with her shoulder healed nicely thanks to the kindness of a stranger, Heloise was itching to try her luck again. she had made sure to recover from her bout with the cougar and her first spar here with the older woman named Shaye. she wasn't ready to admit defeat; she needed to practice more if she was to stand toe-to-toe with the others in this land. they were all so skilled. she felt intimidated by that fact. but she had learned a few things since arriving. that was something. Heloise lifted her head and called out for anyone nearby. her desire was to spar with someone. no maims - she had enough scars - and certainly no death. the ivory woman hadn't offended anyone since she arrived. at least, she hoped so. Winterfell was her home now too, and she would defend it from the foes it may have. but first, she needed to get better. she needed to prove to herself she could catch up, learn more, and do better than what she already had. that was the true making of a warrior. "SPEECH" ooc; spar only! no maims or death matches please ;D

art + code by Kara

The boneyard in Auster was always quieter than the battlefield in Boreas. There were far more wolves on this side, she noticed. Perhaps it was because the wolves here were afraid of the Empire, or perhaps they were simply too far from the rest and maybe they just didn't want to walk all that way for a spar. So Proserpina came here in the hopes of a better chance. Sparring with her pack mates was all well and good, but she wanted to fight those that she didn't know. To learn how they fought and gauge the abilities of the mortals that roamed these parts. Luck would be on her side, because she soon heard a summons for a fight. Proserpina made a beeline for the callee, wanting to get there before anyone else did. She wanted this chance to herself, and if someone else decided they too wanted a fight, then she would have likely fought them, too. A female as white as snow came into view and Ina couldn't help but look at her in awe. The last time she had seen such a pale wolf like this had been her mother. A sinking feeling briefly rose in her chest, but she pushed it away as she stopped about ten or so feet from her would be opponent. "I'll spar with you," Pale blue eyes looked the scarred woman over, wondering how this would go. Those scars were either from battles won, or battles lost. Maybe even a mix of the two. She herself bore no scars, her skin was a clean slate. So it was safe to say she was curious about this womans skills. "Speak"

a young woman would answer her call. Heloise stood, waiting as the other skid to a halt. it seemed she had run all the way here once the challenge had come up. good; she didn't want to pussyfoot around anymore. she wanted eager partners. even if she may never see this one again, it was important to meet each bout with eagerness. "you honor me" the ivory woman would say politely, dipping her head. not one to keep the girl waiting, Heloise rushed at her once she was prepared. this was a friendly spar, not a battle. the other wasn't that larger than her, but she still towered compared to her sleek build. she'd turn sharply as she neared, aiming to shove her shoulder into the wolf's side. hoping to wind her or make her stumble, Heloise wished for an opening. better yet, if her boney shoulder did some brusing she'd welcome that too. "SPEECH" Heloise vs Proserpina for Spar Round 1/2 Size: Medium Build: Light Offensive Accessory: N/A Defensive Accessory: N/A Companion 1: N/A Companion 2: N/A Fight Skill Level: Intermediate Specialty: NONE

art + code by Kara

The white she-wolf accepted her as a challenger and Proserpina wasted no time in settling her defenses. She had been training hard to get better at fighting, and while her spar with Malleus hadn't gone over too well, maybe there was a chance she'd win against a mortal.

Her opponent wasted no time in starting and Ina watched as the she-wolf charged towards her. Ina waited until Heloise got closer, and once they were upon each other, Ina dropped low to the ground and used her hind legs to push her under her opponent. Heloise's shoulder missed her mark, and Ina made her move. She sprung up with her opponent over her, aiming to use all her strength to try and slam into Heloise's underside and launch her into the air!

Proserpina vs Heloise for Spar
Round 1/2
Size: Large
Build: Medium
Offensive Accessory: N/A
Defensive Accessory: N/A
Companion 1: N/A
Companion 2: N/A
Fight Skill Level: Intermediate
Specialty: NONE

Heloise felt no contact from her attempt, though the other wolf snaked below her and tried to push her upward. in retaliation, the ivory woman clung onto the broader back of her opponent by her claws. she was not going to be so easy to send skyhigh. as soon as the other tried to buck her off, her claws dug into her skin and remained there. lowering her slender neck, she would try to bite softly into the back of the other woman's neck. there was a bit of force behind it but she reeled the injury to a shallow cut if possible. she had tried to do this with other foes much larger than herself. hopefully it worked, for she needed a bit of control right now. Heloise shifted her weight heavily around Proserpina's shoulders, attempting to make the other woman fall forward and into the earth itself. but she knew it wasn't going to be that easy, and attempted to prepare for the other's own form of retaliation. "SPEECH" Heloise vs Proserpina for Spar Round 2/2 Size: Medium Build: Light Offensive Accessory: N/A Defensive Accessory: N/A Companion 1: N/A Companion 2: N/A Fight Skill Level: Intermediate Specialty: NONE

art + code by Kara

Well fuck. She should have anticipated this, but in her eagerness to try new moves she hadn't really tried before, she didn't quite take into account the position she had put herself in. This sort of thing might have worked on a wolf larger than her, but Heloise was not. Narrowing her eyes and gritting her teeth, she let her front half lower more with the weight, relaxing her shoulders and head, and as soon as she felt those teeth touch her skin, she jerked her head back with all the force she could muster in an effort to slam the back of her head against Heloise's mouth and hopefully, slam her jaws shut against her own tongue and bruise her with a headbutt.

Simultaneously, she also bucked her hind end up and forward, using every bit of force she could with her hind limbs like a spring to further help send Heloise's face into her headbutt. It was an awkward position for her, so she tried to make do with what she could.

Proserpina vs Heloise for Spar
Round 2/2
Size: Large
Build: Medium
Offensive Accessory: N/A
Defensive Accessory: N/A
Companion 1: N/A
Companion 2: N/A
Fight Skill Level: Intermediate
Specialty: NONE

And the winner is...

PROSERPINA

HELOISE must give up by submitting, fleeing or passing out. Totals: Heloise: 240.24 Prosperpina: 255.42

"I submit" Heloise eventually fell off of the larger wolf, panting and trying to catch her breath. what the other woman had done worked; she had won fairly. smiling softly as her tongue rolled back into her mouth, the ivory woman's body was worn from the bout. though not beyond damage. "my name is Heloise" she told the other pack wolf. her muscles ached and her legs were sore but she would live. her head bowed to the other woman. "perhaps we will meet again. if you come here, call for me. I would like a rematch." she added politely and kindly before moving to leave. / EXIT "SPEECH"

art + code by Kara