[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]they're close... evenly matched, perhaps.

she looks anxious as lick swipes across her alolan meowth's head again.

can they beat him? or will he hold this over her head?

the alolan meowth's final attempt to steal victory out from beneath him comes in the form of fury swipes, its claws sharpened and swiping at the froakie.

Q2OTPSH4
CIAN MAHER
+10 to any rolls ending in 0, 100 gets +30
hp: 0/3

[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]"seems like it."

he's doing well enough now - he's even got her on the ropes.

she looks a little uncertain now, as if all of her smugness has evaporated to be replaced with mild doubt. can they come back from this?

her alolan meowth, despite being knocked around and looking dirty now from the arena's ground, still finds it in herself to stand strong and try to dodge the hydro pump. the alolan meowth uses pay day as a hail mary, chucking coins at the froakie to deter it.

Zzd7DT|1
CIAN MAHER
+10 to any rolls ending in 0, 100 gets +30
hp: 1/3

[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]the faint clink echoes around them even after they pull their glasses apart. she takes a sip shortly after he does, savoring the wine's slightly sweet taste.

and as he reaches for the hem of her shirt, she shifts to place her wine glass down. once the glass is safe and secure, she lifts her arms to allow the shirt to be pulled up. the colder air of the bathroom hits bare skin and she shivers.

"don't want to take too long - it'll get cold."

her hands reach to tug at his shirt, then, for she does not want to be standing here too long... goosebumps have already begun to rise across her body.

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]"good, it keeps you on your toes."

besides, she'd rather continue to surprise than bore him.

his froakie avoids the bite and counters with smack down, launching her alolan meowth down into the dirt. the cat yowls in pain, but climbs back onto its feet. after a moment, the alolan meowth returns the favor with play rough.

zCwLAJBM
CIAN MAHER
+10 to any rolls ending in 0, 100 gets +30
hp: 2/3

[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]she looks a little too smug as her alolan meowth seems to come out on top for now.

"surprised?"

he shouldn't be. she's proven to be formidable in her own girlish ways, hasn't she?

the alolan meowth grimaces as lick swipes the froakie's tongue across its cheek. gross. the cat, while usually a fan of having the other cats in the house take over grooming responsibilities, does not appreciate this frog doing it. the alolan meowth is quick to bite right back, leaping toward the froakie to chomp down on its cheek.

DRfmkTTA
CIAN MAHER
+10 to any rolls ending in 0, 100 gets +30
hp: 3/3

[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]the gentle kiss is appreciated, perhaps even more so than usual for it has been a long few months and she's kind of surprised he's stuck around this long. although, he always has been gentle - for the most part, anyway - with her.

he extends a newly filled glass to her and she takes it gingerly, flashing a grateful smile.

"thank you."

and while she'd usually say it'd jinx whatever the subject of their toast is, she can't bring herself to disagree.

"yes, to us, then."

her glass rises a moment later toward his.

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]"triple h, huh?"

a laugh escapes at the thought, as if only he would come up with multiple nicknames for himself during this whole tournament thing. it's endearing, in a way.

his froakie starts them off by cloning itself into multiple versions of the same froakie. and once they all begin moving at once, it's difficult for her alolan meowth to tell which one is the real deal... at least, until a hydro pump hits it square in the face from the real one. the cat hisses, clearly displeased, and retaliates with night slash.

ddbdGv2O
CIAN MAHER
+10 to any rolls ending in 0, 100 gets +30
hp: 3/3

[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]oh.

the question, while perhaps a reasonable thing to ask, fully crawls under her skin with every intention of irritating her. and like a cat poked and prodded one too many times, she reacts with annoyance and a scowl.

"do you?"

her hands plant defiantly on both sides of her hips and her eye narrows.

"at least i did something to change my circumstances. can you even say the same?"

she's not certain, though perhaps that's why they're here in the first place.

Roy Aker
doubt mission.

[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]she leans into his touch with a pleased smile, as if she hadn't been entirely sure her choice of alcohol would be a good thing or not. it's nice, in a way, to realize she had simply been overthinking the concept.

"thank you, thank you."

her smile shifts slightly into an amused sort of territory.

"wanna pour our glasses while we wait?"

the bath bomb shouldn't take much longer... though, perhaps they should wait until after they've undressed to avoid spilling wine all over the floor.

CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]oh...

she looks nervous, as if her entire life up until this point might just burn down with this single match.

does he recognize her now with one less eye and dyed hair? will he judge her? will he... hunt her?

she puts on her best smile, forcing it into place on her face, and steps forward to greet mint frost from across the arena.

"hey, good luck today!"

her alolan meowth looks bored, though that seems to be a normal expression for the high maintenance cat.

mint frost

[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]"hey, long time no see!"

she hasn't seen him much since the ultra deep sea and her switching of sides... though, he still seems accepting of her regardless. it's nice, she realizes, to feel like they're friends. his pikachu, tofu, jumps off his shoulder and runs up to nuzzle her fondly. she lets out a delighted laugh and returns the nuzzle with ease.

"i can't complain much so i guess it's goin' good? how about you?"

the alolan meowth at her side looks up at ollie for a brief moment before looking back down to continue inspecting its nails, as if it can't be bothered to join in on the conversation. tch... a work in progress, she hopes.

ollie morales

[attr="class","giada"]

[attr="class","giada b"]

[attr="class","giada i”]the comment catches her off guard enough for her to take a moment to process. by the time it fully computes with her brain, she's flashing a grin at him from across the arena.

"ready to get your ass kicked, CIAN MAHER ?"

she's not entirely mean enough to ignore him - not on purpose, at least.

the alolan meowth at her side, however, would definitely ignore him on purpose. it looks a little bored, as if she woke it up from a nap and it'll make that everyone's problem. oh well...

"start us off, hotshot."

CIAN MAHER