[He can tell her punching angle before she actually takes the swing.
It's a quick moment - almost unnoticeable, broadcast by the way her muscles flex and how close-or-far she stands from him when she does it. If he were anyone else... maybe he wouldn't have noticed at all. But he isn't. Even so, he stays perfectly still until the last split second - the instant before her fist would connect, before jumping backwards.
Just like that. Effortless, smooth - the water underfoot barely disturbed by his movements. That's a little trick, really - and he comes to rest under the branches of tree, still at a relatively casual stance. But.
Look at his face - it's changed. There's something focused there, now, and a little smile on the edge of his lips, too.
One foot to the trunk, leg bent at the knee - he uses the trunk to propel his jump, which carries him up... just enough for him to drop his jacket in the nearest branch. Another sharp kick before he starts his descent back to the ground, and he flips up, over her head to land behind her, a jab aimed at her upper back.
Not trying to break any spines, after all.
Now to see if she can dodge like a proper fighter!]
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It's a quick moment - almost unnoticeable, broadcast by the way her muscles flex and how close-or-far she stands from him when she does it. If he were anyone else... maybe he wouldn't have noticed at all. But he isn't. Even so, he stays perfectly still until the last split second - the instant before her fist would connect, before jumping backwards.
Just like that. Effortless, smooth - the water underfoot barely disturbed by his movements. That's a little trick, really - and he comes to rest under the branches of tree, still at a relatively casual stance. But.
Look at his face - it's changed. There's something focused there, now, and a little smile on the edge of his lips, too.
One foot to the trunk, leg bent at the knee - he uses the trunk to propel his jump, which carries him up... just enough for him to drop his jacket in the nearest branch. Another sharp kick before he starts his descent back to the ground, and he flips up, over her head to land behind her, a jab aimed at her upper back.
Not trying to break any spines, after all.
Now to see if she can dodge like a proper fighter!]