[1 v 1] Keep your hand signals to yourself (Levi/West)

[Smerdle]

Down in those tunnels under Dragonfell West had been too preoccupied with the freezing conditions and the giant monsters to worry much about Levi and Shun's little silent communication... thing. He could only assume it was the result of them training together, but that assumption only raised more unpleasant questions in the boil's mind. Why were they training together in the first place? Why wasn't she training with him? It had been quite some time since he and the tatzel had sparred, and even longer since their little jaunt into the woods to balance on tree trunks, and for some reason West had yet to quantify, he couldn't get the whispers of doubt that had assaulted his brain ever since he had ceased to be a minipet to shut the hell up already.

What if she didn't want to train with him anymore? What if there was more to it than that? What if she was tired of him?

The message he had left on her phone was terse but not unfriendly. West had simply requested her presence in the gym that afternoon under the guise of friendly fighting, and friendly fighting was what he would deliver if she decided to show. Just because they were pummeling each other didn't mean that he couldn't also use this time to stealthily extract information about her relationship with Shun. He could be stealthy. Oh yes, he could.  

[nekoluch]

"Come to the gym this afternoon we're fighting."

Poking at the tiny message envelope icon on her eyephone, the tatzel ghoul raised a brow at West's text even if he wasn't there to see her expression over it. He wanted to fight her today. Was there a particular reason? West hadn't mentioned any specific training he wanted to work out as of late.

Why now? Well, why not? A battle was still a battle and he was a particularly challenging opponent with or without their fancy new titles. Levi was excited at having a chance to practice her sneaking tactics again which she learned from the Noland course.

Arriving in the gym, Levi briefly recalled that this was her first match with West since that one time. Surprisingly, the feeling passed; there was something about battles and sparring that was therapeutic to her. Even if it was West, a fight would be a fight. Seeing the wrath demon already there, Levi resisted her usual greeting, even looking back at her tail for a moment to make sure it hadn't gone off on its own to wrap around with his. Nope, it was where it belonged.

Hands on her hips, Levi grinned and nodded her chin towards West across from her. So we doin' anythin'in particular today? What'cha want me fer, boil?  

[Smerdle]

He didn't want to smile. In spite of the stealth he had planned on employing, all West wanted to do at that moment was ask her what she and the reaper were up to right under his nose. Instead, he grabbed the feeling, knotted it up, and shoved it deep within his gut, its absence finally allowing an involuntary grin to creep onto his lips. Whatever other paranoid thoughts were on his mind, he was still glad she had come.

"Just 'cause I wanna see ya," he said, backing away a step and crouching slightly in anticipation of a possible strike. He hadn't thought about it before, but fighting was probably the best excuse he could think of for him to touch her in public. It was a shame he hadn't come up with it sooner. Of course, if she was making a fool out of him with Shun... West's grin faltered, but he caught himself before his expression could go full-on rage. "Fer practice. Can't let ya get soft on me now."  

[nekoluch]

Levi would've been put at ease had West's words not been followed up with his taking on a fighting stance. Seeing him that way caused her adrenaline to begin pumping and the urge to swat at him with her tail grew stronger. Oh yea? Ain't seein' nuff 'a me already? It was indeed suspicious; why was West so concerned about seeing her right now? Something was up and he wasn't giving her the whole story.

If if took beating him to find out what it was, she'd gladly oblige his request.

As if she'd reject it otherwise...

Soft? Ya'think I'm soft... Levi took a moment to hiss, her forked tongue flickering momentarily as if to say something vulgar in distaste. Boil, yer pushin'it even if yer just lookin' ta'git beat. Levi herself then took on a crouched sort of pose, fingers fanned out and claws at the ready. Her tail rose high, waiting.  

[Smerdle]

Her words wiped the last of his anger from his mind and his face, at least for now, and he bit back a retort he wasn't sure she'd like. No, I haven't seen nearly as much of you as I mean to. West swallowed. Angry. He was a little angry. And suspicious. Why had three minutes alone with her erased all of those perfectly legitimate feelings?  

[Smerdle]

West launched himself toward her before she had finished speaking, counting on the element of surprise to give him the advantage at the start. His wings appeared, just for a moment, and he tried gliding past her and grabbing her trickiest appendage. The thing had a mind of its own, and if he could flip her by it or tie it in a knot or... sit on it or something, it would surely slow her down.

"Beat me then," he taunted, skidding to a stop on the gymnasium's FEAR floor, her tail still in hand. He yanked on the furry tendril with as much force as he could, fully prepared to receive the whooping of his life in return. One did not mess with the tail.

HP: 50
Damage: 12  

[nekoluch]

Levi braced for the impact of West colliding into her with wings spanned out like a bird. What she hadn't thought of was his tactical attempt to first grab her tail right off the bat. Eyes widened at his fingers grasping her tail before she was yanked out of her stance and whipped around by West's flinging her by her tail. It hurt to be swing by the strongest part of her. The rest of Levi's body reached the gym floor more crudely than she usually would've fallen had it been by her tail first. This was not to say she wasn't retaliating.

Indeed, messing with the tail came with consequences.

Her fall wasn't actually a fall so much as a landing without the aid of her tail to nullify the pain. Levi was on her hands and feet in a crouch, gritting her teeth at being grasped like that. No sooner than West would catch a glimpse of this did the ghoul in turn use her tail with West's hands still on her to pound him into the floor. Going up! Going Down! That hurts. Like during her battle with Shun, the damages done to her tail were considered worse than any slashes or stabs she'd receive anywhere else. It would be the first time Levi revealed this weakness, perhaps, had it not already been evident before. However strong her tatzelwurm tail was, it was also her pride and the ghoul kept it well maintained. If West was going to be rough when dealing with it, Levi'd make sure he got it dealt right back to him.

HP: 38/50
Damage: 12  

[Smerdle]

His biggest mistake was not letting go. When she flicked him into the air like he weighed nothing at all, West could have called upon his wings once more and took off, saving himself from a painful fall. Instead, he kept his fingers clenched around her tail, his grip only loosening when his a** met the grass. Ground. Whatever.

His second biggest mistake was trying to use that traitorous glowy punch on her. The boil's teeth rattled as he landed, and the first thing he thought to do was pour his embarrassed anger into his fists, launching a compact ball of pure rage... right back into himself. West let out a surprised grunt as his attack rebounded and hit him in the chest, sending him flying backward and sliding to a stop several feet from the nearest wall. He flopped onto his back, leaving himself open to attack as he tried to catch his breath.

HP: 38-(23*.8)= 20/50
Damage: 0
Awooogah: Y2 GC  

[nekoluch]

Levi watched West... punch himself. Okay, it was more like a knock back that hadn't been anticipated to be that powerful. Racing closer towards the demon, Levi pounced at the opportunity to pin him to the floor now that he was down there. No, really; pouncing onto West's midsection, the ghoul decided to get West while he was down with a bit of FEAR of her own. Or at the least, Levi was willing to give it a go.

She leaned into him, pouting her lips as if an indication for something else entirely. Her arms were crossed over his chest and the tail lay across West's legs.

Just when he thought thing couldn't get any worse... a faint purple mist left her lips. Levi internally chuckled at her successful poisoning. This close up, there was really no way to avoid it.

HP: 38/50
Damage: Target suffers 4 damage for 2 rounds.  

[Smerdle]

And then West caught his breath. He caught his breath right as Levi poisoned him.

He had been on the receiving end of her squirrely tatzel venom once before, but it had been in the form of a bite. It had also been... kind of fun. This was not fun. It burned and made his muscles clench up and twitch involuntarily. Was this what she had been trying to do the other times they had fought? The times she had resembled a scareon coughing up a hairball? West chuckled and swung a fist at her, his arm jerking at the last second and missing by a mile. He pointed at her instead, shaking his finger like she had just stolen the last cookie from a scareling.

"That's real clever. With th' pinnin' an' th' purple misty s**t. N-nice work." He pressed his lips together and waited for this most recent spasm to pass. "NOW GET TH'HELL OFFA ME!"

HP: 16/50
Damage: 0  

[nekoluch]

His measly attempt to swing at her even after he so obviously was under the effects of her poisoning was commendable. That was just like West. dissipation or no dissipation he demanded a strike at his foe even when his own body betrayed him. Ya'like it? I made'it maself. Well, she did.

It wasn't all that often Levi successfully had her FEAR working out in a matter of attacks where she'd actually willed it to happen; on purpose and everything. The tatzel kept her perch on West, not placing all her weight on him so he'd have room to breathe but- she was watching him. West was spasming under her and all Levi wanted to do was watch him do it. Like watching an ant burn under a magnifying glass in the sun, Levi took interest in seeing what sort of reaction West had to her poison. Maybe it was more like watching him eat her cooking in a way?

Nah, the ghoul wanted to see his responses so she'd have more of an idea about how her poison effected opponents. Nah, I'like it right'ere. Gonna stay 'ere a weeeee bit longer, I'think. kekeke~ In her excitement, Levi's tail coiled around West's thighs and squeezed at them like cushions. Yer all jittery as'a jackalope. Levi wriggled in her seat, peering within West and cackling low... which potentially only made her tail tighten more.

HP: 38/50
Damage: 10 ((+ 4 from TF. last round))  

[Smerdle]

He glared at her while he waited for his muscles to cooperate again, unable to ignore the way her tail constricted his legs. On the one hand, it was holding his body in place and making this whole ordeal slightly less embarrassing. On the other, he didn't like being confined, especially when he wanted to smack the crap out of her for doing this in the first place.

West's growl was barely audible. "C'mere then, if y'like sittin' there so much." His left hand arced toward the ghoul's head, this punch much more successful than his first. Her poison was starting to wear off, but that didn't help the whole tail issue.

HP: 2
Damage: 10  

[nekoluch]

Her chin snapped to one side at being punched in the jaw, her whole head turning at the impact. Levi wiped at her bottom lip with a clawed finger, checking for blood, but nothing rubbed off. Keeping her hold on him, the tatzel's tail continued to snake around West's legs. It would last for as long as she could take it. Endurance was key to a tatzelwurm's ability to pinning, of course.

Ya'wanted me fer more than'this, West. Placing a hand over each of his shoulders, Levi tried to keep him flattened against the shield floor as if now also being interrogated. If he wasn't going to squirm physically anymore for her enjoyment observation, it was time to get back to why she was here in the first place. Has to be more to it than what he's saying.

HP: 28/50
Damage: 0  

[Smerdle]

In the heat of battle, West had almost completely forgotten why he had asked her here, but when she called him on it, all of his doubts came rushing back. Perhaps more alarming, however, was the fact that he was starting to lose feeling in his legs. He lashed out at her tail this time, delivering a couple of open-palmed smacks to the thing before giving up.

"No. Jus' asked ya here t'fight. An' yer not lettin' me!" Someone was pouting.

HP: 2
Damage: 5  

[nekoluch]

Seeing as how her tail was still wrapped around the boil, it made things exceedingly difficult to attempt evading West's hits. West evading her inquiry was what really bothered Levi though. Hissing through her teeth, she reached an arm out and before anyone knew what was what,... Levi had backhanded him. Yer lyin' ta'me.

In all seriousness at that moment, Levi realized he was holding onto something more than a pout about some tiny matter or something she may have done. Out with it! What was wrong? The tatzel considered his mockery earlier. West had frequently called her weak and it was always just a game of sorts. She'd tell him he was a stupid boil and he called her weak; same old thing.

Or was he calling her here to fight because he though she really was becoming weak? Aside from her usual routines and stealth exercises, Levi really hadn't been spending much time at the gym fighting opponents. Was he checking to see if she was still... strong enough?

It made her angry to think this/he, her mate... her boilfriend, would drop her at the prospect of her losing her touch. The ghoul's nose wrinkles into a snarl with teeth gritting together, rage trickling into her system in frustration of West's silence. Her claws came up and then down into his shoulders, tail beaten but keeping its hold. I'll stay 'ere like this fer as'long as it takes, West. Ya'ain't gettin' me'off till I know. them fellars wanna clean up they're gonna hafta'rip me offa yew n' hope I ain't hungry by then. I'd bite'afew gnomes n' come right back'ere. What's in yer head, boil?! Pure frustration fed by adrenaline and anger from assuming all the worst possible things about why West had wanted to fight her over something suddenly. It wasn't a regular old fight; why wasn't it a regular old fight?

HP: 23/50
Damage: 2