Leon and Riya: How to Raise a Gnoll

Chapter 5

It was approaching one month since Zhahz and her daughters had arrived. Sessa had been showing much better improvement after switching her off of the spear, Vuth seemed to have stopped goading everyone but still wasn't listening to what he had tried to tell her. Leon was currently talking to Riya in their room.

Leon: I just don't know what to do with Vuth, she won't listen to anything I tell her!

Riya: Maybe if she sees that your training works she might start to listen.

Leon: I would have thought Rose being able to beat would have shown that, considering I have been training her for the past five years.

Riya was quiet for a moment.

Riya: Maybe it needs to be her own sister for it to really sink in.

Leon: Sessa has been showing much better improvement ever since I changed her off of the spear.

Riya: Then maybe next time have them spar and see what happens, maybe it will finally click for Vuth that listening will actually get her somewhere.

Leon: Maybe...

He then reached up to pat the side of her face.

Leon: Thanks. Love you.

Riya put her arms around him and pulled him into bed.

Riya: Love you too. Now get some sleep.

The next day at the training grounds Leon had just got through with having them do some standard exercises.

Leon: Okay, I want you to spar with your sister Sessa.

Sessa: Huh?

Vuth: Is this some kind of joke, she couldn't beat me if she tried.

Sessa had an indignant look come over her face.

Sessa: What's that supposed to mean?

Vuth: That you can't do anything.

Leon was about to say something when Sessa did so first.

Sessa: Oh yeah? At least I wasn't the one that made a fool of myself by saying the instructor didn't know what he was doing before getting beaten by him!

Vuth had a shocked look on her face, as if her sister had never said anything like that before. The look went from shocked to angry.

Vuth: That was a mistake.

With that Vuth grabbed what was closest to her, a training greatsword. Sessa readied her gnoll-sized training rapier, it was about 50 percent larger than normal.

Sessa: I'm so tired of how you always keep acting and so is Mom! Why can't you just do as you're asked!

Vuth: Like hell I am going to do anything a male tells me to do!

Sessa looked a little sad at hearing that.

Sessa: Vuth, He's just trying to do his job. The job our matriarch asked him to do. All you have done is make it impossible for him! He really does know what he's doing!

Vuth: Like hell he does!

With that Vuth lunged forward with an overhead swing that Sessa deftly jumped to the side to avoid. She responded with a thrust from her rapier aimed at the spot between Vuth's neck and shoulder, eliciting a hiss of pain before Vuth made a sweeping strike in response. Sessa dodged backwards to avoid it.

Leon watched as Sessa continued to avoid another swing from Vuth before responding with another swift thrust, this time aimed at the inside of her left elbow. This made Vuth nearly drop her weapon.

Sessa: Could you just stop trying to make everything difficult for once!

Vuth leapt at Sessa again with a horizontal swing. Using the guard of her rapier Sessa deflected Vuth's blade down towards the ground, causing the large blade to gouge the ground. Before Vuth could lift her blade back up Sessa struck both of her elbows, forcing her to let go of her greatsword. Before Vuth could do more than growl, Sessa had struck both of her feet, forcing her to her knees. Sessa then punched Vuth in the snout with the guard of her rapier, knocking Vuth on her back, dazed.

Sessa: Are you about done?

Vuth: What? But I—

Sessa: You what? Thought that I couldn't beat you?

Vuth didn't know what to say, she had never lost to her sister before. In fact it was never even close before, she always won hands down.

Vuth: I...

Sessa: I don't want to hear it! There were multiple times they could have forced us to leave because of you! You could have ruined everything for both Mom and I. I actually like learning from him, he's actually patient and doesn't try to rush it because he's getting annoyed or anything.

Tears were now streaming down Sessa's face.

Sessa: But you almost cost me that! You almost cost me the only teacher that actually seems to want to teach me rather than just doing a job! And on top of that you almost cost Mom everything when you almost mauled him. He's the leader of Stoneholde's mate, how do you think that would have gone? How would our Matriarch have reacted to that happening to him?

Vuth started to tear up. She didn't know how she was supposed to feel. She had lost to Rose, and now she had lost to her little sister. And she was being berated by the person she had never seen stand up to anyone for any reason.

Sessa: The reason I won was because I actually listen when he is teaching us. Maybe you should try doing so yourself.

Sessa looked at Leon and he gave her the go-ahead to leave for her room. After a few minutes Vuth finally got up, she was sluggish and a little off balance. It was like she wasn't all there. Valka who had seen the whole thing had walked over.

Valka: I'll take her back to her room.

Leon gave a nod and went to leave.

Rose: That was...

Leon: That had been building for a long time. I have a feeling that Vuth doesn't treat her sister very fairly and now that Sessa was actually better than her at something  she felt she could finally tell her how she felt.

Leon touched the side of Rose's face.

Leon: I'm just glad you didn't end up like Vuth, that your mother and I raised you to be a decent person.

Rose pressed her face into his hand.

Rose: Me too. Dad?

Leon: Yeah?

Rose: Can I pick you up and hug you the rest of the way back to the room?

Leon almost instinctively said no but stopped himself. As much as being carried around annoyed him he enjoyed the fact that it showed how much she cared for him. He sighed.

Leon: Yeah, go ahead.

Rose: Thank you!

As she said this she picked him up and started to hug him as she began to slowly walk back to the room.