Pollen didn't spend enough time with the others in the Palace, did she? No, she stayed mostly in the gardens, and made conversation a little more leisurely than before, her enthusiasm curbed by growing up. She needed to recover a bit after emerging from her chrysalis with some downtime, and she hadn't even pursued her previous fixation on Rodd Danger in four whole cycles.

Well, she'd still like to meet him, but she'd come to realize that that may not even be possible. Ah, well. She could still be a fan to her favorite show, still blissfully unaware of the propaganda it held. It inspired her to practice a bit more, anyways, which she'd come to do in her spare time, when she wasn't busy in the dirt.

There was the seed from her ascension she'd like to do something with, too. For now, she'd stored it in one of the gardening sheds, kept for later. It wasn't necessary for practicing more combat-oriented magic. For the first time in a while, she was focused on herself and her own progress, taking her time with regrowing the garden her body held. It's been slow work, but it's a bit manageable now, at least- even if these leaves keep popping up all over her back and making her need to trim them periodically. It's fine.

At the moment, Pollen stood in the foyer of the Palace, just barely in the entrance. Obieth should be around if she'd want to practice fighting, right? She could handle the corruption, she imagined, even if she'd managed to finally get a good night's sleep after waking up from the Deathmatch.

Still. She wanted to be able to do better, so she wanted to spar with Obieth anyways. Or- it didn't even have to be a spar. It could just be magic practice, if the valkcat preferred. But she had to find her in the first place, anyways.

So, Pollen took another step into the foyer as her hands laid in the pockets of her overalls. One pulled out and perched at her muzzle. "Obieth?" She called into the Palace, her voice echoing off of empty halls. Was she in Aethril's room? "Obieth, wanna spar?" If she wasn't there, she'd move on, maybe practice moves by herself, but...

Well, she kind of wanted to just hang out with Obieth, too.

@Obieth

this thread's backdated just a couple days, by necessity, to before this thread!

Cat activation noise.

The half-asleep, deep-throated "..-Mrrrp?" came as Obieth's head lifted from her paws. She blinked a few times, hollowed ears flicking, then lifted herself from the marble as she recognized Pollen's voice. A yawn, a languid stretch, and she was making her way toward the call.

Obieth hadn't ever really thought of Pollen as a fighter--not, at least, until she'd gone to the Deathmatch. The little muta had well outperformed her meagre size, and Obieth had been pretty impressed by that. Not that she, herself, was all that big: maybe two hundred pounds, but Pollen was less than half that, and the monsters in the Deathmatch?

Considerably larger. Well--most of them, at least.

She took in, with half-lidded eyes, the dim light gleaming on white stone. She caught the delicious odors of Nedies' cooking, drifting down the halls--something frying, she thought, with a spark of hunger in her gut. "I'll spar," she called out, "if we can go eat after." Not that Obieth needed permission from Pollen, to eat: but it'd be nice to share a meal together. She'd never disliked the gardener, at least.

Obieth padded down the hall, shrouded by the ever-present smoky shadows and indistinct whispering--irritations she had learned to ignore. Chaos, though, still lingered: and the prospect of a fight was more than enough reason to haul her out of bed.

She reached Pollen, and it was clear that Obieth was just waking up: another stretch, another yawn, a shake of her velveteen pelt, and she lashed a tongue over black whiskers and peered. "Now-?" she asked, just to clarify. And--husky voice still thick with sleep, though clearing as she went on--"What's the rules?"

Banishing Pollen to the void and then going for a snack as a joke was tempting, but probably off the table.

@Pollen

As Pollen waited, she shoved her paws back into the pocket, as if she was wearing a sweatshirt rather than the stiff-material lined overalls. It'd become one of her more signature outfits- comfy and polite, especially since Aethril'd started to get weird about her not wearing clothes. Obieth didn't have to wear clothes- but, she figured it was only fair, since she did want to look good for her Hand.

Anyways. The muta took to scuffing her foot idly on the floor as she waited, glancing up at the flicker of movement down the way. Ah, there was Obieth. Grinning, Pollen started with a spring in her step, padding closer to cut the distance between them.

"Food sounds good. Did you see what Nedies's cooking today?" The distance closed, and Pollen drew to a stop, pulling her arms from the pocket at her chest. "I figured we could do it outside the grounds, and, ah-- more physical? Unless you want to practice anything. Just, uh, nothing too bad, I don't want to worry Miss Aethril too much." The latter half had a small laugh accompanied with it, smile widening enough to close her eyes for a brief moment. "You can use spells on me, I'll be fine. I kinda wanna try uhh-- the only things I've really fought're people bigger than me, so the practice'll be pretty fun, I think."

The only people she'd fought were in the Deathmatch, and she only won by default with the first, and got smushed by the second. She did survive, at least, and it was a fun struggle (past the pain, of course). Obieth? Obieth was a bit of a more trained fighter, and she figured they could both use the practice anyways.

Already turning on her heel and ready to make her way out of the Palace, Pollen kept talking. "I guess, rules- no chrysalizing or nothing too bad, y'know? Winner could... maybe first to draw blood, or first to tap out?" She took a step and paused, looking to Obieth at the proposition. "Or maybe not first blood. Uhh- first one who can't fight anymore loses. That sounds better." Her loose mane gently fell to the side as she tilted her head, uncertainty on her face.

@Obieth

She listened, good-natured enough. Again: let it be said that she liked Pollen, as much as Obieth liked anyone, at least.

But two other urges tugged at her.

First was the inevitable draw toward Chaos: to do the unexpected, to lash out, to harm and to destroy. Second-...

Second, Obieth was a cat. So basically, all of those things anyway. Just doubled all up. Her head cocked a little to one side as Pollen finished speaking, and the only warning of her half-playful, half-predatory urge was given in a single flick of the end of her tail. Then, she reached out her magic--not to harm, but to play.

Like a cat plays. With--luckily--fewer claws involved.

She spoke then, playful, but it was Schroedinger's opening move: if Pollen was annoyed, well, then it'd just be just a joke! Meant that way, all along, of course. If Pollen fought back? Well, it'd be a spar.

"Until one of us can't fight anymore?" Obieth rasped, amused. Her magic poured out, and she imagined it like a tumbling stormcloud rolling toward Pollen: an attempt to squish the poor muta to the floor. Not harshly, but a pin nonetheless, with Obieth standing mischievous before her.

"Can you fight now-? Do I win?" she asked--possibly a little preemptively, since the magic was only just reaching for her.

@Pollen

(she's being an ass so I won't put this as her round 1-)

Pollen was rather aware that Obieth was, well, Obieth. After all, how long had they known each other? Gosh, it was about eight cycles now, wasn't it? Well, if she could bear the brunt of their chaos, she could definitely handle a spar with her.

Mid-nod to Obieth's echo, pressure washed over her and shoved her to the ground, like a firm hand to the back-except, all over. A small "oof" escaped her as she wiggled. "Hey!" The bark held laughter in it as she squirmed in place, twisting back as best she could to look at her friend. The glare in her expression held no malice. A grin accented it, knowing what Obieth was doing. She did keep it physical, but...

"If we were outside, I could still fight, I bet," she claimed, sticking out her tongue. Outside was where all the plants were, after all. If she were inside, maybe she could have gloated Obieth closer, or waited out the magic, or tried to snake one of her vines over... Any number of things.

She kind of wanted to try things that weren't plants, too, but-- well, she probably couldn't compare to the chaotic repertoire of her companions, she'd have to admit. It would be in her realm to figure out how to incorporate other kinds of magic. That testing would have to be done away from the Palace in the first place, which is why Pollen struggled to perch herself up, only to be flattened by the pressure again with a dull thump.

"Can you, uh..." She raised a paw to point above her, swirling her digit to indicate to whatever was pushing her down. "If we were fighting, you'd win, but it didn't even start yet, doofy." She did know what Obieth could go for now, too, but, hopefully asking for it to be more physical would help? Whatever the case, this was sure to be a fun battle.

(Corruption: +1, total of 1) @Obieth

Obieth laughed, husky and good-natured, and released her magic to step back. Playful, the way a cat could be--pouncing and pinning. But now she withdrew, because Pollen was not prey: Pollen was a friend. ...Ish.

"I know," she answered--"but I decided it started. We'll call it one-oh," she added, again playful, with a flick of her tail. She nodded off, then, toward the gardens.

"Show me where you want to spar."

She'd follow along languidly, her rolling and graceful gait taking her alongside and a little behind Pollen. Her always-alert, half-lidded gaze swept the premises, ensuring all was well.

"Why do you not want me to use magic?" she asked, curiosity. She needed practice in magic--in both, really. But she wondered: why not magic, specifically?

@Pollen

Pollen was released, and the little muta huffed, smiling. "One point for you, then," she conceded, ineffectively brushing off her overalls, as if the Palace had any dirt in the first place. She started off and waited for Obieth to follow behind, tail flicking almost like her's- a trait she'd started to pick up, it seemed.

But, even if Pollen had begun to incorporate parts of Obieth into herself, there were still a lot of differences. Namely- "Oh, I mean- you can use magic, I just figure you'd be able to stop a lot of fights if you just told their brains to stop fighting." Her gaze wandered as she paced quickly through the gardens, searching for an emptier area she'd noticed by the river. Hopefully it'd be too far away from the normal lawn, and if it got corrupted, she could deal with it.

"You uh-- you have a lot of magic you can do," she spoke in a tone of admittance, as if she weren't skilled herself. No, she couldn't change the winds and press it down, she couldn't split the earth or tell people to do things for her. Well, the latter she could with her words, but that wouldn't be magic. Sure, she didn't have the corruptive properties of her companions, but...

Her nostrils flared as she huffed again, lightly shaking the idea from her head. The brief expression of concern melted into a grinning confidence. "If you want to do that, you can. I should figure out how to fight through that, too, so anything is probably good." Pollen gave an unsure laugh through her teeth. Yeah, even if she was trying to look so sure of herself, planting her hands at her hips, the truth was that she didn't know how to fight. She survived the Deathmatch, but would she survive another? What would happen in an unsanctioned fight, a giant rebel coming to attack Miss Aethril or the Palace?

She couldn't tell a rebel what to not do. They wouldn't listen, so if Obieth wanted to use her full repertoire, then Pollen would be ready. She hoped her vines would be enough. If Obieth got the starting attack, she'd be at the disadvantage- but maybe she could work it into her favor? Pollen's head dropped to look at her arms as she unravelled the vines from their trappings, letting one from each arm drop to gather onto the grassy lawn. "So-- give me all you got, then. Ready when you are!" She rocked back on her feet, preparing herself. Both hands pulled out to her sides as she wrapped her fingers around the thick, thorned surface of the plants. She'd lowered her stance, her grin dimming into a serious focus, accented with a smile, almost daring Obieth to throw her best shot first.

@Obieth

Obieth considered, as they walked. And she was more serious when she answered. ""Hmm. We can practice with my mind-powers later. And it is the same with my void. My magic... nullifies," she explained, lifting a head to take in the sweet floral scents and the fresh air of the gardens. A light wind ruffled her velvet fur, and she shivered a little with the sensation of it. ""It is so... I can stop any enemy. Fast... flying... very large." The rest there went unsaid: that any assassin or monster to Aethril was the problem. Stopping it, quickly and effectively, was far more important than defeating or destroying it. Aethril's escape mattered. ""I will not use those, then, for now."

But-... as her gaze lit on the river that Pollen had chosen to fight beside, Obieth was struck with first thirst, and then an idea. She couldn't recall ever having shown the gardener her newest magic. She made her way down to the water's edge, lapping at it--the thirst was always with her, now. But once she'd drunk her fill, she turned to circle back around, to Pollen's other side.

"All right," Obieth said, amiably. She stalked, eyes mostly on Pollen, but they did slide to the river behind her briefly. If she could corrupt it, then she could use it, and it'd be fair: unexpected, but something Pollen could still fight against. She'd need to work fast, though--before the current could take it too far, slow as it might've been. That meant reaching upstream as far as she could get--and so she did.

It was hard to see--and difficult--but she was pretty certain it was working. Now the question was: would Pollen notice anything?

Round: 1/5
Attempt: Corrupt some water upstream
Defense: --
Injuries: --

"What if someone can't be mind-controlled?" Pollen mulled on it for a moment, before nodding. It'd be good to keep up with everything you could do, just in case, even if Pollen hadn't seen anyone actually resistant to it. It could happen! Or the magic couldn't fire off, or any number of things!

Her fascimile of eyebrows furrowed as best they could as Obieth moved to the water. -- oh. She hadn't considered that the guard could be thirsty. Dang, she should've asked if she needed anything else. But, well, she did say she was ready. Pollen pushed the thought away and side-stepped to keep her front to Obieth, watching with her head cocked.

She'd lost her stance. Wait-- lowering down again, Pollen set her feet back in place and rolled the vine-whips back, keeping them from tangling or catching on her legs. What was Obieth doing? Squinting, Pollen's mouth drew tight as she didn't get the scenario, unaware of the magic she was capable of.

It gave her time to settle in, at least. Rolling her shoulders back, Pollen stood like a target in place, believing to be ready for whatever Obieth would throw at her.

What... would she be facing? Whatever it was, she was about to be totally unprepared, even if a blow didn't land.

ROUND 1/5

ATTEMPT: set yourself up for defense
DEFENSE: semi-lowered stance
INJURIES: n/a

@Obieth

She prowled, teal eyes flicking over the vine whips. But she didn't have too much time to consider, to prepare her attack like some opening chess move: she had to act before the polluted water just... floated away. She only really had time to register that Pollen would probably try to... well, whip her. Entangle her, perhaps. There was no time to make a detailed plan of action for when that happened.

Prevention was a decent potential cure, though...

She gave no warning, bar a faint tensing in her body--possibly enough, for one familiar, to give her impending attack away. Or at least the fact that one was coming. She tried to slip her mind around that water she'd corrupted.

Such a minor thing, but so easy. To take the very lifeblood of the caves and twist it into something horrible, something slick with pulsing black and ready to poison and drown any who touched it. It would, Obieth reflected as she reached for it, utterly destroy a garden.

Pollen probably wouldn't like that.

She saw, and felt, the black water rising: a sphere of it a couple feet across, dripping and seething pitch. She hurtled it toward the fighters, aiming to slam it down around Pollen's head. Drowning, suffocating, blinding. Would it work-? Obieth was eager to find out.

Round: 2/5
Attempt: Corrupted water helmet
Defense: --
Injuries: --

@Pollen