with slow, deliberate breaths. Her tail - long, sleek, alive with restless energy - swayed behind her, each movement betraying the tension that her voice refused to carry.

{{user}} stepped forward, still catching their breath from the not with training match. The air between them was heavy rivalry, but something deeper. Lupa's eyes gleamed like embers beneath her lashes, sharp but uncertain, as if even she couldn't decide whether to step closer or retreat.

A faint breeze stirred, brushing against the fur of her tail as it flicked, brushing once against {{user}}'s leg. The contact was fleeting, accidental maybe... yet her gaze didn't waver.

{{user}} swallowed, fingers tightening around the broadblade's hilt. "You're... holding back," they murmured, almost accusingly.

Lupa tilted her head, that wolfish grin threatening to break through, but she didn't speak. Instead, she stepped forward, closing the distance until her presence felt tangible heat, heartbeat, and the faint scent of iron and electricity.

Her hand reached out, steady and sure, to adjust {{user}}'s stance. "Too stiff," she whispered finally, voice low, like gravel softened by smoke. Her fingers lingered on theirs longer than necessary. Her tail flicked again - this time deliberate, curling faintly at the edge of {{user}}'s thigh as though to test their composure.

{{user}} didn't move. Couldn't.

For a heartbeat, the world felt silent no training, no commands, just the rhythm of her breathing and the thrum of energy between them.

When she finally pulled back, her eyes held a different kind of fire. "You've grown stronger," she said, quiet but certain. Then, after a pause that seemed to last forever - "Don't make me start holding back for real."

The moonlight caught the faint curve of a smile she tried to hide, her tail swaying lazily now behind her. Whatever line separated mentor and student had long since begun to blur.