Another week of training, making it four weeks total since she arrived in the lair.
Destiny heads to the dojo early in the morning, wanting to try new moves out by herself. She looks along the rack of weapons, running her fingers along the sleek metal and gently touching the wooden finishes and wishing that she could use one herself.
She sighs. One day, she reminds herself as she grasps one of the bokken.
She moves to the centre of the floor and breathes deeply, holding the sword with both hands and positioning it upright, the length pointing towards the ceiling. She closes her eyes, tail flicking and wolf ears swivelling as she lets herself become calm.
She spins easily and launches into movement, lifting her bad foot into the air and doing a sort of pirouette in place without a pinch of pain from the appendage. She changes the handling on the weapon as she swoops low to the ground, blocking an imaginary enemy's weapon and swinging her leg out to kick that same enemy down. She steps to the side, flipping her body sideways and cutting downwards as she replants her feet.
The tip touches the ground and her eyes fly open, her heart racing. She grins as her tail wags. She straightens up and spins the sword in her hands, eyeing the weapon as pride lifts her spirits.
There's something so satisfying about knowing that she's doing well in ninjutsu. She never would have thought that the simple self-defence moves that she did for fun every now and then would be useful either, but they're obviously proving their worth in these many training sessions.
At the thought of training sessions, her mind travels to each of the things that she's leaned from the Hamato Clan.
From Michelangelo, she learned about agility, that being quick on your feet is just as important as your fighting. From Donatello, she learned that brains are just as important in a fight as brawn, and that having a plan is good so long as you're prepared for the unexpected. From Raphael, she learned that although physical muscle is definitely important when it comes to power, focusing certain parts of your body can add immense amounts of strength to an otherwise weak move. From Leonardo, she learned that you must never underestimate your opponent, and that believing in yourself and keeping a calm mindset will go far in a fight. From Master Splinter, she learned a lot about calm mentality and the importance of letting go of your troubles and fears, for they can weigh you down in more ways than one.
She now knows all these in theory, and so her determination to keep going and put those lessons into action is heightened. She wants to prove herself to the turtles, to Master Splinter. She wants them to see that she can be skilled too.
"I'm still perfectly capable of protecting myself," she mumbles under her breath.
She readies her wooden weapon, starting up again without a moment of hesitation.
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Leonardo stands at the edge of the dojo door, peeking in as Destiny trains. He smiles lightly whenever she executes the moves that she's learned, a side effect of seeing her proud smile. Whenever she messes up, she notices and corrects her footing or whatever else needs the nudge.
Leonardo is glad to see that she's pushing herself. If she keeps working like this, it won't be long before she's back up on the surface; prepared for anything.
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