In the near future, Tal would indeed ask Deimos about Hotaru, and the answer he'd get from the General would plant the seeds of wicked mischief. Mischief which would only come back to bite Tal in the ass, but he was too young and proud to think that far ahead yet. For now he had to settle for a wariness ingrained from a lifetime of being teased by his siblings, and an instinctual recognition of Hotaru as the natural predator of his kind.
Neither of which were any match for the surge of eagerness to show off when the opportunity presented itself, and Tal followed Hotaru like a lamb to the slaughter.
"Sure," he agreed confidently. "I've thrown an axe in a pinch befo--" His jaw snapped shut on his words as she let loose her axe and it landed clean and center of her dummy. Tal's stomach dropped about half a foot as his grin faded, but he stepped up to his line resolutely. A scowl of concentration came over his face as he glanced from his dummy to Hotaru's, and then he rocked back and forward again with a two-handed grip, releasing at just the right moment to send the weapon spinning into his own dummy's torso with an audible thunk.
"What kind of enemies have you fought?" The question slipped out past his scowl, curiosity getting the better of him again.
Neither of which were any match for the surge of eagerness to show off when the opportunity presented itself, and Tal followed Hotaru like a lamb to the slaughter.
"Sure," he agreed confidently. "I've thrown an axe in a pinch befo--" His jaw snapped shut on his words as she let loose her axe and it landed clean and center of her dummy. Tal's stomach dropped about half a foot as his grin faded, but he stepped up to his line resolutely. A scowl of concentration came over his face as he glanced from his dummy to Hotaru's, and then he rocked back and forward again with a two-handed grip, releasing at just the right moment to send the weapon spinning into his own dummy's torso with an audible thunk.
"What kind of enemies have you fought?" The question slipped out past his scowl, curiosity getting the better of him again.
