Jessica
"It's the opposite of instinct to face danger. Typically, we want to be far away as possible. But not warriors. Whether its with swords, hands, or staves, we *Are* The danger. We look our enemy in the eye. You just need to train that instinct out. Again!"

*Diao brings her staff back again, performing another diagonal strike, but pulling it at the last second and stabbing at Juna's body instead. Using the momentum of the strike, the artificer once again whirls her weapon around for another strike near the head.*
Elizabeth
*The Canifor couldn't bring herself to feel much like a warrior out here, much less a real danger when having to face this armless woman with surprising ability. Juna raised her staff again to be able to brace against Diao's strike soon finding herself being faked out. Though instead of moving her staff back into time, she merely found herself trying to shift her body out of the way of it only for her to switch up once more and send an aim towards her head.

Juna found herself ducking down, using her already raised staff to try to block again, forcing herself not to close her eyes as they threatened to with a narrow of her eyes. She didn't feel like she was using the staff as she would have liked, using only her lithe movements to get out of the way of her constant swings at her. Something about this felt more familiar to her. As if something similar had happened to her despite only ever having a bow in hand.*
Jessica
*Diao raises an eyebrow at Juna's tactics, seemingly impressed. The Canifor was better than she thought; it was the attitude that was lacking. Already she was focused on facing the danger before her... If Diao could even still be called a danger.*

"Not bad! You can't block every attack; it's nearly impossible. Dodging is a viable option in many scenarios. But so is fighting back!"

*A slower swing comes down vertically from Diao. It seems like she was giving Juna the chance to react appropriately.*
Elizabeth
*Part of Juna felt like it was the other way around with blocking being an option while dodging seemed to be the only thing that really allowed her to work without thinking. It was the one skill set she already had learned from being an archer, evading and retreating back. Except retreating wasn't an option now. 

Seeing the swing coming down towards her more slowly this time, Juna found herself finally able to make proper use out of blocking as she'd raise the staff to meet it, soon slowly backing away right after as if she felt hesitant in actually swinging the staff back at Diao. She lowered the staff back down, holding it diagonally once more, waiting for another attack. Avoiding was one thing, fighting back was another.*
Jessica
*It seems like she couldn't expect everything. She was hoping Juna would counterattack after blocking, leaving out prime opportunities for her to strike back. Alas, that was not the case.*

"In fighting, Juna, your goal is to hurt your opponent. To stop them from hurting you and hurt them back. Always. Strike. Back!"

*With every word comes another strike, battering at Juna's guard with flowing diagonal strikes, alternating from left to right. The pace of the strikes becomes faster and faster, hopefully to get Juna to respond.*
Elizabeth
"But. I don't want. To hurt you."*She'd say between blocks, having to quickly alternate between using the staff to protect her and dodging when she couldn't move fast enough. Each strike seemed to push her back more and more. Her environment closing in on her with her drawing dangerously closer to the trees and having to avoid them with every step without looking back. None of them seemed to get Juna to push back. Evading and retreating, her archery tactic showing even now as even she wasn't sure how she could bring herself to swing back without feeling the lining of a bow and feathered arrow between her fingers, this would take complete force, one she never really had to muster in a fight.*
Jessica
*Didn't want to hurt her? Was that because of her own passive nature? Or because she wasn't a threat? This awakened a call in Diao she didn't have before; the anger of a rushing river.*

*Diao slams the end of her staff in the ground, and a mechanical armor suddenly covers her, her face concealed with a mask and her voice distorted. The weapon transforms into a fearsome Dadao; a heavy two handed sword.*

"Fight back!"

*The shorter yet heavier weapon resulted in powerful blows that were quickly followed up with one another. It almost seemed that this time, Diao was seeking to hurt Juna with the secretly blunted weapon. A diagonal was quickly followed with an upward blow, which used the momentum for a downward cut, flowing into another diagonal, and so on.*

"If you can't beat back a threat you might as well be dancing with it!"
Elizabeth
*Juna's eyes would widen, watching the staff transform into sword as a quiet yelp would rise in her throat. She backed away from the sword, forgetting her staff altogether as her back would find itself met with another tree.*"Diao- what are you doing??"*She'd question quickly darting completely away from it this time.*

"Diao-!"*How could a simple spar turn so quickly? Was it something she said? There was a feeling of doubt coursing through her. How was a staff meant to match against a sword like that? She backed away further. If this was gonna turn into a dance, then Juna must be the master of it because now she couldn't bring herself to even get close to the raging woman.*
Jessica
"I'm teaching you a lesson! If you don't defend your opponent can press the attack without worry! Make them think twice before attacking!"

*Diao increases her pace, knocking the lighter staff aside again and again before lightly whacking one of Juna's arms, enough to hurt a bit but not enough to truly injure her.*

"That's an arm off!"
Elizabeth
*Juna winced as the sword hit her arm, her grip with said hand loosening away at the staff. Maybe she should have thought better of asking a random person she met to help teach her how to use a staff, each swing at her, causing her to grow more and more tired from all the evading.

Her arm grew sore and with a lack of much breath, she came to an eventually stop, heaving tiredly as she simply held the staff in front of her as her only protection she had left. It felt so impossible to her, how could people easily do this day to day? She could hardly keep up with her own agility. Some lesson she was learning now. Her ears lowered at the thought, she would have already been one arm short without anything done to the enemy. How was she supposed to do this? She said she could do it, but now she was proving her own self wrong.*
Jessica
*Diao lifts the visor to her newly created set of armor, sighing.*

"Juna, you won't get anything done by only defending. Eventually your opponent *Will* Land a hit. It's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when, and how badly. You don't need to become a master, just proficient so that not everyone can just steamroll you with a knife and malicious intent."

"Let's try again. The staff's main advantage is its reach and power. When I try and attack with this sword, you take the end of the staff and stab it at me, wherever you wish. We'll go slow."

*Diao walks forward, brandishing the sword.*
Elizabeth
*Juna lowered her head defeatedly as Diao spoke to her, almost as if she were being scolded.*"I know... I-"*She's been saying those words a lot lately, though every time they escaped her, it only made them sound more empty. Maybe she just doesn't know. If she knew surely she would have hit back by now. At least Diao was willing to give her another chance, but by now the Canifor's heart was racing so much that she found herself having to lean against her staff for a short bit.

It was small moment of being traumatized in the midst of feeling being unsure of the woman's sanity, but maybe it was time she took her advice before she really got hurt from it. No, before someone she cared about got hurt because of it. She wasn't learning this just for herself and she had to remember that for the sake of those she cared about. Juna would hold her staff across her torso once again. Her eyes focusing on the sword before shifting to Diao. Her breathing slowed, body going lax for a moment in a sense of calm.*"I'm ready now..."*She'd murmur.*