Dragoncrest Cliffs i could defeat you if it came to a physical confrontation.

The feisripa wanted to rip some faces. He'd had a terrible time attempting to sleep that night, and so he had abandoned hougeda to spend the last couple of hours before dawn in search of something to satisfy his restlessness. The trip around the borders had yielded no relief, and so he found himself with sand between his toes and saltwater lapping steadily across his feet as the tide came in.

Artaax was not one to stop and admire the world around him, so he paid no attention as the sky began to lighten into shades of periwinkle and rose. His attention was on the shoreline that stretched out before him, his eyes ever roving the path ahead for an obstacle he might tackle. He wanted to fight or to hunt, to tear something to pieces and taste blood on his tongue. It was a shame their douchebag neighbors had fled the coast as otherwise, he may have paid them a visit.

Gulls cried overhead, distracting him from his thoughts of the pale asshole he'd demolished with Furi and @Blixen those months ago. He'd thought them both morons for engaging in the fight over whatever that one guy's name had been at the time. At the moment, though, he considered that they may have been onto something.

Unfortunately for Artaax, it was Dacio who would cross his path.

At over three months of age, the boy had taken to venturing farther from Hougeda on his own. @Portia would always call for him if he was gone too long or she felt he wandered too far, but he did his best to obey her when she requested that he rendzvous at a certain time. His older sister's decision to depart Drageda weighed heavily on the entire family, and the last thing that Dacio wanted was for his mother to worry that he might disappear, too.

He found himself trailing the shoreline, maintaining some distance between the tide as it gently lapped the sand. His pastel gaze lingered on each rolling wave as they reached for his darkened paws, though a pale figure up ahead caught his attention. Lifting his large charcoal ears, Dacio paused in his tracks to quietly observe the adult's approach, and he recognised him as Artaax - @Bat's older brother. He didn't know him very well, but the Feisripa had been present when Dio had first brought him to the coast and he'd seen him briefly in passing.

He wasn't sure how to react. Artaax was a stoic sort, and his scowl that marred his features seemed far from welcoming that particular morning. Dacio dipped his muzzle respectfully and averted his eyes, waiting in silence for the ivory wolf to engage him or pass by.

blix is also out and about -- trying to process furi's -- mallaidh? -- arrival on top of bat's disappearance. the sorrow and worry of losing her sibling mixes unhappily with the joy of reuniting with her ... her friend. funny, it's almost like the time they met. furi really has the worst timing.

she sees dacio and then artaax -- oh! she hasn't spoken to her brother in a long time. he looks.. well, he looks like she feels. she picks up her pace, cutting off artaax's path to greet him with an uneasy bark. "hi dacio," the commander says, glancing at the boy, and then to her brother, "what are you doing?"

It took him a while to realize that he was not alone. A prickle along his spine of anticipation lead to his brief glance backwards to asses his stalker. He’d felt a tremor of adrenaline up until the moment he became fully aware of the fact that it was not some formidable enemy he could exact his frustrations upon, but just another god damn needy ass, useless piece of crap pup. One of Dio’s and Portia’s, which meant it wasn’t even awarded the bare amount of attention and affection that sharing blood of heda afforded his own siblings. Annoyance flooded him immediately. A snarl formed in his chest, unvoiced, and restrained completely when another joined them and her mere presence set his temper straight.

...er.

Artaax stopped then, breathed, and turned around fully to face them both. Blixen spoke while he listened, his eyes trailing to Dacio. His right ear flicked backwards as he took in her question and, carelessly, his eyes still resting unseeing on his cousin, he answered in his slow, soft voice, ”Looking for something to ruin.”

The commander's appearance was not enough to slacken young Dacio, who found himself crouching lower beneath the heat of Artaax' mismatched gaze. Dark ears splaying backward against his head, the boy flicked his tongue anxiously over his upper lip and continued to look down at the sand with the hope that they'd both ignore his presence.

Only when Blixen regarded him by name did he blink up at her with wide eyes, and offered a sheepish little smile in response. She turned to the other yearling then, piping up in question, and Dacio's eyes followed her stare - something that he immediately regretted. The Feisripa continued to glower down at the sterling cub, who gulped back the whine that threatened to swell in his throat.

Unsure if he should slink away or apologise, Dacio ducked his tail submissively between his rear limbs and chose to await the leader's dismissal.

artaax's anger is not unjustified -- she feels it too, buried underneath her mourning. but she does not like the way his gaze falls on dacio, who is clearly scared out of his wits. a sharp huff escapes her. "well, leave the poor kids out of it," the young commander snaps, taking a step toward dacio protectively. "if you need someone to take it out on, fight me." it's a half thought out suggestion, but as soon as it leaves her mouth she's committed -- blix loves a good spar, and if her brother's in a mood, he'll be a great partner. so long as he doesn't get too mad when she kicks his ass. (ha!)

Artaax didn't even see the pup as it cowered under his stare, not until Blixen pulled his wits back into his head. He blinked mismatched eyes then and refocused, quirking a confused brow at his frightened cousin before looking at his sister. He considered her offer, his angry eyes lightening to show his intrigue and the first sparks of mischief. He did have some aggression to dispel, and Blixen had always been a good punching bag.

With a roll of his shoulder, Artaax stepped away and began moving in a slow, half-circle around his sister. He glanced sidelong at her as he went. He spied Dacio still out of the corner of his eye, but other than the brief thought that maybe the kid would learn something from getting to witness this, he dismissed his presence. It was just Artaax and Blixen now. The white lion stopped and shifted his weight to face her, tensing his muscles as he slid into a ready position.

Blixen swept toward him, looming proactively over him as she challenged the moody Feisripa to fight her. His heart skipped an uncomfortable beat and, unsure if Artaax would reject her in favour of an easier target.

Grey-green eyes flitted between the adult duo, and he held his breath as the paler of the two made his first move and began to circle their young leader. Dacio side-stepped in the opposite direction Artaax went, his own steps careful for fear that he might turn toward him again.

Dacio lingered nearby, eager to flee but curious enough to want to see how this spar would end.

wanna do super quick rolls or? i'm cool w/whatever haha

it's easy to pull artaax's attention fully onto her. secretly she also hopes dacio'll stick around to watch -- he'd held his own fairly decently during their sparring training, and she wants a generation of little warriors (even if, of course, she wouldn't try to force that onto any of them.) blixen snorts as artaax shifts into position, taking her time to circle away from where she'd been hovering near the child.

artaax, undeniably, outmatches her in physical prowess -- and he has a kill under his belt. but blixen has held her own plenty in  her time and more to the point, has fought with him enough to have a sense of his style (and, presumably, he her, a fact she is aware of). but blix isn't too worried about winning right now -- she has nothing to prove to artie. this is all, for her, just some good fun. and good fun means playing dirty.

pulling her lips back into a toothy, wolfish grin, she springs forward, aiming to graze his side and sink into his hind leg, with the hope of tumbling them both to the ground.

quick rolls are good with me! I left it open for anything to happen if you want to start :D

Amusement flickered in his heart for the look on his sister's face, muting the aggravation and violence that had previously claimed him. His expression didn't shift, though, even as the amusement fell away and the battle began. He saw the subtle tension in her muscles that spoke of her attack, and so he was able to steel himself against it in the short seconds before she moved. He pushed himself forward to meet her with a silent snarl, keeping his head low and shoulder forward in hopes of connecting with her chest and knocking her aside. It left his ruff fairly open, but he had sparred enough to know that it was hard to keep your grip on anything when your lungs were empty of air.

sorry to skip dacio but wanna keep this moving! <3 rolled a hit

he sees her movements -- good, she didn't want this to be easy -- and moves to match. no teeth meet her flesh but artaax is a fucking big boy. she does not have enough time to get out of the way, his lousy thick skull connecting at the juncture between her chest and shoulder. blixen makes a sound halfway between a yelp and oof, her momentum suddenly redirected downward. she desperately scrambles to avoid hitting the ground completely, her breath coming fast and sharp as she lunges for a hold on artaax, trying to use him as leverage to keep from tipping sideways -- or drag him down with her, if her grip is strong enough.

Artaax's sister was a power. He knew that perfectly well. It was what made her his favorite sparring partner. Not many could keep up with him, let alone give him a challenge. Blixen offered both. He still destroyed her every time, but it was still more fun than utterly destroying someone that was barely worth his time.

He smashed into her, but she managed to recover too quickly, the slippery bitch. A silent snarl echoed in his expression as he dipped his head to protect from her next attack. He didn't bother trying to dodge, knowing perfectly well that she would be faster. His only option was to hold still, attempt to aim, and thrust upwards to try and throw her off when she did land her attack.

He managed to do just that, though he stumbled at the force of her blow. He gave a timely twist, using some of her own momentum to shake off her hold. He spun to pursue her as she passed, his jaws parting in another attempt to grab her and use his superior weight to shove her to the ground.

rolled a miss!
11/28: editing in a conclusion since artie went inactive / ill leave it open for a couple more days if you wanna add a final dacio post rebel!

artaax absorbs her attack, pulling from her grasp before she can properly take him down. her own footing is too slippery and her momentum not in her favor as he twists toward her -- she can't get away from him fast enough and he connects with her side. she goes down hard, hitting the ground with a wince, and finds she can't pull from artaax's grip -- but she's not about to give up, either. abandoning slick tactics for some down and dirty roughhousing, the firebrand kicks up at him, trying to kick him hard enough to get him to losen his grip, but damn if he's not thick and hard to hit.

her kicks fail to connect and after a few minutes of struggle blixen gives up, shouting "uncle!" losing to her hulking bear of a brother is not particularly bothersome to the guardian -- this was just for fun, and she's panting, happy with it. artaax looks less tightly wound now, too. springing back to her feet she playfully tugs at his ears, announcing cheerfully, "i'll get you next time."

with that she moves towards @Dacio -- assuming the child has lingered -- and ushers him back toward the dens, lest artaax's murderous mood return without her stabilizing presence.