Gender Equality

A week had passed by quickly, and Leon trained with both Gwilym and Serena daily. He's shown improvement, but still lacks a lot of technical prowess. His strength on the other hand might be unmatched amongst humans.

One blaring issue showed itself however, Leon couldn't lay hands on a woman. During their blade sparing, Serena would throw in some punches and kicks to give Leon more to react to. Though he'd block them, he'd hesitate consistently to retaliate back.

On this current day, Leon is in for a highly unexpected surprise.

Leon went into the sparring room at 5am sharp, but to his surprise Serena hadn't shown up yet. Over half an hour went by and she still hadn't arrived, Leon was actually worried at this point wondering what could've held her up.

"I don't know her to be late to anything. I've even heard staff and other people around here say that she's never been late to anything since she became the Queen. Hopefully she's not sick or something like that...she was fine last night."

His thoughts could finally cool soon after as she arrived with a sly smile, but humbly bowed as she walked before Leon.

"I apologize for my tardiness this morning Leon, I had a change of plans last minute."

"It's no issue Serena, I'm just glad that you're okay, you had me a bit worried for a moment."

He smiled nervously as she stood back to a vertical base.

"Now tell me, why the last minute change?"

"I brought a friend to help you with a serious problem of yours."

Serena beckoned someone in, and lo and behold it was Courtney of all people. Leon took a step back in shock. "Uhhh...ok someone needs to do some explaining! I have been trying desperately to keep Courtney off my mind as well as out of sight, just to have this happen?!"

Courtney laughed at his shocked reaction and hugged the shorter Serena. "This girl right here is my little sis, and my best friend as well!"

Serena smiled as she hugged Courtney back but was more hesitant than the much more touchy and abrasive vampire.

"Yes...Courtney is my big sister. She came across my village when I was still only seven years old at the time. My mother allowed her to hide out from the Vampires, and she kind of became my role model. But as you've found out, I'm much more of an adult than she is."

Courtney stared at Serena then Leon, obviously flustered by the Queen's words. "Heyyyyy! Little sis you're not supposed to be so mean like that…."

Leon held back his own amusement before he spoke with a similar sharp voice like Serena.

"Yeah, it's not even a close competition of who the adult is between the two of you. Heh, Courtney is quite a kid in comparison."

Courtney hung her head down. "So mean…"

A light bulb went off in Leon's head as he picked up what happened on his second day on Zeleon.

"So...wait. You two knew each other this whole time, and Courtney intercepted me when I was in danger….so that was all planned to convince me?"

"More like calculated at high accuracy. My foresight gives me multiple scenarios, taking the best course of action is based on said scenarios. It's certainly not full proof or an exact science, but it creates opportunity."

"Is that how I was chosen by her? I wonder?"

"So to answer your question, yes, I did in fact send Courtney after you. I didn't tell her anything other than what you look like, so the meeting looked more natural."

Courtney walked to Leon and gently placed her hand over his black hair.

"Yeah, she didn't give me much to go on. I didn't even know if I'd like you all that much. But to my surprise, you leave a very strong impression; and a good one at that."

Leon sighs at the praise he got from her, as he felt like his actions were just a bunch of numbers in Serena's mind.

"So, why'd you bring Courtney here today?"

Serena showed a soft smile before speaking.

"You're going to learn to be comfortable with hitting a woman."

"Huh?"

"You are so scared of retaliating against me that it's become more problematic than I initially expected."

"As a guy….isn't that a good thing that I feel bad about thinking of doing that?"

"Yes. But Leon, I've been around a while, and when guys hesitate when fighting a woman, they get slaughtered. You have to accept that reality. But thankfully you have big, strong me. Serena taking a shot is actually problematic and you probably had a similar thought process."

Serena seated herself in a chair off to the side, being unresponsive to Courtney's words. The vampire put distance between herself and Leon as she took in a deep breath.

"Hit her, Leon. Don't hold back either, your strength is your best asset at this time."

"I...really don't like this you guys."

"Come oooooon, channel all that annoyance and focus it into a powerful strike. I can handle it."

Leon was visibly nervous, his body shook as he clenched his right fist. He raced at Courtney forcibly, despite his body's rejection of his movements.

He closed his eyes as he attempted to strike her; the next moment he found himself keeled over on the ground, the vampire struck with her knee precisely into his gut, causing him to cough some. Thankfully, he hadn't eaten yet today.

"Agggghhh! What the fuck was that for?!"

"Do you always close your eyes when you fight? I would assume not. I'll punish you with every half hearted attempt you try. So I suggest you man up, unless you want to spend precious days in the hospital."

Leon got up slowly as he shook off the strike, trying again with a right handed haymaker but averted his gaze from her face. Courtney easily caught his hand, returning with a smooth leg sweep that put Leon flat on his back.

"Owww…"

"Leon, I'm not joking. I am being nice right now, I can hit you a lot harder. Hit me with everything, don't look away. Come on, ever since you told me you hate me you've been pushing the distance more and more. Let it all out. Get angry. Get annoyed. Show me the strength that you've shown on Earth."

Leon got up faster than the time before as he swung at Courtney with his right hand again. He connected as he caused the vampire to stagger back a few steps. Afterwards, she looked at him with a bloodied smile. Leon went from sharply focused to full panic mode in a matter of seconds.

"Jesus, are you okay?! I didn't mean to break a tooth!"

Courtney bursted out in laughter.

"I'm fine! I just bit my tongue because you caught me off guard with how hard you hit me. I'll heal up in no time, it's my fault for underestimating you."

Leon sighed. "Thank goodness…."

"Leon. I think Zeleon has made you more powerful. Likely our highly oxygenated atmosphere? We'll need to run tests at some point."

Serena stood up after she spoke and headed for the door.

"Play nice you two."

Serena left the room, leaving Leon and Courtney alone.

"You feel okay with continuing, Leon?"

"Yeah, I think."

"Alrighty! I'll show you some stuff that you can catch Gwilym off guard with. But, I have one question. Why have you pushed me away?"

Leon looked down nervously as he answered her in a mutter.

"I...I'm a shitty friend. Simple as that."

"Heh. You are hmm? Well, I guess you have the capability based on your actions towards me. But at the end of the day, you're a dumb 16 year old that doesn't necessarily know how to handle certain situations. You'll do dumb things on impulse. On the other hand, at your core, I believe you're a good person."

Leon looked away from her, as if he wasn't worthy of her kind words.

"Why do you continue to have faith in me?"

"Why do you ask so many questions like this? Accept my words in good faith. If my actions don't back my words, then you can do as you see fit."

"That's fair I guess…."

Courtney nudged his shoulder to uplift him a bit.

"Let's improve this day shall we? I'll show you some effective moves that even a beginner can do."

Courtney tutored Leon for most of the morning, with a surprising amount of success. Leon's movements became more fluid with less wasted, jerky motion. He became more desensitized to fighting a woman as well, though he vowed to not be as aggressive until he absolutely had to be. As the hours passed by, the connection between the two was apparent, as much as Leon didn't want to admit it. This feeling is likely where his fear derived from, as the closer they become; the likelihood increases that one may hurt the other deeply.

After they finally wrapped up and exited the room, a very hostile encounter was about to ensue with Katrina standing right outside the door. Leon was in full panic as he stepped between them knowing there'd be tension.

"Fuck! No, no, no, no! Why?! I'm not going to be able to keep these two at bay!"

"Leon. Why is there a bloodsucker behind you in the royal castle? I swear, you better be some two bit messenger who got herself lost."

Courtney grinned like a villain after hearing the Princess' words.

"Oh? You must not know who I am, little girl. I'm the vampire who strayed away from the group. In fact, I was the former second in command. So I'd watch yourself."

Katrina pushed Leon off to the side with her telekinesis, looking up at Courtney to make eye contact. As she spoke, her cynical tone couldn't hide itself, making the situation worse.

"Good on you! Why don't you go back to the rest of the pathetic blood loving killers and stop staining this place with your awful scent. Why are you with Leon anyways? Are you planning to turn him once he's Guardian? Use him as a personal blood bank? Please, humor me here."

Leon shook as he saw Courtney try to not fang out from Katrina provoking her repeatedly. He steeled his nerves and forcibly pushed himself between the two of them.

"You two need to cool it. This isn't the time or the place for petty arguing. Katrina, you should know better than to piss off a vampire. At the end of the day, you're still human, no matter if you have telekinetic powers or not. Courtney is helping me learn how to fight, as per the Queen's request. If you have an issue with that, take it to her."

The ladies were surprised by Leon's composure in his words. Courtney, who was behind Leon, hugged against his back, wrapping her arms around his waist; giving a sly smile to Katrina.

"Thank you, Leon. I might've done something I would regret if not for you. I shouldn't get frustrated, she's just upset that she has to struggle to look over my larger chest."

"You two make my stomach flip. But that's perfectly okay. You both deserve each other. I'm disappointed in mother and you Leon, associating yourselves with a bloodsucker is so low."

Katrina started to walk away before having a sudden idea come into her mind.

"Actually, I have a suggestion. Later today, why don't you and I go out back to our outdoor training area bloodsucker. Simple rules, whoever gets knocked off their feet or successfully points a blade at the other's throat wins. Let's see if you're even worth anything anymore."

Courtney patted Leon's shoulder, as if asking for his okay on the matter. He thought about the potential consequences, but didn't deem it to be too problematic. He gave her a nod.

"I'll do it. Just don't cry if you get hurt, little girl."

Katrina walked away with a smug look on her face as Serena revealed herself shortly after. Leon gave her a look of disdain.

"How long were you listening in, leaving me, an unpowered human, with a vampire and a telekinetic?"

"Long enough to know what's happening. But you handled yourself very well Leon, you didn't need my help."

"IT WOULD'VE BEEN APPRECIATED!"

"In any case, Courtney you should really-"

"Your daughter doesn't scare me. I'll handle myself just fine. She doesn't know how long I've waited for an actual fight."

Courtney clung to Leon still as she spoke, as Serena left to get preparations going to get the back area set up.