These days Ophie spent a lot of time with Kaija and regardless of what they did it never felt like a moment was wasted. There were no expectations to live up to the Fatalis name or to constantly push herself to her limits so she got back into fighting form. They were just...happy together, you know? Comfortable like a home away from home. Ophie plodded along, her tail swishing behind her as she finally found a long stretch of flat terrain nestled between the hills of the Gulley. It was silly and probably very childish but they'd found a weird looking mushroom earlier and neither of them could decide who ought to eat it. So rather than falling back on a spar to work out the victor, as wolves tended to do, Ophie had gotten all fixated on the idea of a race.

Obviously her figure spoke volumes, she wasn't very fast on her paws. But now that Hanako seemed to be back home more often than not, it wasn't uncommon to see the Diplomat galloping up and down the Armada's beaches, making it look effortless as she rushed along, barely disturbing the sand in her wake. Ophie was never gonna be that graceful, nor did she really want to be, but it looked like fun. And who else to have a good time with then her best friend?

Ophie stepped forward and slapped at the ground for emphasis, before dragging her paw along horizontally to draw the starting line. This was a very serious affair with no efforts spared. Waiting for Kaija to fall in line beside her, Ophie cleared her throat, all business despite the blooming smile across her features.

"You see that hill there? The one with the bumpy ridge. Whoever passes it first is the victor. And whoever loses must eat that stinky mushroom we found earlier. Agreed?" She waited for the girl's acknowledgment before she gestured for her robin to come over and act as their starter. "Run at his third tweet."

One tweet. Two tweets. THREE!

And they were off! Ophie kicked off into a run, her claws jabbing out as she scrambled to get purchase. The finishing line wasn't too far ahead so she didn't think she'd get too knackered fast, but unless she really gave it her all she wasn't going to win, was she? She did not want to eat that mushroom if she could help it and the thought of Kaija chowing it down really tickled her, like a wolf forced to eat grass or something equally unappealing.

Her paws thundered across the winter dried grass as her sides heaved and heart raced. She didn't even think to look to her side to see where Kaija was at, her eyes were on the prize and as long as she kept up this limb aching pace she'd get there soon. Hopefully!

Ophelia vs Kaija  for Race
Round 1/2
Age: over 1
Size: Medium
Build: Obese
Skills: Advanced Hunter & Expert Fighter

Kaija wouldn't stay in Valhalla forever. She knew that now, it was a truth she wouldn't hide from herself. Leaving her mom and siblings, if they decided not to come with her, sounded scary but she knew she could come visit them anytime - Kaija was using that to comfort herself as she worked through the plan in her head. She wasn't sure yet when she'd leave for good, she just knew she was going to, and with that realization came a strange sense of relief. She'd be able to go anywhere she wanted without worrying about coming home if she didn't feel like it. She'd be able to see the whole world! And honestly, she was going out exploring a lot more now that she'd decided that - and seeing Ophie more often too.

She felt comfortable around her, like she could do and say whatever she wanted without fear of judgment. It was refreshing, and oftentimes at the end of their visits she had trouble saying goodbye and going back home. Maybe someday she wouldn't have to - though Ophie had a pack of her own to go back to anyway. It was a nice thought, imagining the two of them going on an adventure together, but she knew given Ophie's life it probably wasn't a realistic one. It was a nice thought, but it wouldn't stop Kaija from taking advantage of their time together to the best of her ability.

Today that entailed exploring the gulley and debating on who was going to eat one particularly odd looking mushroom. Surely it wasn't poisonous - it smelled fine, which was enough for her - and she thought if either of them ate a little bite that the worst that could happen was someone getting sick. Kaija wasn't the most foresighted wolf and she had trouble imagining anything really bad happening, so she was adamant that Ophie should try it first. She loved to eat, after all, so why not? Apparently she couldn't quite convince her friend of that, and so here they were, settling the argument in a totally normal way - with a race.

She had no idea who would win, but she'd give it her all anyway. "Fine," she acquiesced as Ophie drew the starting line and pointed out where they were racing to. Kaija zeroed in on it, springing forward the moment she saw Ophie moving out of the corner of her eye. She felt her heart beginning to pound in her chest as she headed across the field toward the hill ahead of them. Sure, it wasn't a huge distance but she was used to walking for long periods, not running like this - the ache in her legs began almost instantly but she plowed on, scrambling fast and hard over dried grass and twigs as she started up the base of the little hill.

Kaija vs Ophelia for Race
Round 1/2
Age: Over 1 Year
Size: Extra large
Build: Heavy
Skills: Advanced Navigator & Novice Fighter

Okay. Maybe this had been a bad idea. Running was fun and all in theory, but now Ophie had really gotten into the meat of it, she felt like puking her lungs out. Everything about her felt heavy and overused, achy in a way that made her want to keel over and die. Or at least fall asleep for a very long time, till spring came back around made everything soft and plush again. But since this had been her idea, she had to follow it through to the end. Even if it meant Kaija had to drag her home she would finish this race, darn it!

She powered on, grunting and snorting, like a pig rolling in muck. The end was tantalisingly close, inching closer and closer with each thudding of her paws. Just a little more and then a little more after that, she clung onto whatever form of bribery she could think of. Yes, this was the last time she'd run ever ever if she made it over the finishing line. Whenever she got home she could scoff her face full of whatever she fancied, she just had to make it to the end. To make this torture worthwhile!



Ophelia vs Kaija  for Race
Round 2/2
Age: over 1
Size: Medium
Build: Obese
Skills: Advanced Hunter & Expert Fighter

Already feeling the ache in her legs, she wondered if this race would be worth it - if it kept her from eating up a gross mushroom and possibly getting sick, then maybe it wasn't such a bad thing to exert herself for a moment. She was pretty sure she was faster than Ophie at least, but that didn't mean her friend wouldn't find a way to surprise her and take the lead. She knew her friend had potential, even if her family didn't seem to think so, even if she was on the heavier end of the spectrum; it wasn't like Kaija wasn't a big girl herself. Surely another wolf would beat them both but that didn't matter, they were the only two racing right now.

By the time she neared the top of the hill, Kaija's chest was heaving painfully and she let out a dry cough. She wasn't use to pushing herself quite so hard, not super competitive by nature - mostly because she just didn't care - except for when it came to those close to her. When it came to her friends Kaija would take up any challenge, even if she might not win. Only a stride away from the top of the hill she swung her head around and tried to look for Ophie, wondering how close she was.

Kaija vs Ophelia for Race
Round 2/2
Age: Over 1 Year
Size: Extra large
Build: Heavy
Skills: Advanced Navigator & Novice Fighter

And the winner is...

KAIJA

OPHELIA lost! Better luck next time! Totals: KAIJA Speed Roll: 100 Stamina Roll: 63 Balance Roll: 9 Total: 172 Speed[100] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 100.00 Stamina[63] + 15% Bonus[9.45]: 72.45 Balance[9] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 9.00 Total[181.45] + 15% Bonus[27.22]: 208.67 OPHELIA Speed Roll: 21 Stamina Roll: 67 Balance Roll: 80 Total: 168 Speed[21] + -5% Bonus[-1.05]: 19.95 Stamina[67] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 67.00 Balance[80] + 5% Bonus[4.00]: 84.00 Total[170.95] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 170.95

Winded and with wobbly limbs, Ophie knew she'd been beaten. She slogged over the finishing line, sides heaving as she leaned against Kaija's side. She'd won, Ophie was gonna have to eat that manky-mushroom whether she wanted to or not. It had been a long shot of course, she wasn't surprised nor was she a sore loser, but maybe a tiny part of her wished her size wasn't such a detriment. Beyond the panting and tongue lolling out the side of her mouth, Ophie shot her best friend a toothy grin. It wasn't all bad, it was hard to feel down about anything when Kaija was right there, big and tushy.

"Ah you beat me." She puffed, mighty impressed her friend was so fast! Maybe she'd even be able to give Hanako a run for her money! "So um...do I really gotta eat it? Can't I just have one nibble?"

Kaija let out a little whoop of excitement at her victory. She hadn't thought it was a guarantee - Ophie could do anything she set her mind to and Kaija didn't necessarily think she'd always lose a race just because she was a bigger girl, definitely not. But she'd won this time against her and that was all that mattered. She leaned hard against Ophie as she caught her breath too and let her racing heart slow its beat. "That was a little harder than I expected," she admitted with a laugh. It'd been a small hill but they'd both pushed themselves hard to get to the top - and now here they were, Ophie was trying to get out of her punishment. Honestly she didn't blame her but it didn't seem fair either.

"Well..." Hmmm. She considered it for a long moment, furrowing her brow. Eating it meant they'd have to go back and find it and that did sound like a lot of work. Flopping down for awhile sounded a bit better to her. She gave a little shrug as she did just that, hitting the ground with a hard thud as she moved into a laying position. "Fine. Just a nibble. But later, I don't feel like goin' back all that way yet," Kaija admitted. "What do you wanna do after this though? Besides eating a bit of that mushroom," she added, just in case Ophie though she could weasel her way out of the dare.