Acere set out after his morning patrol. After that tournament that it seemed everyone and their mother participated in, he had taken a break from fighting after his loss. On top of that, he'd been far more focused on planning for his pack that he had been neglecting any fight training as well, so today he marched onto the battlefield with cloak and daggers (tiger pelt armor and reavers) donned and his companions at his side. The two foxes were much older and bigger now, a little more experienced. Finn, especially. The Todd had nearly gotten flattened by his last opponent's spiked harness, and they needed to practice and learn how to fight defensively as well. The alabaster titan stopped in a muddy clearing, mud already coating his lower legs as he threw his head back and beckoned for a challenger. Crimson gaze peered through the eyes of the tiger and waited. "speech"

Goodness they were getting in a fair amount of fights lately, weren’t they?

Another call sounded for a challenger and Melanthios, who had practically been living at the battlefield at this point, decided to answer that one as well. They had actually run into, surprisingly enough, their cousin Gavroche as well.

It was strange seeing him again, but certainly not unwelcome. The small boy trailed beside her as she went to answer the call seeming rather excited. He said he knew the one who called which surprised them… Gavroche had never really been bold enough to interact in their homeland from what they remembered. Of course their grandmother had threatened anyone who interacted with him and his sister so…

Fiery gaze lit up as they saw their opponent. “Battle ready, are we?” The hummed thoughtfully as they approached. Gavroche raced ahead of them grinning from ear to ear as they cried out a greeting to the man and the foxes.

“Our cousin speaks highly of you, Acere.” Melanthios came to a stop and dipped their head. “We are Melanthios. We’ve not fought an opponent so readily armed since our grandmother. A good chance to learn, perhaps.” The red beast offered a good natured smirk.

“...and having an opponent matching our size will be a nice change as well. Tell us… are your companions able to help you fight as well? Or are they more of an aid in other ways, like Gavroche’s friend Houdini?”

""

Gavroche was excited. Seeing Melanthios again had been a highlight of his day… he hadn’t seen his cousin in, gosh, forever! She, or they as the red one preferred now, had last defended him from their grandmother when Keno had attempted to rip his wings from his body as a mere child. Melanthios stood up to a woman no one else dared to… and all for him. He admired them.

But hearing the call of the other wolf Gavroche perked. “Mela! That’s Acere! The one I’ve been telling you about!” He’d been talking to his cousin for the better part of the day, telling them of who he’d met since arriving in Boreas.

With pep in his step Gavroche walked along with Melanthios to where Acere and the foxes were waiting. Houdini rode on Gav’s head, watching the area around them as the winged boy worked doubletime to make sure he kept up with the larger wolf.

Once he saw Acere though he broke into a run, calling out to them. “Acere! Finn! Lumi!” Gavroche was grinning ear to ear, Houdini clinging to him as she eyed the two foxes.

“What in the HECK are you wearing?” Houdini squeaked, beady eyes fixed on Ace. “It’s to help him fight, ‘dini! Finn, Lumi, you are gonna help him, right?” Gav’s tail was wagging back and forth as he glanced at Mela, is green eyes bright.

“Melanthios is really strong you know. I think they’d be good to practice with!” He didn’t even care that he’d gotten covered in mud running up to the other. He could get cleaned up later.

The eagerness that radiated off his companions was almost palpable. They had been training hard, and it was time to see if that hard work would pay off. He glanced down at Lumi, wondering if she was strong enough yet to take on an opponent. Her brother was a little bigger than the more delicate looking vixen, but maybe she'd surprise him. “Battle ready, are we?” Crimson gaze rose abruptly at the sound of that unfamiliar voice to find a wolf equally as red as his eyes. At their side was a very familiar sight. Gavroche. Finn and Lumi bounced with joy at the sight of their friend, and the pair moved to greet the fox-sized wolf and his own little companion. "Hey Gav! It's nice to see ya!" The Todd's face lit up with a grin as they bounded around him. “Our cousin speaks highly of you, Acere.” Oh? "Is that so?" He was flattered that Gavroche spoke so highly of him, but he hadn't yet shown the young boy his skills to show whether he was worth boasting about. Even so, he dipped his head to the lad, "If anyone is worth talking about, it's young Gav. It's not every lifetime that someone as special as him comes along," He winked at the smaller male as he turned his attention back to his potential challenger. He noticed the wolfess seemed to refer to herself differently than normal. But he didn't question it and instead chalked it up to Melanthios preferring to refer herself that way. That was well and good. He could respect that. "My companions are starting to help me fight, yes. I've been training them and getting them ready for it. Now that they're older, I'm sure they'll put up a good fight." Sure they tried at the tournament, but they had been inexperienced and a whole season younger. Now though, he was confident that they were more prepared. "Sometimes we help him craft things, too! See those things on his feet? We helped with that!" Finn beamed and proudly puffed out his chest. "Yes, our daddy teaches us a lot of things," Lumi spoke up from beside Ace's legs. In all honesty, Ace was glad to have run into Gav again. His companions never really stopped talking about him whenever they had to part ways. He then caught the question from Gav's little companion and he couldn't help but chuckle. Before he could answer, Gav answered for him. And then Finn spoke up again, "Yeah! He uses that stuff to fight with! And we're gonna help him win, ya ready!?" He yipped. At this point, Ace felt content just sitting back and listening to their excitement. "I'd be honored to spar with Melanthios, I'm sure they would put up a good fight," Gaze rose to meet Mela's again as he grinned, "If you're okay with my companions joining in, I'm ready when you are." "speech"