The smell of sweat, dirt and dust was the best way Titania could describe Beacons training and sparring grounds. They were a set of six fields, each a simple expanse of dry dirt, with simple markings on the ground indicating starting positions and the halfway point. She was sure the field would be nothing but a litter of craters in the ground by now if not for the help of Kirkka. She wasn't a fan of the fields herself, much preferring the clean, sleek, indoor arena where she taught her combat classes, but she saw the draw of them. They made it all feel more real.
The feeling of the shifting dirt beneath boots and the taste of kicked up dust in the air brought all of a hunter's senses to the foreground, grounding them in reality and forcing them to pay attention. In truth, she did miss the days when she went out on missions, the days when she could experience that adrenaline rush freely, but she was older now, too old to be going out on hunting missions. Her place was as a guide for the next generation.
She shifted her head slightly to look at Malina, who stood several feet away and who had coiled their tail into something of chair, using it and the simple wooden staff she was holding to lean against. A small smile tugged at Titania's lips as she thought back to her own trainings with the girl and how content she was with how she was turning out.
Not everyone felt the same, of course. After her recent stunt trying to teach children about aura mastery, the infirmary had two cases of severe migraines and one case of a student nearly going comatose. The council, of course, tried to have her removed. Some of the other teachers agreed. If not for Titania's close relationship with Alban, she was sure Malina would have been fired and possibly charged but she thankfully avoided that.
Now she needed to take time off of her own schedule to help show that Malina was capable of properly handling and teaching students, even if she wasn't fond of them. It was frustrating, yes, but Titania had been known to pull several all nighters to complete a project back in her Beacon days, this wasn't so different.
To that end, they were here. All Malina knew was that it was going to be a training exercise. All she was waiting for was her opponent to arrive.