Pulled from the shadows, drawn by the call for blood and glory, Louve arrives as the crowd gathers. At first she watches the fight, undeniably pleased that it is her own famile that fights for the rank. Then her attention shifts to the watchers, and for the most part her expression remains unreadable.

@Lazare is present, of course, for the enigmatic daughter never seemed far from the happenings of the bluffs. She sits beside @Sable, and irritation prickles beneath the skin of the queen. It had been a mistake, she reflects, to allow her presence here, to demand anything of her leaving. A mistake she should seek to rectify, soon, for the woman's distaste of the workings of the Bluffs had been made crystal clear.

Not now, though, for her gaze slides briefly to @Delphine (curious, always, of her relations, wishing for more of the bond she thought they should nurture) before it rests upon Elaine. Here is where she makes her decision, taking a seat beside her sister, keeping her attention split between the fight and its onlookers.

ART BY DESSXLY, CODE BY LARS, MODIFIED BY GUNNER

@Sable returns her small, pointed smile with one of her own. The motion is small and effort meager, yet girlish joy bursts in her chest all the same. Her smile widens for a moment, forgetting the careful game they play, but she catches herself soon enough. Even if the corners of her mouth still slanted up with a cheeky air. She leans to the side, in sables direction, quietly whispering to the older woman. Do you think she'll win this time? The huntress hadn't been particularly pleased with this strategy before, surely that hasn't changed.

She wants to know, though; she wants more of these little secrets.

And-- oh! as if on cue, @Delphine appears. Resting on one of the higher ledges, she looks down upon the battle-- and on them. maybe on them. When bright green eyes turn her way, lazare shoots the younger girl a small little wink. Delightful and easy, the same way you'd pass notes in the classroom. Beyond that though her attention flickers back, half to the fight and most to thr huntress at her side.

BG — ART — CODE

She wasn’t sure if the younger woman would engage in conversation again this time; she’d said but a few words at the last challenge before it turned into what it did with the fight and the following argument with the queen, but I was nice to see some sort of solidarity against what they were seeing. For again, the yearling girl was out for blood against her older opponent.

"I do not, though I have been wrong from time to time," she whispered back. And she had, but this one she felt fairly confident about. She watched the combatants, studying their merits… and faults. "It won’t be an easy victory for the other though. While I’ve made my opinions clear on the matter, there are things the girl does that would be vital against the pride’s enemies." The girl being @Régine. "Striking with precision against critical spots such as their throat and underbelly as she does, for instance. Practicing these," she emphasized, "but not necessarily following through in that practice, is important if you wish to be efficient in true combat."

She ignored the arrival of Louve beside the two opposite women, saving her focus for the fight and @Lazare.

coding by muu

Her claws catch on her opponent 's lip, and part of her feels pleasure at having successfully drawn more blood from her opponent. She didn't care who this was, didn't care that it was a distant family member somehow. She was not expecting the other to surge forward, and she was bowled onto her back.

Instantly her brain went on the offensive again, aiming front and back claws towards the other's soft underbelly and chest. Her intent was to slash and fear at the other's chest despite being on the ground. She'd seen family members do the same thing before. Her head would perk forward, aiming to sink her teeth in somewhere around the other's neck if she could manage to grasp a hold of something.


Régine v. @Étoile
for Noble
Round 3/3
Hits:

Rolling 3d20: 12 + 2 + 19

Dodges:

Rolling 3d20: 10 + 18 + 3

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 19 + 1 + 17 + 14 + 4

text. "speech."

Art & Table code by Zodiac

The girl continues to squirm, even as the older lioness pins her down. She thrashes and flails and bites and Étoile wants so badly to cuff her around the ears and hold her by the throat as if she were a small cub: stay down!

She wants to, but she doesn't, and so the girl finds purchase against her belly and Étoile shifts to kick her back, looking to slam one of her back paws into the yearling's abdomen as if she were an angered bunny. Maybe in a scrap against one of her sisters, that would be enough, but the other just kept coming. Teeth scraped against flesh, burying through her short pelt to find the skin above her pulse.

Étoile flinches at the proximity, her head snapping back to avoid the gnashing jowls of her opponent. With her left paw, she aims to slam the girl's head back into the ground, a warning BEGGING the ambitious youth to spare her jugular in her excitement.

@Régine v. Étoile
for Noble
Round 3/3
Hits:

Rolling 4d20: 14 + 19 + 16 + 2

Dodges:

Rolling 5d20: 14 + 4 + 13 + 15 + 12

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 2 + 3 + 8 + 12 + 6

_{BG — ART — CODE}

@Régine VS. @Étoile FOR WOLFBRON BLUFFS NOBLE
— RESULTS —

Régine Hits: 2+1+2+5 Luck = 10
Régine Dodges: 3+2+1 = 6

Étoile Hits: 2+3+3+3 Luck = 11
Étoile Dodges: 3+3+4 = 10

Régine Successful Hits: 0
Étoile Successful Hits: 5

Étoile HAS WON THE CHALLENGE FOR WOLFBRON BLUFFS NOBLE!

The results of this fight cannot be acknowledged ICly until either both challengers have responded or 3 days have gone by — whichever comes first. Any posts breaking this rule will be removed.

She sat contently on her own, prepared to watch her littername vye for whatever ambitions brewed within her chest – only, she was alone for very long, not long at all. Because @Elaine ♔ was at her side soon enough, and not long after, @Louve ♔ had joined her, leaving the trio perched curiously in observation for the unfurling challenge; a line-up that Delphine seldom would envision herself in. It prompted a cautious prickle to ignite across Delphine’s skin, almost as though she was sitting somewhere that she did not belong. As if too many eyes were shifting curiously in her direction, looking for a reaction - or perhaps something else - from her.

She did not like that feeling.

Save for the brief glance passed between her and @Lazare earlier on, Delphine opted to keep to herself, her expression flat even as the stranger eventually reigned victorious over @Régine. Instinctively, then, did her tongue click against the backs of her teeth, perhaps mirroring her earlier scrutiny, as she rose from her previously stilled position. She had seen all she needed to see, and it did not matter what words would be exchanged following the outcome of the fight – the particulars were of no interest to Delphine, only the substance and the intent. And so, without wasting another moment, the yearling would promptly look to remove herself from the edges of the arena, returning back the way she had come without so much as a word. exit.

code by daanyen, art by loki

Hellfire. Hellfire.

Ain't no chariots of fire, come to take me home I'm lost in the woods, and I wander alone

Elaine watches the fight carefully and only looks away when @Louve ♔ joins her near their younger sister. Perhaps Louve was feeling the same way that Elaine was, that something more was needed. Stronger bonds had to be built. Time would tell. She didn't notice her sister's discomfort and as the fight started to come to an end, Elaine moved toward the pair. Deciding to take charge in her new rank. Her gaze flicked between them before landing on @Régine. You both fought well. Sister, age wins out this time. Take Barony and help guide the pride. She looked from her sister to @Étoile. The rank is yours. Use it well to help us build the pride and keep the family safe. Elaine was giving trust to this family member that she didn't know much about in hopes that she would be able to keep her close.

Elaine looked back to her younger sister. I will practice with you any time you wish. There is never a reason to stop learning and pushing yourself. She hoped it would ease the pain of not getting the rank she wanted. Elaine didn't see the gift of a different rank as anything but what she had earned by being willing to step up and fight an older lioness. Elaine respected it.

Take My Soul

Burn in an alleyway through a dead end street Murdering promises that I just can't keep

code by corvus|Image

There is strength in femininity.

She looks to @Sable for the older woman's experienced opinion, and she gets it. The huntress speaks plainly but thoughtfully, and lazare listens keenly. If she is underestimated and unrecongized here in the bluffs, then it is not by lazare's hand. Instead she listens as she watches the fight continue on, blood spilling back where it belongs into the red soil. True combat, she murmurs, almost idly. There was always something more important to be had than a rank.

And yet, her little aunt falls short again.

Lazare is nonplussed, though she's curious of the other woman. The new noble, she presumed. Perhaps the next time. Lazare murmurs to sable, rolling an angular shoulder-- truthfully, she did not care one way or another. There were more important things to be had, and fought over. A pointed look is given to her companion, a small smile quirking one corner of her mouth. until next time, says the dip of her skull, but lazare was too curious to let sable go until then.

The rest of it, though, did not hold her attention.

Exit

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The other leaves of the Dieudonné family tree shake and flutter around them as Étoile soaks in her victory, no doubt murmuring their bets and thoughts behind delicate, royal paws. She gives the idea the vaguest of acknowledgements, the smallest of glaze of doubt simmering just under the surface.

It's gone before she can even glean the meaning of the emotion. Gone with the fluttering and the shaking as Elaine offers up her reward and title. Noble she is gifted, a proper lady of the Bluffs through her own strength against a child.

The woman gives a little smirk and steps away from her opponent, shooting her a delicate merci before slipping away to flaunt her new position to the unsuspecting masses.

+5 - Challenge for a rank
+10 - Win a fight

/ exit_{BG — ART — CODE}