Sepia felt it an instant before Datura moved. As the other student bumped into the already-rattled woman, knocking her into Soot's shoulder, a sudden shockwave of panic radiated off of her and slammed into Sepia's senses. Staggering backwards in brief surprise, the faunus could only observe with fright as her mother, eyes wide and blank, turned and swung full force for the young man who'd accidentally startled her.
An arena. A crowd. A nervous movement from one of the other three in with her was all it took to have her sprinting forward. She wasn't going down, even against her team. Sepia shook the incoming images from her thoughts just in time to see Soot dart in front of his wife. Apparently, the swift man hadn't needed a mind-oriented semblance to predict what was about to happen. Raising one hand while wrapping the other arm around Datura's waist, her fist met his palm with loud
thwack. After a tense moment, she lowered her head against his chest and relaxed, drawing in deep breaths with an obviously practiced discipline. Looking over his shoulder at Trad, Soot smiled good-naturedly and explained: "Don't get me wrong, you could probably have handled her easily." His eyes flicked over the huntsman approvingly. "I just know she'll feel bad later if she catches someone in the face."
After her father finished, Sepia stepped forward sheepishly.
"I...don't think I've met you before? This probably wasn't the best first impression." As she spoke, she addressed both her peer and his parents.