And the winner is...

CAIRO

MALALIA must give up by submitting, fleeing or passing out. Totals: Adjusted rolls: 112.05 56.4 87 36.3 CAIRO'S total is.. 350.1 Adjusted rolls: 111.25 36.8 44.1 35 MALALIA'S total is.. 272.58

She went down in his hug, and he pressed down, sensing he’d won, before flopping to the side and grinning at her, then checking the Wolverine kit asking, “You alright Pachou?” Cairo’s tail whapped the ground and he grinned at Lia, tongue lolling to the side as he stretched and wriggled one leg free and then the other, chuckling his way to his paws and plopping his rump down as he said, “You two did really good. I bet the next time we spar you’ll crush me.” He poked her paw with a grin, head cocking and eyes glinting with pride, not for his win, but for the girl and her tenacity. She was innovative and creative with her attacks and counters, quick on her feet and quicker with her mind, and damn but she was fun to be around and spar with. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Really, Pach had drawn the shortest straw in the match: a wolverine sandwich between two creatures much, much larger than he was. With the spar coming to an end, he growled and rolled away, spitting in a way that might be ferocious if it wasn't so darn cute. Poor guy. The fight out of her mind for a moment, Mal twisted over to poke him good-naturedly, humming a sorry. He sniffed, and turned his back to both wolves, even as Cairo asked after him.

She rolled her eyes and rose to her feet, giving her companion a quick once-over. "He's okay. I believe the only thing you hurt was his pride." And maybe Pach wasn't the only one, but the thrill of a good spar more than compensated that tiny sting from losing. It didn't hurt to hear the praise either.

Her eyes narrowed at the little poke, but she couldn't hold it for long before a tiny grin broke over her maw. "Yeah, well, that's the plan." She might have lost, but hey, she was improving, wasn't she? Her smile grew, her gaze sweeping over her companion. They both were. They still had a lifetime to go before their coordination became seamless, but Pachou was bright and learning every day. The kit had come so far from when they'd first met.

Mal snorted faintly. She turned to Cairo and poked his paw right back before dancing away, one paw suspended in the air. "So... what was that thing you said about 'spontaneous playtime'?"

"Speech"

He chuckled softly, uttering, “Pride goes before the fall.” He grinned. “It’s a good plan. It might work, too.” Oh-ho, there was no way Cairo could miss an invitation to a game of some sort. He was off duty, and so, she’d barely gotten the end of the word ‘playtime’ past her lips before he launched off with a great bound, reaching to tag her on the wrist before suddenly about facing and sprinting away with a loud “Tag!” His bi-chocolate tail flagged into the air as he barked out a laugh, stretching out his legs and keeping one ear tilted back to catch the sound of her pursuit and glancing back with a jaws-wide, tongue lolling grin and sparkling eyes. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Malalia rolled her eyes -- You bet your butt it'll work.

She'd barely finished speaking before the great brute was vaulting towards her with a tap on the wrist, and turning away again, all within the blink of an eye. It took a good second for the tag! to register before she was scrambling in the dust, launching after him. Oof, she hadn't expected him to react so quickly. Cairo had gotten a fair head start, and the armor wasn't exactly helping her case, but the girl was fast. Ears pinned to her skull, the wind stung at her eyes, but she pushed herself, keeping right on his tail, a playful growl the answer to his goofy grin.

She leaped forward to give a playful little tap on his left leg -- "Tag!" -- before cutting immediately to the right and dashing away, her path a broken zig zag across the earth.



"Speech"

It didn’t take the smaller wolf long to catch up, though he was pretty sure he’d caught her off guard with how quickly he’d cottoned on to the invitation of a game. It was no time at all before he felt the tap on his leg and he set back on his hocks with a skid to whip around in pursuit, tail waving gaily in the air as he opened up. Now that he’d grown fully, his long legs covered a lot more ground. Funny how three inches affected the speed. Still, he was hard pressed to keep up, and he propelled himself forward in a huge bound at the past stride and swiped a paw for her tail with a huffed— “Tag!” He bolted in the opposite direction, pretty sure he’d felt her fur in his toes, and he glanced back to check her pursuit with a grin. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Malalia pelted across the earth like she was being chased by a pack of wild dogs. She'd thought she'd left him in the dust with that last one, but it wasn't long at all before she felt the telltale brush of a paw against the fur of her tail. The girl seized up, almost too bewildered to move as she braked hard on her paws, and whipped her head around. Holy smokes, he was faster than she'd given him credit.

That little stop had cost her, though, and there was a fair amount of distance between them now. With a little growl, she shot after him, working double time to close the space between them. Her ears planed back at his expression. "Wipe!" Closer. "That grin!" Closer still... "Off your face!" The last word was a pitiful little huff, but now that she was within striking distance, Mal was less intent on talking him down and more focused on landing a paw on his own tail, if she could.

Growth spurts weren't fair at all.

"Speech"

Oh? He laughed softly to himself, maybe a whisper of the mirth loud enough to reach her ears on the breeze as she bore down on him with intent. His mind worked quickly, and then suddenly, he dropped into a nose-diving roll, skidding and tumbling like a jester with a flail of the tail and coming to a flop on his back with a thump. One forepaw swiped over his grinning face; the expression suddenly replaced with the most ridiculous look he could manage. His tongue sprang out of his parted jaws, eyes crossing theatrically, one brow point frowning, the other arching. His tail swept the ground side to side as he lay, belly up, waiting to see what the double, upside-down image of her would do at the sudden change of pace and immediate acquiescence of her demand. Though crossed, his eyes sparkled with mirth, and his sternum shook with suppressed laughter. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Ah, so he was laughing at her, now. Cool cool cool. Well, Cairo could laugh all he wanted, and he was free to laugh even more when she finally tagged his ass and won this game and what the hell—

No sooner had the last words left her maw than Cairo rolled over in front of her, crashing nose-over-tail across the ground like a kicked stone. For just a moment, she believed that the brute had honestly tripped (and thus ensured her victory, even if she felt a little bad about it). Mal put a brake on her run, trotting over to see the damage, when she caught sight of the ridiculous little grimace he was sporting. "Pffffffft! Wow. Wooow." It dawned on her, then -- pulled her ears flat against her skull and narrowed her eyes, settled cold in her stomach in a way that was not unlike hearing a truly terrible pun.

But she couldn't even hold the glare she'd set on him, turning away to hide a few wayward, incredulous giggles. "Cairo Adravendi," she declared, "that is the ugliest face I have ever seen." With that, the yearling would move to nudge him on the forehead with her paw. She plopped down on her belly, a few inches opposite of him, ears flickering forward and tail thumping quite happily. "Oh, and also, I win."



"Speech"

Her reaction was epic. He didn’t miss the giggles she tried to hide. And he repressed a grin at her remark, swiping the paw back over his face, usual broad grin blazing back to life and eyes uncrossing as he let the laughter go, paws flailing cheerfully in the air before relaxing with a jaunty, “I concede and profess myself defeated in tag.” He squirmed onto his side with a flop, head cocking as he asked, “How’s the armor? Any snags or difficulties moving in it?” His eyes roved the armor speculatively as one ear perked. If there were any catches in the armor that needed fixing, he’d be happy to do them on the spot. A chink or catch in the armor could mean defeat at the least and death at the absolute worst. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

A soft snort came when he swiped his face back to normal, and she only grinned when the man admitted defeat. Success! Mal was as happy as a pig in mud, and it wasn't often she'd felt this carefree. Perhaps she would have to steal away the idea of spontaneous playtime, bring it to the Armada. It'd certainly brighten up the place, if anyone besides Mort went along with it.

"Mmm..." Had she had any problems moving around? "It feels tight around the breast collar, mayyybe?" Come to think of it, the more she moved, the more it had chafed against her.

For all she knew, though, that was normal. "I mean... it's a little uncomfortable, but I think I'm just getting used to it, still." The girl had never worn armor, much less something that covered her entire back and shoulders like this did. The closest thing to any type of clothing was her bracelet, and she was long used to the feel of the metal against her leg.


"Speech"

He listened, head tilting as his eyes fastened on the spot she mentioned before he rolled to his paws and ran a paw between Lia’s neck and the collar, feeling for any spots that felt tighter than the rest, nodding as he found a few spots. Luckily, “I think the laces will stretch a little if you wet them and let them dry, maybe with a willow stick to keep it taught while it dries. Should loosen the fit enough… A little animal fat rubbed in will keep the laces supple.” Another thing he’d learned from Aurielle. He flopped back again, hips cocked to the side while his front end remained upright, a picture of elegance until you saw the big grin. If it was just a little tightness around the breast collar, then he was pretty darn chuffed with his work. It would keep his young friend safe in battle for the most part, and she would be able to gather and carry herbs in the pouches, as well as keep a first aid kit on hand. “So! How’s things at your end of the continent? Winter treating you well?” Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Mal listened patiently as Cairo inspected the armor, confirming what she'd felt, and rounded off some treatments to loosen the fit. Wet the laces, keep it taught, rub some animal fat in there... She nodded, shuffling away the thoughts for later. "Got it." A small adjustment, thankfully. She'd been worried, upon seeing her gift, that the thing simply wouldn't fit well, but it seemed that the Valhallan had a good eye for these things.

Her ears flickered forward at the question, and she shrugged, offering a lazy smile to his dopey grin. "Things are pretty okay. Hunting's going good. Other than that, lots of sparring, healing lessons... same old, same old."

Mal considered that for a moment, then shook her head. "Well, I did meet a healer by the name of Riva Nightingale. I've been taking lessons with her every now and again, and she's been showing me how to jar and preserve salves, so that's been pretty cool." It seemed to her that there was something new to learn around every corner in Boreas. The yearling felt she'd never have thought up pre-made salves in that way, but then it wasn't quite a sustainable idea in her natal lands, to be fair.

More exciting was that Riva was going to have pups soon, and she'd be assisting! The yearling was nearly wiggling with anticipation, but she'd keep it to herself -- for now.

She cocked her head, wondering aloud, "Y'know, this is actually the first time I've been out out in a while, I've been so bogged down with training. This is the farthest I've traveled in Boreas, I think." She turned a teasing green eye on her friend. "You're lucky I think you're half-decent." She'd certainly never traveled this far for someone else, even if it was to accept a gift. And the weeping woods were a hop and a skip away, so those little excursions didn't count.


"Speech"

He listened with twinkling eyes as she detailed how things had been going, head cocking at the mention of meeting a healer, a grin flashing his teeth as he remarked, “That’s excellent. Paladin does a lot of the same things. It helps having a fire going year round in the alcoves.” She seemed particularly excited, and his ears flicked with subtle interest, but laughed softly at her reflection, snickering at her finishing remark. “I’m understanding Aurielle’s reasoning for throwing me out on my ear from time to time to explore the world. It’s refreshing, taking in new sights and smells and breathing different air. I’ve been as far east as the mangroves on the coast. And I’m pretty sure I’ve been to the top of the world. Maybe that’s stretching it a little, but that particular place takes the breath away.” A smile settled on his lips as he thought back to the sea of clouds he’d gazed down on from the temple Aurielle had brought him, Domari and Caelia to. He tossed a following smirk at her, adding, “I am indeed lucky.” Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

It was good to hear that she was on the right track. Her healing knowledge was... sorely lacking, even after months in the Armada. She'd gotten too wrapped up with sparring in the beginning, and was scrambling to play catch-up, now. Meeting the small woman had jumpstarted her lessons again, and she was determined to make steady progress in her healing education.

As for his own travels, she merely listened, imagining the places in her mind. She laughed softly -- "You've been to the mangroves before I have... man. That's nice, though. Sirius doesn't... encourage traveling, necessarily, but I've got the freedom to pop in and out, now and again. And before I joined, I was kind of just... wandering," she shrugged, "So I've been trying to explore more intentionally, now. Starting with the south. I've been making some progress, but I usually end up back in the willows, to be honest."

So far she'd been to the hot springs, the gulley, and the river, but there was so much land to cover, and much to do at home. That was partly her own fault, though; she used most of her free time to practice, when she could.

Malalia flattened her ears at his smirk, then stuck her tongue out. No no no, he was supposed to joke back at her, not agree with her! ".... So what was the top of the world like?"


"Speech"

He chuckled in response to her words, though his ears flicked back in slight puzzlement as she added that Sirius didn’t exactly encourage travel. There was a small tidbit of her past given, that she’d been wandering before the Armada. “One can learn so much from travel, though. And meeting new wolves. Although, my first time to the Hot Springs, I met two wolves. There was a yearling called Skyfire and another wolf that I think was from Ashen. But… Well, Skyfire.” His lips pulled into a faint frown, a rare sign of displeasure and irritation. “She was rather… hm. Rude. Conceited… Announced herself as a princess from distant lands, you know, that kind of pomposity. Aurielle mentioned she’d joined the Armada. She turned up when Aurielle came to the border, though Rielle had met her prior and set her straight on her behavior.” His lips twitched into a grin. His Spirit hadn’t gone into detail, but he could guess the girl had been pinned in place by the disappointment Aurielle could convey when stamping on bad behavior. The girl wished to become a Queen one day, and yet had behaved as though those of common blood were meant to admire and worship the royalty. Of course, if Skyfire intended to take on leadership lessons with the glowing Spirit, as it seemed she’d taken a shine to Rielle, he supposed he might end up seeing the girl again at some point… he couldn’t say he relished the thought. At her question he grinned. “Ethereal. I’ll have to show you the place, I think. It’s like meeting Aurielle for the first time—best to be experienced in the flesh than told stories about… but it’s like looking down on an ocean of clouds and mist. You’re so high up that the air is very thin, so the journey up through the passageways should be taken slowly, with breaks to adjust. It’s where Aurielle promoted myself and my sister and another—the wolf I fought the two lions with.” Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

She had to hold back a snort at his expression, the distaste clear across Cairo's face. A chuckle escaped, though, as he denounced the pompous little princess. Please. "You can't kick a stone more than three feet without hitting an heir around here. Doesn't make her special." Hell, she was the daughter of an Alpha, but did you see her going around running her mouth about it? "Good on Aurielle. I can't say if Skyfire's gotten any better, on that front. We haven't interacted much." Skyfire had joined the Armada around the same time Malalia had, though she hadn't caught sight or scent of the girl as of late.

As for Sirius -- "Well, he doesn't discourage it, either, I should say. But I wouldn't be entirely surprised if he did. You can't very well have an Armada if half of your warriors are scattered around the continent, can you? But we're home often enough, I suppose." The borders were protected and the stores were full, so she couldn't say that traveling made them neglectful. Mal shrugged her shoulders, lifted her head and shifted her eyes to look towards Pach in the distance, who was chasing his own tail. She smiled lightly at his antics.

"I don't—I don't disagree with you, no. I mean, I've learned a lot just going where the wind takes me. But, in another life, I could have easily stayed with my birth pack and never really left. Not even to the next land over. And that would've been pretty normal.... I guess it's just a different way of doing things."

Cairo wasn't wrong about learning through exploring the outside world. The alternative simply hadn't struck her as being all that strange, however. Had her natal pack held together, she might not've left that patch of moorland for the rest of her life. They had been rather isolated in their oasis, with the closest packs keeping largely to themselves and too far away to cause much trouble -- ergo, no one to travel to and nowhere that was worth the trip.

Pia might've conceivably left to gather herbs, or the Alphas to negotiate with other leaders. As it was, travel for anything other than survival? It just wasn't the custom. It was another concept that was relatively new to the yearling, along with everything else, but one of the more enjoyable ones.

To that point, the place that Cai was describing sounded interesting, alluring. An ocean of mist -- what a strange idea, and a stranger place to promote wolves, she thought. Malalia tried to picture a sea of undulating clouds, but soon relented that the young man might be right. That it was something one had to experience with one's own eyes. "Can't wait to see it then," she grinned. Poor Cairo; she'd definitely hold him to that.

"And how are things at your end?"


"Speech"

His lips twitched in amusement at Lia’s comment on heirs. They did tend to run thick. After all, the pale lady that he’d encountered briefly at the same time he’d met Skyfire had coldly remarked that she herself was a princess. He listened, nodding slowly as she spoke on about the stances on venturing out from the Armadan lands. True, it would be hard to defend the pack if the best fighters were out in the world. But in times of peace, it was possibly a good time to explore and meet others. He grinned lightly as she asked after him, making a note at the back of his mind to set up a day to show her the mountain and the temple above. “Things are great. Training hard, hunting’s good. I’ve been thinking of practicing trapping with snares and such. Those hares have lovely soft pelts and a few in my alcove in the den would be nice, so I don’t want to ruin their pelts with my teeth trying to catch them.” His toes stretched out wide and he grinned at her. “By the way, I think Pach left some tooth marks if you want to try out your new first aid kit.” He jokingly lifted his chin to show his chest. There were a few scrapes and punctures from the kit’s teeth, but he held nothing against the wolverine—he’d gotten a wonderful hold and Cairo hadn’t really tried to dislodge him. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

It was good to hear that he was good. She flicked her ears, noting his fondness for hare pelts and connecting it with her own. She'd lined her den with the same soft furs when she'd first joined the Armada, digging out a space of her own and having Mortis take her to the vast stores of pelts and things. Malalia was happy to say she slept comfortably every night.

She cocked her head when he pointed out his injury, eyes zeroing in on the scrapes on his chest. "...Oof. Well, I'd apologize..." She straightened again, grinning like a hyena. "But I wouldn't mean it. Pach did great. You're one of his first spars -- outside of me, I mean." The kit had really come a long way, and she knew it better than anyone, having borne a few of those teeth marks herself. Mal twisted around to survey the pouches. She could use a couple of things, she saw, but settled for the dried herbs, honey, and mortar and pestle, since she had the time and the injury wasn't urgent. The pre-made salves, she would save for later.

The yearling made quick work of whipping up a poultice, the sticky green paste coming to form in the hollow of the mortar stone. Once it was ready, she neared him, prepared to clean the wounds and apply the paste. "May I?"

He laughed openly at her words, tail thumping the ground. “He’s a scrappy fellow in all the right ways.” He watched contentedly as she worked up a paste, grinning and flopping back to offer his chest with a wriggle onto his back, keeping his paws out of the way. “I wonder what next year will bring for everyone. Hopefully a comfortable spring and no volcanic eruptions.” His chuckle was only half joking as he stared up at the sky in thought. He’d be spending the winter training hard, bettering his skills and working hard, he expected, and he looked forward to the work. If he hoped to reach Sentinel by three or four, he’d have to work hard. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think