with every broken bone

Chan felt his back paws connect with Nash's bulk, assisting in redirecting the younger wolf's momentum rather than digging or snapping. It was very much as close as he wanted to come to actually harming his brother. Having seen benignly-intentioned actions go wrong many times before, he couldn't shake a nagging voice in the back of his head: careful - you could've hit him just right in the temple or eye.

He scampered a few more strides forward before rounding back, anticipating that Nash would be after him. He wasn't, and at the end of his arc he came bolting back for the strike that his sibling clearly was waiting for. Chan lunged head-on, aiming to wrap his forelimbs around Nash's thickly-furred neck and grapple with him.

(This post was last modified: Jan 12, 2022, 02:55 AM by Chan.)

Chan moved away from him before turning around, and Nash wondered if he should have pursued while his brother's back was turned. He didn't have long to dwell on this, however, as the older Eastfall was soon charging at him and embracing him in a grapple. Nash met him, one paw pressing on Chan's shoulder to grapple him back. He twisted, playfully growling trying to reach around to grab his brother's scruff in his jaws. He was being gentle, of course; this was a play-fight, after all. He didn't want to inadvertently hurt Chan while trying to break his hold.

Nash accepted the challenge rather than dodged it, putting out a limb to manage the proximity between them. Chan needed another moment to think of a next, not really used to progressing scuffles. Thankfully, his brother made moves, and an opportunity was spotted.

The younger Eastfall's jaws clamped down on the edge of his scruff, to the left of Chan's head. He used the slight slack of his skin to duck his head down, under Nash's and toward that same tooth-tethered side while his own left forelimb pushed against its opponents shoulders in an attempt to force the other wolf right. His siblings throat was ignored, just as it would have been in any other situation. Instead, the tawny wolf lifted his head to apply pressure where neck became jaw.

In a real life scenario, where an attacker meant to maim or kill, Chan's intentions would be to block until escape was possible. He would have put his shoulders into the move, and completed the entire maneuver with abruptness and force, putting everything he had into knocking the wind from the aggressing wolf one way or another. The twist created more pressure on the other's grip, and furthered their point of contact from their body. The strain and pressure therefore went on the chest, throat and jaw, along with the tender joinings of these body parts. Most wolves would be forced to release, one way or another: whether it be by choice or their teeth cutting through and effectively tearing free.

For Chan, he'd rather a wound to his scruff along with a chance to disengage than inflicting the same or worse on another wolf. Nash, however, had an advantage: if he had enough strength to put into that one limb held between them, it was possible he could stop his brother from completing his strategy.

(This post was last modified: Jan 20, 2022, 04:38 AM by Chan.)

Nash was expecting his brother to try to use his superior height to muscle him down, hence why he'd stood up to greet the grapple, but instead Chan seemed to roll with the turn of events. Instead of trying to wiggle away from the darker man's teeth, Chan pushed his head up. For a moment Nash was confused; was Chan not sure where they stood?

Then the pressure on his jaw and throat registered and with a gasp of surprise Nash released his brother and scrambled back, shaking himself and opening and closing his jaw. "How did you do that?" he asked, bewildered. It was true that Nash hadn't really been in a fight with another wolf before, but that was a move he wouldn't have even expected, let alone seen before.

Chan let go as soon as his brother did, forpaws meeting the ground once more. He couldn't help but laugh, briefly and good-naturedly, at his brothers surprise.

"Here, I'll show you," he offered, stepping near enough for Nash to do as asked.

"Grab hold of my scruff again. You only gotta do the ducking under if they get'ya from the side, 'cause otherwise if you're head on and someone manages to get the dead middle of your neck, you just gotta drive yourself straight ahead until they lose their footing or let go."

When his brother had him again, Chan would do the same maneuver but slowed down, explaining each step and the purpose of it, along with the risks of flesh wounds. This time, when the other Eastfall would need to let go, Chan dodged backward - not quickly, but emphatically.

"- and remember, you're disengaging. Wanna try it?"

Nash was thrilled when his brother offered to teach him, quickly and obediently stepping forward to grab his older brother again. He grunted an affirmative when Chan explained what to do when an opponent came at him from the middle, and then focused on the moves being made while Chan explained each step.

He let the pressure build up a little before releasing and stepping back even as his brother dodged away and firmly reminded him this was a move to disengage, not harm. Nash nodded. "So the idea is to put pressure on the throat and jaw to force them to let go, got it," he said. "I'm ready when you are."

He would wait for his brother to grab him in the grapple and then slowly and deliberately repeat the move, carefully positioning his head before pressing up into the underside of Chan's jaw until the other man released him. He would then quickly step back. "Like that?"

His brother caught on quick, and made sure to follow through with the entire maneuver, including pulling away. Chan couldn't help but beam with pride at the younger wolf, finding himself oddly touched by how attentive and intelligent he had grown to be. There wasn't much credit his family could take, either. While they'd been present nearly his first year, his formative years had been spent alone. Nash had molded himself.

"Well done," he approved with a nod, before bowing down in invitation.

"Think y'can handle more?" he asked with a note of teasing. They'd only been at it for a few minutes - he doubted his sibling was tired already.

Nash preened at the praise, pleased to have gotten it right. "It's a cool move," he said, wondering if Chan had invented it himself or learned it from another wolf. He didn't get time to ask, however, because Chan was dipping down again and taunting him. Nash mirrored his brother with a grin. "Can you?" he fired back before launching his next attack.

FADE