You'll be a Hero Too

Daily Training

To start off with training we would meditate on the floor of the dojo. Mao Mao and I would sit in a criss-cross applesauce position, put our arms out in a certain way, put one of our fingers together with each of our thumbs, and say "Mao . . . Mao . . . . " for 10 minutes or more. I didn't really HAVE fingers, so I just put the tips of my wings on the bigger part of my wings. At first, I got annoyed because I had to say Mao over and over again for a full 10 minutes, but I got used to it. Meditating before actually training helps with staying focused and relaxed before going straight to the next big thing. Speaking of the next big thing, I'm learning a new move today! YIPPEE!

Now here comes the exciting part—learning a new fighting technique! I'm learning about headbutting your opponent! Mao Mao thinks it would be an ideal move for me to learn since my head's big and it's harder than normal heads. Don't worry he wasn't trying to be mean about it. I sat on the floor and put my wings in my lap. Mao Mao pulled out a dummy that was in the corner of the dojo. He demonstrated how to headbutt your enemy and talked me through it.

"One of the most important things to know is to make sure you tuck your chin in as you hit your enemy." Mao Mao tilted his head all the way down until the top of his head was facing the dummy. "That way you don't mess up your neck and your forehead." I nodded paying close attention to his actions. He lifted his head back up.

"To start, you gotta place your hands—uh I mean wings—behind your opponent's neck. ALWAYS make sure your wings are bent so you get more power out of the headbutt." Mao Mao positioned himself as he talked.

"Here comes the part where you actually hit the opponent," he continued. At this point, I was definitely intrigued at the max. I think he noticed my eyes sparkling with interest since he glanced at me and smiled warmly.

"Pull your enemy's face in as roughly and as quickly as you can. As you're doing that, headbutt him or her with the top of your head at full force." Mao Mao made sure he spoke slowly so that I paid close attention to what he was saying.

Mao Mao finally showed me what a headbutt looked like. He grabbed the back of the dummy's neck, made sure his arms were bent, and yanked the dummy's head in just as he quickly moved his head down and hit its face. The action was so fast I opened my mouth in amazement. It seemed like he saw the confusion on my face, so he repeated the action, but slower. I nodded quickly, beaming with enthusiasm. 

"You think you wanna try now?" Mao Mao asked.

"Yes please!" I chirped. He moved out of the way as I flew over to face the dummy's head. As the words and the movements of Mao Mao replayed in my head, I tried to imitate what he did. I made sure my wings were bent and BAM! I hit it with the very top of my head as fast as I could and did it with a lot of force. I landed on my feet, exhausted. I felt a bead of sweat forming on my face.  "Did I . . . do good Mao Mao?" I panted. Mao Mao knelt down on both knees and grinned at me. 

"You did very well Adorabat, especially for your first try. Just keep practicing and you're good to go." He rubbed my head and I giggled. Mao Mao must be THAT proud of me! Sure, he was super proud of me all those other times I got a move right, but this time felt strangely different. 

It's like he's squeezing the daylights out of me, except he isn't. It's like there's tears of joy running down his face, even though his fur is dry. 

My legendary hero . . . he loves me. 

I sniffled as I felt tears welling in my eyes. Mao Mao noticed this and got worried. "Are you okay Adorabat? What's wrong?"

"I'm fine Mao Mao," I sniffled. "I just . . . I'm just so lucky to have a hero like you. Your sword, I mean, katana is cool, your cape is cool, and you're just cool in general Mao Mao. You teach me new things everyday and I'm so grateful for that. I love you so much Mao Mao."

He picked me up and put my head against his. "And I'm lucky to have a little deputy like you Adorabat." He put me down and looked at me in the eyes. "To tell you the truth, you're one of the few people who showed me what love is. You expressed it in a way I never thought about and I can't thank you enough." Tears formed in the corners of his eyes and he blushed lightly. He wiped my tears away as he said softly, "I love you too Adorabat."

I smiled the widest smile I could manage. The tears came back and I cried joyfully. Mao Mao picked me up and pulled me into a bear hug. I'm glad he and Badgerclops crashed into the Ruby, I thought.

After we broke the hug and wiped our own tears, we continued our training. This is the part where we fight! I can't wait to kick Mao Mao's butt! "You remember the rules right?" Mao Mao interrupted my cloud of thoughts. 

"Mhm!" I responded.

"Good. Whoever gets hit 4 times first loses."

"Ok ok just let me beat you already!" I squealed. 

Mao Mao laughed and unsheathed his sword (I mean katana! Why do I keep saying sword?). He started a countdown. I saw Badgerclops approaching the dojo to watch us fight.

"3...2...1...."

The monster alarm rang from the inside of HQ. "Aww phooey!" I grumbled. I was just about to fight Mao Mao! 

"Sorry Adorabat, duty calls. TO THE AEROCYCLE!" Mao Mao announced as he ran inside HQ to go to the garage. Badgerclops followed him, leaving me disappointed. Well like he said, duty calls. I flew to the aerocycle with the others and prepared for some smoke bombing action!