OOC: Please allow some back and forth between Amara and Louve before others start to join this. Shan or I will let everyone know when it is open for everyone to post. I am going away from Oct 28th to Nov 10th so there will be a delay in this actually happening. Timeline-wise this is vaguely set after the DM. There should be enough time for that to finish before I get back if that helps!

---^^^ ---- Please be sure to read the above --- ^^^^^ ----

Amara walked along the borders of her lands. Her thoughts were full of the chaos that had taken place over the last few months and years. It seemed like it was never-ending. There was always something, always some new threat, new enemy, and few friendly faces. She had taken up a leadership rank in the Lagoon to make sure that Vermier didn't trash the family name before Cassine was old enough to step up. She had taken Wolfbron for the same reason, to give Cassine a place to grow into what she was meant to be. Time had shown that the lioness wasn't ready for the life that was her birthright, Amara held fast. She didn't waver or let things fall away. She held onto a home for her own young to grow within, to learn about the family, and to become who they needed to be.

Her golden gaze takes in the well-worn path that her paws knew so well. She had long ago lost count of how often she walked them. She could travel them during the day or the night, her paws knew the way. Louve had fought for Heiress, fought to lead the family and that fight had given her the rank of Sovereign as well. Amara had watched her grow from a hot-headed yearling who would act fight and never ask questions to a well-rounded lioness who was putting the family first.

Amara knew that there were things that she had done herself that had held the family back, there had been many times when she should have pushed harder but didn't. She had allowed Vermier a longer leash in some ways and a short one in other ways even though she knew that at the end of the day, she owed a lot of this to him. He had been the one, even in his distaste, to trust her enough to give her the lands. She didn't really know why and had never asked. What was done was done. They both held one for a single lioness, which was their lasting bond. Forever. She turned and headed toward the meeting ground. Kieran had made her part of the family and she would always be grateful and tied to him. He had been the first to worm his way into her heart, to find his place next to her, and she missed him dearly. He had known her before she rose to power, gave her cubs to raise and now her own bloodline was leading the family. His bloodline.

The family was larger than ever before. The cubs from the family were growing well and both @Louve ♔ and herself were healed from giving birth. It had been strange to give birth at the same time as her daughter but in the end, it would grow the family which had always been her goal. She hoped that she would be able to provide the family with at least one more litter before her time finally came though she wasn't sure. She never was sure from one day to the next if she could see another day. Who would come for her? She never thought she would make it this far or last this long and she knew if she was going to make it much longer, something needed to change.

She stood in the middle of the ground, the snow lightly dusted around the space but nothing that would cause concern. The winds overnight had pulled most of it away. She tipped her head toward the sun, taking in the warmth for a long moment before she called upon @Louve ♔ to meet her here. Amara knew it was time but Louve would still have to prove it. She still had to earn it. If she couldn't win, then it wasn't her time and Amara would continue on. Though she knew it was and she hoped that Louve did as well. The fact that she hadn't come asking for it or tried to take it showed just how much her daughter had grown. The respect that she had now for Amara and the position that she had found herself in all those years ago. She remembered so many who were gone, missed them, and wondered what they would all think but it was time now for her to let things pass on to the next generation and for her to find her place and to let Louve find hers.

A call for Louve rose from the star-covered High Sovereign. The call wouldn't give away what the summons was for, not yet. She didn't want the pride alerted to anything until she was sure that Louve would do this, that she would be willing to take it. Amara would die on the throne if that is what her daughter needed but there was something within her that told her that Louve wanted this. More and more she had turned to Louve to let her handle things, leading only when a show of force was needed. She would always be that show of force, that powerful woman behind the Wolfbron Bluff's name. The whispers about her lands would have her name attached to them for years to come. Amara had found her place in history. She had made her mark. She would not be forgotten and while it had not been something she had thought about before, it was something that she was indeed proud of now.

Her heart hammered in her chest as she waited. She had told her mate her plan but no one else. This wasn't something that was up for anyone else to have input in. Jean-Claude had supported her and that was all she needed. Her newest cubs may not be royalty anymore but they had been born with the title and they would still have the same safety that Amara had given her first litter, her grand cubs, and all those born upon the red dusted lands. Four long years. Five foolish men. Enemies come and gone. Friends made and lost. Very little had stayed the same in the lands since she arrived so long ago. She looked toward the passageway, remembering the way the mist had covered these lands. Remembering how drawn Hanneth had been here and they all followed her blindly. There was a family connection that had long been lost. She didn't even know what happened to the bronze lioness or the family that she had.

Times changed. Amara had changed. Now. Louve would need to change. She knew it wouldn't be easy but she had faith in her daughter. She would figure things out and Amara would be there for as long as she could be to support and guide her but it was time for her to take the position of High Sovereign._{BG — ART — CODE}

Just let the rain keep pouring down
Wash away my sin

some days she wanted to take it. some days she woke, impatience thrumming through her veins, and she wanted to track down her mother and wrench the crown from her head. opening her eyes with the whispers of blood-stained dreams echoing through her mind, telling her that it was her right to take it. she, the matriarch. she, the first born daughter.

those were the days she left the bluffs, sliding like a shadow through the passage to the worlds beyond. gone for a night, sometimes two, until the flesh and blood could sate the hunger and slake the thirst. scouting trips, she might call them; excursions for her to turn an ear to the wind and listen for rumors of others.

Once I was told it's lonely the road I take
Stories of old are littered with ghosts & graves.

when the call comes she knows what it is for. even if the rest of the pride rests unaware she is not, and she rouses her children and her husband and demands they be ready to come and bear witness to her ascension. away slinks the wolf, away from the warmth of her den across the barren landscape she knows so affectionately as home. her's is not a forest of trees and foliage but rock and stone and dust and dirt. a fortress fit for a queen; a fortress fit for a goddess.

rise above and see them scurry for the shadows. don that wicked grin, mouth full of sharp teeth dripping. the darkness buzzes and a sultry voice whispers "mère" as she emerges from it. this morning there is no room for hesitation, no space for love, so the wolf's gaze is sharp and calculating. watching, weighing, tasting the mood in the air.

she says nothing more. she merely... waits.
patient for the first time in months.

Watch me rise up when the others fall
They can bow but I'll be standing tall

louve vs. @Amara
for wolfbron bluffs
zero of five

I am not a woman, I'm a god

code x art

Amara is not kept waiting long and her gaze finds her daughter as she moves from within the shadows to join her in the sun's warming rays. Louve. She says as she looks her over. She wasn't wounded and seemed as healthy as ever. Good. She lets the silence fall between them, finding comfort in it. She hadn't been the most loving mother and hadn't shielded her first litter from the wars, the blood, the hate that the island had. It may not have been the best way, maybe things would be different between her and her first litter if she had spent a little more time with them and less time trying to hold the family up, to keep the pride together.

She could tell that Louve knew this call was different from the many times that Amara had called upon her before. She knew her daughter had been waiting. She wasn't sure for what but Louve had waited. The island is as unstable as ever. You will struggle. Others will want what you will have. She finally spoke looking right at Louve. It will steal your time from your cubs, leaving them to learn on their own, though maybe with a father around, it will be different. How different would things have been if Louve's father had been there to help raise them? To help ease the weight that Amara had felt.

The enemies and allies I have made will still be there but it is your choice to keep them in place or not. Amara kept speaking. She knew that this wouldn't be the end, she would still be there to guide her daughter and to make sure that she was able to talk about choices if she felt the need. I have held this position for a long time. Holding the family together through a force of sheer will. Waiting on those who will not return. You are here, always have been. Amara moved toward Louve, relaxed in her nature she moved to nuzzle the side of her daughter's cheek. Gentle and loving. You have taken everything you have now. I am proud of you. Her voice was soft and as motherly as it had ever been, a look at what could have been. She took a few steps back and looked into her eyes. Call our family. Call our allies. Call whoever. She whispered softly before backing up several paces. Amara smirked at her daughter in an almost playful nature as the older leader readies herself for battle. I won't hold back, you shouldn't either. Louve was going to have to earn this, every step of the way. Do what no male has been able to do. Oh how sad their attempts had been.

Take my crown.

Amara vs. @Louve ♔
for Wolfbron Bluffs
0/5_{BG — ART — CODE}

(note: everybody is free to post! open to allies/friends/and dieudonne)

at first there is silence. louve waits, her patience seemingly endless for this particular moment, and checks herself. stretches out her joints, flexes her claws, seeks out any lingering soreness or weakness that might hinder her. of course there are none; she had been preparing for this particular fight, training herself harder than ever. taking her crown would be the most challenging battle she faced, yet, and she did not underestimate her mother.

but then amara speaks, and louve's patience wears thin. most of what is said are things known to her, statements that she did not feel needed repeating. the land would always be full of enemies and allies, and louve had learned how to balance politics with bloodthirst. most of the time.

there were parts she disagreed with but she held her tongue because, at the end of the day, it did not matter. this day would end with louve's rise, no matter what it would cost her to attain it. louve merely listens, and when her mother steps forward she returns the affection, but briefly.

as soon as amara puts space between them again the sovereign looses a call -- for dieudonne, for wolfbron, for any allies that wished to come. a long and thunderous roar that promises bloodshed.

and then, it begins.

louve does not wait for witnesses, she needs no crowd to take what she has earned. they will come or they will not -- it will change nothing. bright eyed and eternally hungry she lunges forward, rapidly closing the distance that amara had put between them. the wolfbron queen is no longer her mother but only an enemy to be defeated; the wolf does not know how to hold back.

as the ground between them is eaten up she snarls, teeth bared and targeting her mother's neck, attempting to bite deep in to the left side. as she slides to a stop she lowers her haunches and simultaneously lifts her right forepaw, striking out at the thin flesh over amara's left ribs.

louve vs. @Amara
for wolfbron bluffs
one of five

Hits:

Rolling 7d20: 11 + 2 + 14 + 8 + 5 + 19 + 16

Dodges:

Rolling 5d20: 11 + 15 + 18 + 6 + 1

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 4 + 5 + 10 + 19 + 7

*+1 hit from pride tier

I am not a woman, I'm a god

code x art

Io had been healing from the wounds given by the woman she attacked back in the challenge for the Mire. For being her first fight it could had gone worse than it did. But she didn't like to celebrate things she could had done better. She wasn't content knowing it was her fault for not having at least a basic knowledge over fighting. Something that she needed, not just because she should know how to defend herself, but she also wanted to be more of use for the pride she had wore her loyalty to.

She patrolled the borders, and checked on the food caches. Just doing things to both help and distract herself a bit. But when @Louve ♔ called stating a challenge for @Amara's crown she felt a wave of anxiety yet curiosity to watch how that would go. She arrives and she could see the fight already starting. She lays down to watch in complete silence while she watched closely.

IO BLACK

code x art

Louve's roar rumbles the rocks and shutters birds from their hiding places. And Cassius at first thinks it is a call to Meeting. At the same time however, it sounded like challenge? A challenge from within their own ranks?

Cassius arrives slowly but there is an unmistakable glee written into his face. Stars of joy glinting within his pale gaze. The Darkling saunters up to stand beside @Io, a low amused whislte drawing a long note before he rumbles. Whatever could have started this? Had Io been here to see what had happened? Was Cassius seeing not just cracks within the Dieudonne bonds, but deeply gouged fissures? Unfortunately for him, the story behind this drama wasn't as juicy as he hoped it to be.

code by loki / art by duudlin

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit.

It jostles him. Stops him mid tracks. This was a call from Louve, but…it confused him. There was emotion their, a demand for their presence but…why? What was he missing in that call? It was normally used when one challenged another, but Louve already lead with Amara… Brow furrowed, the teenager did not walk, he ran, Encouraged by the note of her call, as well as sheer curiosity. He would sprint across the pride lands until he could see their forms. Only then did he slow. Sucking in deep gulps of air to catch his breath before evening out and breathing normal again.

Two more arrived moments before he did, a lioness he had seen but did not know and the male that hung around Faustine He did not approach them, instead, he stood apart. Evren would draw closer to the two lioness’, black gaze studying the two as the stood opposite each other. Gaze shifted over their stances and his eyes would widen slightly. Having heard none of their conversation prior, all he saw was @Louve ♔ trying to take the crown- something no male had done. From what he knew, she had never been beaten. He had witnessed it once…but would she finally fall here? To her co-leader?

Anxious, he would look around again, hoping to find @Faustine. Maybe she would have better insight into the bizarre inner workings of her family. His attention would quickly be jolted back, however as Louve made her move, initiating the challenge. He absorbed every movement, taking the moment to learn- just as much as he watched because he simply could not take his eyes off the battle.

ART BY RABBIT, CODE BY DEE, MODIFIED BY GUNNER

she zips across the arid landscape of the bluffs as soon as her mother looses a summoning call. it promises a fight, bloodshed, pulling at manon's strings like a siren's beckoning song. she is the first of her siblings to arrive on the scene, teeth clacking together in a series of eager chomps as her gaze fixes first on her mère and grandmère locked in a ferocious battle for wolfbron. next, manon's eyes lock onto @Evren who had once spirited the tiny demon from bloodshed - for her own safety and at the behest of her grandmother, perhaps, but still unwelcome. black lips peel up over her teeth in an unhappy and very much threatening snarl. you will not take me again. it is now, threat conveyed, that manon settles her haunches against the ground, gaze fixed intently on the fight breaking out before her.

coded by flea + background credit: TLK

--Sorry I couldn't resist--

A little blur came sprinting, at first, he did not care to notice, he’d heard their tiny arrival and assumed it was one of the cubs- his ears twitching at the sounds of their paws on the ground. However, when he felt eyes on him he would reluctantly tear his gaze away from the fighting leaders and turn them to eventually land on @Manon. His head tilted slightly, as if to say ‘what’ and she would answer silently as well. Her lips pulled back to reveal glistening choppers, the threatening snarl clear. She wasn’t going anywhere.

Evren would chuckle, lips pulling back to reveal his teeth, in an almost threatening manner but then, he would stick his tongue out, making the most ridiculous face. After a moment, he would chuckle and let a smile find its way to his lips instead of a ‘threatening snarl’. He realized she was worried he would take her away, but there was no threat here and the two that mostly commanded him were locked in battle. She was safe from him carrying her off. Reluctantly, his head would tip slightly, offering a spot next to him, if she could get over her tantrum. He really didn’t want others to think he was a fucking babysitter… but on the inside he really didn’t mind Manon or @Celine. They were funny little cubs.

ART BY RABBIT, CODE BY DEE, MODIFIED BY GUNNER

faustine knew that the time had arrived as soon as she joined the crowd of growing onlookers. her maman was not one who would sit and enjoy what she was given; non. maman would rather fight her own family to have what she was owed. faustine, too, would one day clash with family again on a battlefield, and she would rightfully take what only the dieudonne should have. it wasn't false of an assumption that the idea of matriarch had sat at the back of faustine's mind. however, she was also aware of her own youth and inexperience. she would not want to face maman and be sacrificed so soon.

my grandmother wants to know if maman is ready to take the crown she said, after seating herself next to @Cassius ♔. she kept her eyes glued on to the fight, keen to observe every movement both women made. amara had held this land far longer than any other ruler currently on the island. she had not known defeat and neither did louve. it would be interesting to see if this time something would change. of course, faustine hoped louve would win, as louve was her mother and closest in terms of family.

code: cala | art: drifty