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Jupe was a little on the small side for a lioness, but one could easily blame that on a rough life in the roguelands. Poor nutrition had stunted some of her growth, and it was likely she would have been a larger and more powerful lioness if she had only been fed properly as a cub. But, with meals scarce and company even moreso, Jupe had done the best for herself that any young lioness could. What she lacked in stature, she made up for in pure tenacity. Jupe wasn't the type of lioness to give up, and she could persevere in the toughest of situations. But, that didn't mean she wanted to live her daily life like this.

No, Jupe wanted a better life for herself. She wanted to be able to breathe without worrying what was going to happen tomorrow or the next day. So, the lioness had to fight just a little more for her prosperity. Rumors of the Stormborn had spread far enough that the young lioness had heard of them, and she knew that all she had to do was win a fight with one of the pride's members to earn her own place. She didn't think the odds were in her favor, but that didn't mean she was going to back down from the challenge.

The fact that she had to fight for her right to join was perfect for her. She wanted to be in a strong pride with strong lions. She wanted that sort of security for herself, and so here she was, roaring her challenge out, waiting for the lion that would answer her and give her the fight she not only needed, but desired.

"Yes, I would," Jupe replied, her voice soft but firm. It was a voice that belonged to someone who was used to challenges, though of a different sort. This was little different than the skirmishes she had gotten into in the rogue lands. Fights were short and brief, enough to determine a victor while avoiding ghastly injury. Jupe sucked in a quick, calming breath, telling herself to be steady and quick. She wasn't big, but she was agile. All she had to do was use her smaller stature to her advantage, and keep this lion from overwhelming her from the get go.

If Ensis thought she'd bide her time and wait for an opening, he was wrong. The lioness attacked the way she always favored, by being straightforward. If she was lucky, it would catch him off guard to Jupe charged right at the larger lion, and when she was close enough to land a blow, she twisted to the right, trying to swipe at his shoulder. She was sure she shouldn't try to injure the other lion too greatly, just prove her strength against him.

Then again, her strength didn't quite lie in her physical qualities. It rested in experience and a quick mind.

Jupe skittered back out of Ensis' reach before the lion could land a solid blow on her. She was small enough that one or two good blows would be enough to take her out, so Jupe's main goal was to strike at him before he could strike her back. It wouldn't make for a fluid fight, but it was definitely safer this way. Her best chances of winning were to fight in a way that protected herself and lashed out at her enemy.

The lioness faced Ensis, and slowly moved to the right, keeping her eyes focused on him, waiting to see if he would strike out at her. Normally, she would be on the defense by now, but the odds seemed to be in her favor, and she really liked being the one leading the attack over following it. Jupe feinted suddenly to the left, trying to catch him at his side again. She'd plow into him if she had the body strength to succeed in it. Instead she would have to settle for swiping and, if she dared, biting the lion. If she got a good enough hold on him, she could probably pin him!

But, she was still testing him, testing his strength so she could figure out what she could get away with it, and so she made another swipe at his hind quarters. It would be harder to move out of distance quickly, but she needed to make a more impacting blow.

Fear of being hit could easily make a lion pause or induce a sort of paralysis. But, Jupe had been hit before, she knew what pain was like. Instead of screwing her eyes shut and waiting for a blow to land, she pulled her head back. Jupe had still been expecting to be hit, so she was genuinely surprised when the swipe ended short. Was she being tested? There was no time to contemplate whether or not he was, because if she took too long to recover, she'd lose all the advantage she had gained.

Ensis was free to test her, Jupe was just going to go all out against him instead. She figured her opponent was one to bide his time and wait for the perfect opportunity. Jupe, in turn, would just have to be quicker and end it as soon as she could manage. The lioness switched tactics from swiping, instead using what strength she possessed to try and drag the lion down. Jupe leaped at Ensis, trying to latch onto his mane and use the combined force of her weight and speed to drag him down and flip him over onto his side. His mane would protect his neck, naturally, so there was no fear of injuring him severely. Really, all his mane provided to her was something easy to grab onto.

Jupe didn't move out of the way in time to avoid the claws scratching down her flank. She had hoped to persist in this move, eventually have her strength to win out against his. But, it was clear when he did not immediately falter that she'd have to switch tactics yet again. It was a youthful hope that she could still win out that made her hold onto him for so long. When he managed to rake his claws against her flesh, however, she released him and backed out of range again.

She didn't bother to spare a glance back to her flank. Looking at whatever damage was there wouldn't change anything. Jupe did, however, curse vehemently under her breath. Worse yet, her tactic had only gotten the hair of his mane in her mouth, and it tasted terrible. She'd spit it out if she didn't think it would lower whatever opinion he had developed of her. Ignoring the ache, she began to circle the lion again, keeping on the move to give him less of an opportunity to charge at her.

And if he did charge at her, it would be easy enough to twist away and be able to swipe or bite at his legs. That was her best chance of inflicting injury on him. So, she bid her time, waiting to see if Ensis would make a move when she failed to.

Jupe could back up, keeping a certain amount of distance between them, but she was trying to bait him into coming at her. She wasn't dealing with an amateur, but that didn't mean he wouldn't make a mistake. Ensis could easily underestimate or overestimate her, and either things could tip things to her favor. Jupe was already at a disadvantage by size alone, and the lioness couldn't afford to make another mistake with her attacks. She just would have to hope and let Ensis make the mistakes for her.

Jupe almost smirked when he came running at her, certain that he had fallen for her little trap. But, the lion wasn't lashing out at her, and this change sent her mind reeling for a few precious seconds. She had no idea what he was going to do, and couldn't properly defend against it. His body rammed against her's, and nearly completely knocked her off balance. Jupe felt her paws temporarily leaving the ground, but she held fast, acting far quicker than her mind could think. Her body was moving even before she had a plan in mind, claws digging into the earth as she violently twisted herself around.

It hurt, but a quick reaction was what she needed. Twisting her small body, she turned to lash out at his flank with claws and teeth.

Jupe was already backing out of Ensis' range when the lion swung his head back at her. She had learned that lingering within the lion's attack range for too long wouldn't end well for her, but this time she failed to get out of the way in time, likely because his prior blow still had her off balance and her body protesting movement. His head bashed against the shoulder, and the lioness yelped with pain, the first time she had made it glaringly obvious that she was hurting.

Anger surged through her, and for a moment clouded her better judgement. She retaliated on instinct, though at the last second she drew sheathed her claws as she swiped boldly at his face. Sense had came to her in the last second, telling her that while she was pissed, she'd never forgive herself for permanently maiming a lion who's pride she was trying to join.

It was a good thing Ensis had yelled at her to stop, because she was already preparing for her next assault. The lioness stopped in mid-action, sucking in a quick breath to help pull herself out of her planned attack. Jupe took a step back, and stared at Ensis with almost a disturbing level of quiet. The lioness was quite serious, though she wasn't incapable of joy. In fact, for a moment, there seemed to be a small smile upon her face.

"Thank you," the lioness responded humbly, a little out of breath, and definitely not perfectly composed. But, she recovered well enough, and nodding her head approached Ensis with no more intent than to follow him into her new home, her first and hopefully last pride!

(--fin--)