Aurielle Adravendi

She stared at the pile of white fur that was gradually growing taller as Ayodele dragged a jaw-bone comb through her fur, digging as deep as a lemur could do to assuage the constant itching that had risen in the last week or so. The comb itself was from a small predatory animal, a coyote, most likely, and the sharp edges helped, but the fur loss was worrying the Spirit. Paladin had checked her. His companions had checked her. The only thing they could find was that her skin was a little red, but there was no scaling or flaking as though she had some sort of mange or parasitic infection. But the itching persisted. And, so did the hair loss. She’d taken a good dig through the large chest she’d battled with all the way from the Bifrost, and found several items that she intended to turn into some form of coverage for her rather alarmingly thinned coat. If it didn’t grow back by autumn, she was in for a hellishly cold winter, and Summer had already been unusually cool. The only thing that wasn’t coming out was her mane and her tail’s longer hair. Her legs hadn’t started itching yet, thankfully, and the fur remained firmly rooted. Another pile of fur dropped onto the mound, and she blew out a sigh. Then paw-steps drew her eyes to the cave mouth. Cairo popped into the main chamber and she smiled gently at the boy as she remembered that she’d scheduled a training session with him. “Cai. Ready to begin?” She pulled away from the combing, drawing a tch from the lemur, and moved to the center of the chamber, stretching as she went to get the stiffness out of her limbs—she’d been sat there for a while. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Cairo Lanze Adravendi

The chocolate splotched Adravendi padded down the ravine, eyes scanning the walls. It was always a sort of relief to come down this path. The eruption’s ash hadn’t managed to make it into this area. When he trotted through here, he could almost pretend the eruption hadn’t happened. Almost. He mounted the three stone steps and paused as his eyes fell on the large mound of white fur piled beside his Spirit and mentor. Though Aurielle smiled at him, he could tell something still nagged at her, and he understood. They said the pain would go away eventually. Perhaps “they” were a colder-hearted sort of wolf than he and his mentor were, or had not been close to those they lost. The pain didn’t leave. You just learned to push past and live on. There were still moments where a memory of his mother would hit him and he’d get all choked up. However, he nodded, moving to his usual spot in the chamber, settling into his stance and giving her a wag of his tail to signify his readiness. They’d been working on fighting on slick ground like the marble floor of the cave, where claws had little traction. He’s already taken several bruises on the chin from losing his toe-grip on the floor and letting her claws set down. Now in mud… Mud he loved. At a nod from his mentor, he surged forward, tail swinging as his toes took the job of traction. He sought to drive head on into Aurielle’s smaller form, dropping his fore-end to aim his left shoulder point for his brisket. He hoped to knock her back and send her sliding across the floor with the first hit as his head tilted sharply to his right, muzzle jerking to his left as he snaked his jaws open and aimed to snap at her right ear. Cairo Lanze Adravendi vs Aurielle for Spar Round 1/3 Age: +1 Size: Large Build: Heavy Skills: Beginner Fighter & ----- Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Aurielle Adravendi

Her apprentice wasted no time in coming at her, and she appreciated the promptness. She waited, bracing as if to take his ramming. At the last moment, she twisted to her right, letting his shoulder skate over the outer edges of her fur along the left shoulder. His jaws found nothing but a few strands of mane, yanking them out with a sharp prickle from somewhere along her scruff at midpoint on her neck. She twisted almost immediately back to her left, jaws parting as she slashed for his left side with her canines, aiming for just behind his left foreleg’s elbow as her weight shifted to her other three legs, left foreleg snapping up to slam back for his left front leg’s ankle. She aimed to strain it at most, knock it out from under him at least. Her eyes watched him through narrowed slits, noting and assessing his reactions and speed, analyzing his balance. Aurielle Rhiannon Marie Adravendi vs (Cairo) for (Spar) Round 1/3 Age: +1 Size: Medium Build: Medium Offensive Battle Accessory: Bladed leather bracers Defensive Battle Accessory: Leather torso armor Companion 1: Mountain lion, Male - Battle Mutation - Offensive: Long upper canines Skills: Expert Intellectual & Expert Fighter Specialty: N/A Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Cairo Lanze Adravendi

His mentoress was a slippery creature. All he got for his efforts was a mouth tangled in long hairs, and he repressed the urge to mouth his tongue around to get them out, instead arching his frame to his right as he felt more than saw her teeth coming for his side. He felt the trace of her teeth rake through his fur and huffed out a breath of relief as he danced further to his right and sought to come head to head to head with her. Her paw, instead of hitting his ankle instead found his toes and he grunted, but lunged forward, aiming to grab her scruff in his teeth from his six inch advantage, forelegs leaving the floor as his weight and balance rocked back to his hind paws, tail ruddering as he threw his front legs forward in an attempt to grapple around her head—a risky move and he had no doubt he’d probably pay for it. But it could pay off well if he pulled it off. It was very hard not to let his hind claws drop to the slick marble floor at this moment, and he could feel the muscles and tendons in his back toes straining to resist the instinct. Cairo Lanze Adravendi vs (Aurielle) for (Spar) Round 2/3 Age: +1 Size: Large Build: Heavy Skills: Beginner Fighter & ----- Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Aurielle Adravendi

She felt a slight mixed flicker of pride and exasperation as her student made a very risky move. It paid off, but only halfway for him. She dropped abruptly into a bow, and that evaded his bite, but she chose to surge back upard just as his forelegs snagged around her neck. He had her gripped, and while that could be an advantage, and she couldn’t move backward or forward, so could not twist around to tear into his underside, she wasn’t subdued. When wriggling didn’t free her, she made a sudden sideways lunge to her right, rearing slightly as she went, seeking to topple them both to the hard floor. Her front paws left the floor, reaching up at either side and aiming to rake her claws into the skin on either side of Cairo’s torso, if only to irritate the skin. Aurielle Rhiannon Marie Adravendi vs Cairo for Spar Round 2/3 Age: +1 Size: Medium Build: Medium Offensive Battle Accessory: Bladed leather bracers Defensive Battle Accessory: Leather torso armor Companion 1: Mountain lion, Male - Battle Mutation - Offensive: Long upper canines Skills: Expert Intellectual & Expert Fighter Specialty: N/A Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Cairo Lanze Adravendi

He was a little more thrilled than he should be that he’d managed to get a hold on his mentor’s neck. The thrill didn’t last long when she suddenly went veering sideways, surprising him and sending him toppling before he could adjust or brace his hind paws to hold her immobile. Her claws snagged through his fur to the skin, and he winced as he hit the floor. He didn’t waste time catching his breath from the landing, instead seeking to regain his bearhug around her neck, jaws parting to aim for another gripping bite on the fur at her back, behind the shoulder-blades, while scrambling with his hind legs in order to attempt to kick forward, similar to a cat with a toy, more for a male’s instinctive self-preservation than out of an intentional attack. Cairo Lanze Adravendi vs (Aurielle) for Spar Round 3/3 Age: +1 Size: Large Build: Heavy Skills: Beginner Fighter & ----- Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Aurielle Adravendi

She grunted under her breath as they hit the floor, but she didn’t stay in one spot for more than a heartbeat, instead rolling free, evading her apprentice’s jaws and regained grip with a wrench as she came to her paws, whirling on Cairo and diving upon him, aiming to pounce with efficiency with her front paws and weight. She aimed both front paws for his front end, the left for his rib cage and the right for his neck in a pounding stomp, head darting down to slash for his ribs between both front paws. She felt he’d done well in the spar, showing inventiveness, even if the place was the wrong one to sacrifice the stability of four paws on the ground over any advantage strength could lend. Aurielle Rhiannon Marie Adravendi vs (Cairo) for (Spar) Round 3/3 Age: +1 Size: Medium Build: Medium Offensive Battle Accessory: Bladed leather bracers Defensive Battle Accessory: Leather torso armor Companion 1: Mountain lion, Male - Battle Mutation - Offensive: Long upper canines Skills: Expert Intellectual & Expert Fighter Specialty: N/A> Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

And the winner is...

Aurielle

Cairo must give up by submitting, fleeing or passing out. Totals: Cairo: 99.40 (12 59.4 6 22) Aurielle: 193.92 (36.4 68.2 45 12)

Cairo Lanze Adravendi

Cai was thumped to the floor before he had a chance to gather himself to his paws, and lifted a paw with a panted, groaning laugh. “You win! But I’ll best you yet Rielle.” When she stepped back, he rolled to his paws and sat, grinning at his mentor as he panted. “So, how’d I do this time?” He had a feeling that whatever he got wrong she would point out without patronizing him, and his ears perked, tail beginning to wag as he worked his jaws and tongue, trying to clear her hair and fur from his mouth with soft ‘pbbtht’ sounds as he listened for her response, face sheepish at the less than dignified expressions he was surely making. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think