Zipper’s bouncing off these walls

outfit || evening

---

True to himself, a few days after his ordeal with Newton, Waylin found himself in Zipper's company.

This place was dingy at best and rat infest at worst, but it was an environment he was familiar with from his youth. When bumped into, he didn't stumble or falter; he just kept moving forward towards the bar. He could see the fight ring from here, and even if he couldn't, people were chatting enough about it that he'd stay on top of who's fighting who.

He'd order a whiskey, pay, then meander his way back towards the ring and sit somewhere elevated to watch comfortably.

It was clear these people fed off on the violence, and he had been itching himself to fight someone who he wasn't afraid to hold back on it. Fight Night had only been a taste, not long enough, and since this wasn't that night - people weren't limited to the time. The fox barked, paced in his mind because wouldn't this be fun as hell! Neither half indulged in such behavior in what felt like forever, and surely someone would be up for a spar to keep him sharp.

It might be the nudge he needs to knock this feeling in his gut of not being good enough, that things were still going smoothly despite the past month. Then again, the full moon was right around the corner, and it could just be the animal itching for a fight rather than a run.

looks without sunglasses

---

Jade was miffed that she had arrived in Colorado too late for Fight Night, but she decided to at least check out where it took place. The establishment was particularly... particular. Very Rice Bluff. There was no other way to decribe it.

She liked this sort of place, where it seemed like everything was more raw, less hypocrit, and where a punch was worth a thousand words. Her tiger also enjoyed this, being surrounded by new scents and energies, and was happily chuffing while taking everything in.

They were still a little salty about having had to back away from the giant otter fight, even if that had been the thing to do. The scars on both arms were healed, and anything they didn't expect anyone to use their teeth against them tonight.

Someone else had the idea of getting a good vantage point from higher, a fellow plaid enthusiast that smelled like some sort of dog. Not wolf, at least.

Jade sat just out of reach of the stranger and raised her glass (vodka, thank you) in his overall direction for a toast. A toast to what? Violence, of course. She smiled.

Someone joined him, or at least settled closer to him than the others, and it made him turn to look.

The first thing he noticed was the plaid—and it wasn't even Fall yet, so hello! The second thing was that she was raising a glass towards him in what appeared to be a toast. Why? No words, just a look that had his face morphing in confusion. He turned away to see if anyone else was around him because he would not be caught in one of those scenarios where he thought someone was greeting him and it was actually meant for someone else.

Ha! No, thank you!

When there wasn't anyone around, he turned back to eye her suspiciously because this wasn't where people just casually greeted someone without knowing them. Then, the horror thought of someone working up the courage to flirt with him because you would do that at a bar, especially one as seedy as Zipper's. Oh god, did he give that vibe? He was here to potentially fight, maybe make a friend, nothing more than that!

"Why are you raising your glass?"

Same questions, but still suspicious.

"It's called a toast." Jade replied, pretending to be serious. "You raise your glass and wish for good things, or celebrate existing ones."

She took a sip of her drink and turned her attention back to the ring.

Waylin snorted.

He knew what a toast was, but why was he doing it towards him??

"You look ridiculous because usually, a toast comes after a speech,"He pointed out instead, turning to watch someone get a cheap shot, and some booed. It was fun if an opponent was taken out too quickly, especially when people came here for a show!

This wasn't a tournament. >:(

Ridiculous was a strong word, and it made her bristle. These outings were always hit or miss. Foxy stretched and peered from the human eyes, turning them dark green in between blinks.

"Then I'll raise it again after these..." She raised a fist. "...do the talking. Want to be in the conversation?"

Her tone wouldn't be accepting no for an answer, even if she had to follow him outside, beat him up and dump him in the river. For his own good. One day he would run into someone less patient.

What the hell?

Waylin couldn't help but laugh, which resulted in him choking on his whiskey mid-drink.

It burned coming out of his nose, but fuck, was this woman out of a bad action movie?

He hadn't meant to laugh, not really, but she went from 0 to 100, and it was amusing.

"You sure?"Waylin managed to ask as he pressed his sleeve to his face to wipe away his mess.

Regular guys didn't take her seriously, and she could get that. But it had been a long time since a fellow were underestimated her, and there was only one way this could end: with her fist in his face.

The most annoying thing was that he wasn't playing along. Asking questions and the such, as if she was that outlandish. She was not. He was the weird one.

"That's what I came here for."

She nearly went into taunting, asking if he was scared, but that would just lead to more talk, and she was ready to go.

It's what Waylin came here for as well, and if it was by a woman who had a fuse shorter than a firework, then so be it.

He wasn't foolish enough to underestimate her; they felt like they were on the same playing field, so he downed the rest of his drink, set the glass aside, and hopped off his perch.

"The first to start to shift or tap out loses. Sound good?"

Gotta have some groundwork for rules; the last thing they needed were animals roaming the small building with its singular exit. Pretty sure the owner would be pissed, and he wasn't here to piss off the entire establishment.

Jade also downed her drink and followed.

"Sure."

Foxy was still watching through her eyes, but content to remain on standby for now. They got in position.

"My name is Jade Fox."

She gave this new adversary a little smile. If this wasn't a fight with witnesses, she wouldn't have given her name, and might have ignored any words or actions that implied tapping out. Some accountability was always useful.

He rarely gave his last name, and he wouldn't today.

"Waylin. Nice to meet you, Jade."

It wouldn't be an issue; his name wasn't common, and he wouldn't be running out here with his tail ducked between his legs if hell broke loose.

He rolled his shoulders, having stretched on his earlier as he entered the ring, silver eyes watching the woman who joined him.

Waylin wasn't used to fighting in a setting that wasn't outside, and maybe if this were five years earlier, he'd leave and find something worth wild. But that wasn't the case; he would get right to it, not waiting since she made the first move by challenging him in the first place.

He decided to start with a classic move—the jab. He bounced lightly on the balls of his feet, closing the distance between them before lashing out with a quick flick of his right hand.

He shot out a jab, testing her reaction and icing on the cake if he landed the hit.

---

it's a hit || letting you decide where it landed

She wouldn't return the sentiment yet, but nodded. She would remember that name.

He was quick. She couldn't avoid the hit, that connected with her right shoulder. She made the split second decision to use the other arm for her counterattack, but it was overshot and she ended up punching air rather than man.

But still, she had a little smile. At least she knew she wasn't underestimated now, and that was good for her focus. Anger was not always the best guide for a fight.

---

miss

Waylin’s jab connected, but he wouldn't let it go to his head. The fights were unpredictable. Some ended up being even, while others left one or both parties lying on the floor.

The jab was a quick one-off, and while it connected with her shoulder, it allowed him to feint to the side and back, dodging her counterattack. He’d come at her side with another punch, intentionally avoided the face, and aimed for her opposite shoulder.

She was small, and he would expect her to use this to her advantage, but only time would tell. For now, he'd settle for quick short jabs this early in the fight.

---

hit

She had to admit she was a little rusty. This was her first human form fight in Colorado, after all.

And now both her shoulders were hit. Rather than a punch, she would try for an elbow hit in the area of the thorax, and felt the satisfaction of finally landing her own hit, even if barely.

---

hit

While the jab connected, it didn’t leave enough time to pull away when her elbow lashed back and into the ribs. It was always the ribs in fights, and he wondered why for a span of half a second before shaking it off.

The sharp jab of pain made him stumble back; he lashed out with a proper punch now, aiming for her sternum, keeping his hits lower than he would against someone taller than him.

---

miss

Jade didn't let him stumble too far, as she moved close enough to keep the pressure on. Giving and receiving, the conversation of a fight. They would be learning more about each other like this, rather than talking.

Paul used to say she was predictable with her uppercuts, and perhaps she was, but that was just one of the best moves she could do.

Landing this one just proved her right, but she would need to keep her mind focused on the fight and not on memories of times past if she wanted to win.

---

hit

The uppercut was a bitch and a half.

Sharp, swift, and he was grinning even as he tasted copper on his tongue. Even if his teeth weren’t sharp, the blow would have caused blood, and mirth danced in his gaze.

Alright, he rubbed his jaw, before planting one foot forward and lashed out with a roundhouse kick aiming for the ribs.

---

miss

He had gotten the first hit, but she earned first blood. If Foxy wasn't already looking through her eyes, she would have come closer by this point, sniffing at their adversary that was neither friend nor enemy just yet.

She blocked his kick and tried to take advantage of the movement to sweep the other leg and make his fall.

Still, this was a fairly even fight so far, and her earlier annoyance was melting away. But not her fighting spirit. It just meant she would inflict damage out of fun rather than spite.

---

miss

Waylin was balanced on his legs; an attempt to sweep out his own had him hobbling back after she blocked his kick.

She was smart; he'd give her that, but things were only getting started.

There would be a quick second of maintaining balance before he opted to lean forward with a sharp right hook to strike her in the jaw.

A bruise for a bruise.

He was aiming to daze her long enough to flip her with the intention of slamming her on her back.

---

punch: hit || flip: miss

She had started the face-adjacent hots with her uppercut, but being returned the favor had a low growl escape her throat. She wouldn't be surprised later if her jaw was dislocated, but right now she didn't care much. Next shift would remove the edge of the pain anyway.

Emboldened by the pain, she aimed a kick at his ribs, as close as possible to her earlier hit, hard enough to make him lose his balance.

She had a slightly crooked smirk at this.

---

hit for kick and trip

He hit the ground hard, the impact jarring him for a moment. Instead of scrambling to his feet, he quickly assessed the situation. He had to act quickly, not wanting Jade to close in for another strike.

Seizing the opportunity, he swung his leg out swiftly, aiming for Jade's ankles, and flashed a feral grin as the hit connected.

Waylin didn't waste a second of this advantage; using the momentum from his sweep kick, he rolled onto his knees and lunged toward Jade. He grabbed her wrist with one hand and pressed his forearm against her throat, using his weight to keep her pinned to the ground.

His heart raced in excitement because this was what Fight Night should have been about, not the barely there taste of what could have been that he received.

---

hit: sweep kick || hit: pin

Getting pinned down was something neither woman nor tiger enjoyed, and their first instinct was to free themselves, but the hold was too strong.

Since that path was blocked, Jade would have no qualms in using her free arm to deliver a punch to the side of Waylin's head.

---

I switched those so that the order makes sense: miss on free, hit on punch

The pin to the neck had been his first mistake because it left her an opportunity to break free.

The punch wasn’t as efficient as it could have been given how he held her down, but it was enough to cause some ringing in his ears. Therefore, it was enough to knock him off balance and free her from his hold.

He wasn’t here to get head trauma and moved to his feet with a low growl. The fox didn’t appreciate the blow, but neither did Waylin.

Kudos for not giving up on her part, and Waylin moved to kick her in the ribs in retaliation.

---

hold the pin: fail || kick: miss

Jade managed to avoid the kick by rolling to the side, and used her vantage position from the floor to punch at his knee, then she bounced up to serve an elbow hit to his back.

There were two words in her head. Worthy opponent. The rest was tiger growls.

---

double hit

Knee shots were dirty but tactical.

One way or another, your opponent will fall, big or small, and that is what happened to him. His knee gave out, he went down to the ground, turned to block the follow-up move, and took the elbow to the sternum rather than the back.

He'd surely feel it once the adrenaline wore off, but all it did was fuel him to fight just as dirty. His brain was slowly bleeding into the feral mind of a kid fighting to survive, and he sunk sharp teeth into the meat of her arm, aiming to push forward with his body curling against her and send them tumbling.

---

hit on bite || miss on tackle

Why were Colorado weres intent on biting her arms/paws?? Jade let out a snarl and pulled her arm to her, worsening the bite but freeing it, and pressing it to her chest.

She still had one arm. The punch she delivered was meant for his nose, but she'd be content as long as she added another bruise to that biting face.

---

hit on free and punch

The taste of metal intensified when she pulled her arm free, and the blow to the face had him tilting back. This was visceral, positive his nose was broken as he felt the dribbling of blood and his eyes watered, but it did nothing more than cause him to zero in on her. She wasn't holding back, and neither was he.

Some logical part of his brain decided that Fight Night was wise to have its rules in place. It was even better when it wasn't on the cusp of a full moon, but this wasn't then, and he was feeding into the feral behavior as he lunged at her.

She wanted facial shots, so be it.

Waylin quickly closed the distance between them, bringing his arm up and driving his elbow toward Jade's face with all the force he could muster. The fox pressed forward, aiming for aggression now rather than whatever paltry dance they'd been doing.

Without hesitation, he shifted his weight and pivoted on his back foot, bringing his other leg around in a swift, powerful roundhouse kick aimed at her ribs to send her further off balance.

---

elbow blow: hit || roundhouse kick: hit

She didn't see the elbow in time and was hit right in the temple, disorienting her long enough to completely miss the kick in the ribs. She tried her best to grab his leg, to pull him down with her, but she didn't have enough reach and gravity was against her. She fell and rolled, limiting the damage of this, and returned a kick, aiming at the knees again.

She was not going to tap out.

---

miss on counterattack, hit on kick

Jade’s kick landed hard on Waylin's knee, causing a sharp jolt of pain and momentarily unbalancing him. Gritting his teeth, Waylin refused to crumple into a heap on the floor.

Ignoring the pain, he lunged forward, aiming to strike once more to Jade's side with a kick and send her rolling. This caused him to stumble slightly, his knee aching when he landed on it. The fox bristled in his mind as Waylin spat a mixture of blood and saliva onto the ring's floor.

He focused on Jade, watching her, most likely trying to regain her bearings, but he wouldn't let her have it. No, before she could recover, he would close the distance once more and pin her down with his injured leg at the center of her body, keeping himself balanced on his good one as he leaned forward to apply pressure.

"Yield." Waylin demanded sharply, light enough that only she could hear.

---

hit: first kick || hit: pin with foot (you decide chest or back)

Bruised ribs for sure, and now she was on her back on the arena, looking up at someone who demanded the impossible of her.

"You! Yield!" She hissed at him, punctuating each word with a punch to the leg holding her.

Even if she was in no position to ask that, and Foxy was getting antsy. It was a question of time before she lost by shift.

---

double hit

Gritting his teeth, Waylin quickly tried to counter her punches by aiming a downward strike with his fist, but she managed to avoid the hit. Waylin's fist hit the ground instead, the impact jarring but not enough to stop him.

Frustrated but undeterred, Waylin immediately adjusted his position. Kicking had done justice where pinning and punching hadn't, and he could feel the edges of the animal around and delivered a powerful kick to her midsection. The kick would connect with a resounding thud, aiming to knock the breath from her lungs.

He could feel the beads of sweat on his brow, and he shook himself, stumbling away from her to catch his breath. Part of him wanted to keep playing aggressor, but sometimes, you had to step back and reassess.

---

punch: miss || kick: hit

She couldn't breathe. She was losing blood from the bite. And the shift risk was now very high.

But she grabbed his foot before he could get it back, and twisted as hard as she could. If he had not been wearing pants, she would have bitten him, but who had time to pull away fabric?

---

double hit

Waylin rolled with the motion of her twisting his ankle.

He wouldn't have it broken, fuck that nonsense, and he'd break it free from her grip before tumbling back into a somersault and landing on his feet. Shit, it'd be a bitch and a half driving home with the vibrations of the motorcycle, but the fox was full-on yowling in his head, leaving him to either decide to try and retaliate and fall into a shift or leave now and try to prevent it.

If he didn't want to have people fret over him, he needed to leave, and with that, he'd turn away and slip into the crowd.

This was as close to a yield that Jade would receive from him as he aimed for the solo entrance, his heart thrumming loudly in his ears.

---

double misses - he breaks free w/out retaliating

Oh, hey, no you don't!

Jade wanted to pull the acknowledgement of his loss out of his mouth, but she knew. One more hit would have been her loss by default, as Foxy made it clear this was enough fight. Alright. Time for a bipedal exit before her bones broke for a reason that came from within.

She followed her adversary out still, and once the night air surrounded her, called to him.

"Waylin!" A slightly distorted sound, curtesy of messed up jaw. It hurt, too.

Now that they were outside, maybe she could tackle him into a different sort of fight... nah. Didn't want to alienate the best fighter she encountered in years.

"Come get patched up!" She added then, walking to her car.

Whether he did was up to him, but the offer was there. She had her own wounds to tend to. There were first aid supplies and icepacks in her car, as she hadn't lied before: she had come to Zipper expressly for a fight.

The air outside was cooler than inside the building. His steps wobbled but he was living on the high of adrenaline, pleased to finally get what he had been seeking for what felt like forever. The fox chittered at him, and he snorted know they were both reeling from the match that would have resulted in a shift.

It probably would have continued as animals, and then who knows what would have happened. He pulled his phone from his pocket, wanted to call Bree and share the rush with a laugh but then he heard his name and stopped.

Ugh. Stopping made his knees flare up and he knew they were going to be swollen and bruised. So many bruises. A deep breath caused an ache but not the sharpness that indicated something was broken. Instead of continuing the mental assessment, he turned to face the woman that opted to follow after him as she motioned towards a car.

It’d be a mistake to sit and take time to patch up here, not when he had a drive back to Valencia. If it wasn’t close to the full moon, he would have showed up at Bree’s. But, he was trying to keep his word to Matthias, and prevent any unkindly scenarios from cropping up.

”You have water?”

The question would be his answer as he meandered closer with a wince. Then, remembered his nose, he ducked down to look in her mirror and snapped it back into place with a string of curses.

She opened the passenger side door as he approached.

"Cooler." She said, wincing at the word. Ice cold water was not only good for hydration, but to calm down, after all.

Her jaw wasn't the priority. She grabbed a towel on the seat and pressed it against the bite on her arm. Damn, his teeth were sharp.

Waylin didn’t hesitate to grab a bottle from the cooler.

Make it two, one to drink and one to press against wherever he saw fit. It could be his face, side, or awkwardly against a knee. It didn’t matter because he would go home and soak in a cold bath soon enough.

He swished some water around before spitting it out onto the concrete, then took a drink to help lessen the taste of blood. It was soothing on his throat, and he had to fight not to chug it lest it settle wrong in his stomach. He leaned back against her car, pouring some water onto his sleeve to gently scrub at the blood drying on his face.

”Thanks.”

"No prob."

It was a tall ordeal to tie anything around one's own arm, but she managed with teeth before trying to put her jaw in the right place. It was... okay. Would need a few shifts to feel better.

Speaking of which...

"I was about to lose control." She admitted. "How about we call this one a draw?"

The implication there being that they would need another fight to see who was best.

Waylin snorted, winced, and then grinned.

He stepped away first, and while he didn’t verbally yield, it would be enough to assume she had won this match. Yet, here she was, offering a draw and a silent promise for a rematch. It would seem she had humanity in her after all, but he would have taken the promise of a rematch without her stating it was a draw.

”Nah, I left first. You won this time, but next time will be a different story,”he offered, accepting that there would be a next time. In his mind, he won solely because he was finally able to fight again, and it was a relief to find someone who held their own.

”That uppercut was sharp in the beginning pretty sure if you had tried that at the end, would have broken my jaw.”

She returned the grin, or at least tried. Still painful.

"You got the jaw points tonight." She said, massaging her own. "Next time shouldn't be in public."

She pressed an icepack against her jaw and half-closed her eyes from the relief. Only half, because she wasn't giving any openings.

”It’s the feral child in me,”Waylin’s grin widened at the compliment.

If this had been a true fight for survival, he wouldn't have let up on the jaw punches or his aggression. Having a crowd kept him aware to some degree that this was all for fun. He raised a brow at their next time not having company and he hummed.

”I’d be down for that, but still have to be conscious we don't kill each other,”mainly a joke, but a bit of seriousness underlying his tone. If they got this aggressive with people watching, who knows what’ll be like alone.

But, it wasn’t a no!

She nodded. It was a fair point. Although she wasn't worried for her own life. She was a tiger, after all.

"You should be safe if it's after a full moon."

Not even a smirk, because it wasn't teasing. It was fact.

The fox growled in his head, but they both knew a fourth big cat encounter wasn’t on their docket this week.

First had been a fight that neither wanted dead, the second the fox had been clever in avoiding, the third hadn't wanted to do more than probably scare them…and hers? Well, if she fought like this as a human, he wouldn't put it past them as an accident, and he wasnt here to nurse long-lasting injuries.

”I’m gonna get going, but let’s swap numbers, and we can figure out a when and where at a later date,”He offered with his phone in hand. It'd be nice to get almost home before the adrenaline wore off and he felt the consequences of tonight’s actions.

"Sure."

Jade took hers out as well.

"You're gonna be Waylin "Dog Emoji" Nolastname." She teased.

She didn't take him for someone who put emojis in contact names, so she didn't suggest one for her.

”I’m a fox!”

Waylin’s bark of laughter surprised him, and he wondered if he had a concussion. He wasnt gonna let her weasel a last name out of him for now, finding it amusing.

But the animal? That's fair game.

If an emoji was going to be used by his name, it had better be the right one! >:(

Huh! A fox, and he didn't bat an eye at her last name. Funny guy.

"Waylin "Fox Emoji" Nolastname." She corrected. "I'm a tiger."

Deciding to give the info in case he ran into her shifted and his nose didn't work for some reason.

”Knew you were a big cat, but there are too many scents in there to pinpoint,”Waylin huffed with a shake of his head.

He could put off not knowing out here due to the trauma of his nose and only smelling blood. He took another drink, before ultimately pouring the rest down his neck and back. He shivered as he crumbled up the bottle. Not cold, just a relief cooling down heated skin.

”We don't tend to back down from a fight, and we've been itching for one. So, thanks for not sucking,”he polished off by awkwardly flashing a one-handed finger gun at her as he started to push away from the car sliding his phone into a pocket.

She had a little shrug at this. Yeah, made sense. And now she had a vague idea of what foxes smelled like. She wondered if there were others?

She scoffed at not sucking, but took it for the compliment it was. She gave a wave before getting in her car. She just wanted to go home, and then... shower, or shift first?

The eternal question.