It was heavily implied that you have thought that about at least some things I've done.
[Maybe.]
Right, the whole... god thing. [She shrugs, though.] I just picked names that seemed the most normal to me, since you mentioned you're from New York. But you didn't say no, you know.
No, trust me. I used to run these kind of drills with Annabeth when she was a kid, real easy stuff.
[He backs off just a bit to give them space.] Not to go all Tyler Durden on you, but I want you to hit me as hard as you can. I want to test the power of your punches.
[She moves forwards, then, and swings at his face; her form makes it clear she isn't used to doing this at all, and the force behind it is pretty average as well.]
Yeah, just like that! [But he's also twisting, switching and also using momentum to push her back a little.] What'll help is if you have a follow-up to your first hit.
Now you're getting it. If they're focused on blocking one hit, chances are they'll either struggle to block a second or they'll have to pick what to focus on. It gives you an advantage. Try again.
[He can sense it, but for the sake of learning he moves to block the punch and lets her catch his leg, shifting his balance and knocking him slightly off-course.] Perfect. You always want to make sure you're still on guard in case they recover a lot faster than you can plan. Keep yourself planted on the ground, don't let your balance shift.
Should you forget the whole keep yourself planted thing if they try to hit you back...?
[It might seem obvious, but it's not something she's familiar with. Still, somehow, there's a look of pride on her face when she hears him say 'perfect'.]
Only if you think it'll hurt you. Otherwise you want to stay in one spot so you don't lose traction or your footing. They'll try to knock you off-balance.
[A hand immediately comes up, blocking her with his wrist to throw her punch off-course.] See how the feet stay planted? It gives you time to follow up. [He swings with a second fist, slow enough that Zoe can stop it but fast enough she'll be able to figure out how to block.]
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[There's a beat, as she blinks.]
I didn't realize you had a brother. [...] Is it Luke?
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[He folds his arms over his chest though.] I had a couple. Half-brothers on my dad's side. What makes you say that?
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[Maybe.]
Right, the whole... god thing. [She shrugs, though.] I just picked names that seemed the most normal to me, since you mentioned you're from New York. But you didn't say no, you know.
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And anyway, didn't see a reason to say no. [So yes, hi.]
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[But she's apparently not too serious about that, because in the next moment she's offering a smile and holding out a hand.]
Well, then... Nice to meet you, Luke.
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Nice to meet you, too. And now that we've got that out of the way, we can probably get started.
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Cool. What are we doing first? You mentioned drills.
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[Hm.]
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[He backs off just a bit to give them space.] Not to go all Tyler Durden on you, but I want you to hit me as hard as you can. I want to test the power of your punches.
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[Come at him, Zoe.]
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[Advising. He's actually helping.]
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So... Hit them with something else while they try to block?
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[It might seem obvious, but it's not something she's familiar with. Still, somehow, there's a look of pride on her face when she hears him say 'perfect'.]
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Come at me again and I'll show you what I mean.
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