Lucette was born ready for this. She was tiny, sure, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t run. Her opponent was young, like herself, and for that she was grateful. It put her on a much more even playing field to start out, but that didn’t mean Lucy was going to go easy on this other young lady. She hadn’t glanced over her shoulder at the stranger and merely hoped that she would be following. Then, once she found what she deemed a suitable spot for them to start “side by side”, or close enough anyway, Lucette turned back to face the other wolf.

“May your paws be swift,” Lucette winked at her. The yearling was excited and energy was flowing through her as her tail wagged behind her. “I’m sure it goes without saying because of the pairings but the name’s Lucette by the way! Let's get this going, shall we?” She turned back to face the direction they would be racing in and readied herself. The moment they were to go she’d be ready to shoot off like there was a fire under her tail.

Lucette vs Ciannait for Race
Round 0/2
Age: Over 1 Year
Size: Extra small
Build: Light
Skills: Beginner Healer & Beginner Navigator

Unbreakable Survivor

After speaking with her race partner, Lucette and Ciannait had wandered away from the gathering. They hadn’t wandered too far, and the earthen youth could still hear the chatting of those who had remained at the festival’s center. That salmon and roe breakfast had been a great start to the day, their flavors still lingering on her tongue. With her stomach no longer eating itself, Cian followed the smaller yearling.

The golden maned youth was thankful for the matched up she had been assigned. Her opponent was young, about the same age as herself, which made the playing field more equal. Dark and light limbs moved casually along the riverside, following the smaller youth as she led them to a good spot. Cian took this opportunity to look at Lucette’s build. Though small of stature, she had quite the slender legs, her figure built to run. This intrigued Ciannait. She had thought of runners as tall and slender, not short and overall small. Though being small could offer its own advantages, such as sneaking under the underbrush, fallen trees and other obstacles. Lips curled upwards, turquoise optics sparkling with the challenge of such a flexible opponent. This would be fun.

The moment the rust painted youth turned towards her, Cian knew that this was where they would begin their race. Aqua lenses glance around the area, making notes of the terrain and where obstacles and clear stretches were. The girl wished her swift paws and the yearling grinned, tail which seemingly glimmered like the sunrise began a small back and forth movement. The girl then introduced herself as Lucette, as the pairings had mentioned. Ciannait smiled and nodded, ”May yours be carried by the wind,” Cian replied ”My name is Ciannait, though I think I already mentioned that at the festival’s gathering,” the yearling stated, head tilting to the side ever so slightly before returning to a more natural position.

Dark crown nodded her agreement, and the youth stretched her limbs, rolled her shoulders and neck. She tested the ground with her claws, Cian’s digits gripping the earth. The yearling then glanced at her rival a grin following shortly after ”On the count of three,” Ciannait states, ”One” the youth begins the countdown, ”Two,” She continues, slender figure getting into position. Head lowering even with her spine, limbs shifting to get a better launch, tail held steady behind her. ”… Three!” Cian announces the final count, and pushes forward with a powerful shove of her long, slender limbs. The race had begun.


OOC || Ciannait vs Lucette for Race
Round 0/2
Age: Over 1 year
Size: Large
Build: Light
Skills: Novice Hunter & Intermediate Navigator

”Speaking”
Thinking

Our lives are made in these small hours Ciannait was kind in response, wishing her the best of luck in the race as well. Maybe it was silly for them to reintroduce themselves when the pairings were called but Lucy didn’t really care about that. She wanted to remember the girl she was racing, even if she bore a pack scent. As of the moment, none of the packs held any name in her brain; they were just the backs of Boreas or Auster. Perhaps one day she’d care to learn which was which, but for now, Luce only cared about getting the race underway with Cian. She wasn’t going to make it easy for her larger opponent, that was for sure. While Ciannait would have the longer, perhaps more graceful strides, covering ground overall easier, Lucette’s smaller frame was ideal for quickly maneuvering around objects that might bar her path. The russet-marked girl was hoping to use that to her advantage in their race, despite having never had one. Hmm, maybe she’d have to drag Bae-Syl into doing something like this sometime, just for the fun of course. She was sure the rainbow-marked yearling would agree to the idea - she hadn’t been told no yet, after all. Lucette dug her nails into the earth and rolled her own shoulders forward as she widened her stance. Her ears lowered toward her skull and her eyes narrowed with determination; if her rival won Lucy swore it wouldn’t be easy. Her head lowered aligned with her spine and she prepared herself for launch as Cian counted them down. One… two… three! That was all Luce needed to hear to take off. She kicked off the ground, moving forward across the grassy landscape with her tail flying like a banner behind her. Instead of looking around, to see where Ciannat might be, she kept her gaze focused forward, tunneled on what was in front of her. The sound of her own paws hitting the earth rose back up and reached her ears as she ran, along with the sound of the nearby rapids. She could feel her heart racing, a burst of adrenaline being what encouraged her to keep her current pace. Now, so long as she kept out of the way of any rocks, trees, or roots she should be golden! She had purposely avoided going too close to the water, knowing a slip in there could be dangerous for someone as tiny as her. Lucette vs Ciannait for Race Round 1/2 Age: Over 1 Year Size: Extra small Build: Light Skills: Beginner Healer & Beginner Navigator "Talk", 'Think.' These little wonders these twists and turns of fate

_{Art by Asena}

Unbreakable Survivor

She did not look at her opponent once the countdown had been completed. Limbs began to move, her focus on the path ahead. Muscles gained tension as claws dug into the damp ground below her. Ciannait would not slip, would not allow herself to slip, especially with the rapids to her left rushing by. If she were to get caught in them, the yearling knew she may not come back out. The fox colored youth she was racing against had the advantage of her size as she zipped away like a bumblebee. Cian took longer strides much like a deer. However, the golden maned youth didn’t have time to pay attention to such details at the moment.

On they ran. Ciannait found that she had to jump over a few fallen logs, limbs tensing before the leap. It wasn’t much of a challenge, and the youth cleared the obstacles without slowing too much. Once her slender, yet powerful, limbs touched down upon the earth she pushed off once again in a sprint. Though her head was aligned with her spine, auds either tucked back, or pushed forward as she focused, Ciannait could still hear Lucette running nearby.

Heart hammered in her chest, lungs pumping air through her body. Ciannait continued at her quick pace, tongue lolling out of shadowed maw. She began to wonder how much further till the finish line. The exertion of racing along the river rapids was surprisingly fun. Cian’s turquoise lenses sparked with her excitement, as she rushed towards yet another obstacle, a large boulder which the yearling twisted around rather than leapt over.

OOC || Ciannait vs Lucette for Race
Round 1/2
Age: Over 1 year
Size: Large
Build: Light
Skills: Novice Hunter & Intermediate Navigator

”Speaking”
Thinking

Our lives are made in these small hours Her strides, shorter than that of her opponent, were not exactly graceful. Lucette bounded along like a rabbit, making quick, short bounds with her legs as the limbs carried her forward. Her ears slipped down, a look of concentration upon her face. She could hear Cian somewhere nearby, though she didn’t focus enough to see which of them was in the lead, nor if the steps were fading at all. She couldn’t afford to get distracted, Lucy told herself. She had to be prepared, mentally and physically, as she hoped over stones and dodged around plants and some twisted roots. She didn’t think about how long she’d been running, either, but it had been long and hard enough that she found her tongue lolling out of her mouth. Her breaths came hard and fast, her legs starting to ache a little. She had no idea how long the distance she was running was, heck, she’d never even visited the rapids before. She was just moving in a straight-ish line though, so hopefully it wasn’t going to take too much longer. Still, this was quite the thrill! Her eyes showed with delight as her tail flagged out behind her. Yes, she was going to have to race more in the future. Lucette vs Ciannait for Race Round 2/2 Age: Over 1 Year Size: Extra small Build: Light Skills: Beginner Healer & Beginner Navigator "Talk", 'Think.' These little wonders these twists and turns of fate

_{Art by Asena}

Unbreakable Survivor

On the willowy youth ran. Her focus was not on her opponent — not completely anyway. Ciannait could hear the smaller yearling’s shorter strides, they sounded quicker, much like that of smaller prey. Quick, precise, and powerful. This made the striped youth grin all the while her tongue lolling out of her parted maw. Turquoise lenses sparked as she caught a glimpse of the rusty painted youth. This would probably be a close match, and Cian welcomed the challenge. Perhaps she would race against Lucette again sometime.

Thoughts did not drift too far from the race at hand, as the Adhil’s strides became more strained. Her limbs burned from the exertion, heart raced in her chest, lungs pumping oxygen into her blood. She was almost to the designated finish, and Ciannait used the last of her strength to push herself onwards. No longer was she worried who would win. No, Ciannait didn’t honestly care. This was for the fun of it. Her seemingly iridescent tail flagged behind her as she crossed the finish line.

OOC || Ciannait vs Lucette for Race
Round 2/2
Age: Over 1 year
Size: Large
Build: Light
Skills: Novice Hunter & Intermediate Navigator

”Speaking”
Thinking

And the winner is...

Ciannait

Lucette was left in the dust! Totals: Lucette: Speed Roll: 63 Stamina Roll: 59 Balance Roll: 1 Total: 123 Speed[63] + 15% Bonus[9.45]: 72.45 Stamina[59] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 59.00 Balance[1] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 1.00 Total[132.45] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 132.45 Ciannait: Speed Roll: 93 Stamina Roll: 59 Balance Roll: 53 Total: 205 Speed[93] + 5% Bonus[4.65]: 97.65 Stamina[59] + 5% Bonus[2.95]: 61.95 Balance[53] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 53.00 Total[212.60] + 10% Bonus[21.26]: 233.86

The finish line was in sight. Lucette could feel the excitement growing as she saw it, trying to put on that extra burst of speed. She wasn’t used to racing like this, or even having to run this much or this far, but it was enjoyable. She wasn’t sure if she had done enough to beat her opponent and, for the most part, Lucy decided that she didn’t care if she didn’t have that much speed. The important thing was that she was enjoying herself, right? Little did she know that Bae-Syl had tagged along, after all, monitoring her from a distance to make sure she was safe. She didn’t think about that right now, however, as she slowed to a stop after crossing the finishing line… …and looked up to find that Ciannait had already gotten there moments before, likewise breathing just as hard as Lucy was. Still, the small girl moved closer, a grin on her face as she spoke up. “Congrats! It seems… you’ve won!” No sore loser here. Lucette winked at the other young femme. “Really made me try to work for it, but wasn’t my day! You’re pretty fast!” She managed to get more of her breath back for she spoke again. Well, that was something! "Talk, 'Think.'