Hopps looks startled. Her grey eyebrows rise. "M-me, sir?"
I cock an eyebrow in her direction. "Is there another mammal that goes by the name of Hopps here that I am unaware of? And I do believe that I told you to call me Jack."
She glances up at Wilde. He looks protective, but willing to let her do this. Interesting. He doesn't even show the slightest bit of worry for her. "If you're sure about this, sir." She slightly emphasizes the last word. I grin daringly. This'll be interesting. You can tell a lot about someone by they way they fight.
She shrugs. She still has her gear on, so she just rolls he shoulders and walks in. I carefully monitor her stance, the bend in her elbows and knees. The way her violet eyes flick around, assessing me. She saw the way I handled the bear, so she won't let her guard down. Not for a second, if she's as good as I believe. And I find myself wishing for a challenge. There's a dull throbbing in my ear, slowly healing from where it was nicked.
I shift my weight forward and whisper the word. "Go." I lunge towards her, using my superior height to bear down on her. I've never had an opponent smaller than I.
Her twin gloves come up, block my bear paws, and swing towards my stomach.
Her offensive-defensive forces me to push hard against her gloves, bruising my knuckles and sending me farther away from my opponent. She darts after me, actually slips inside my guard, and manages to land a blow on my bare chest. I block the next, and try to sweep her legs out from underneath her, but she jumps back, her posture reminding me of the desert cobra before it strikes. But I've got fangs as well.
I crouch low, waiting for her to come to me, but she circles warily, always keeping her gloves in a defensive position. I jump, feint to the right, and land a blow on the left side of her lower ribcage. She grunts, and swings at my head, unstable. I kick the backs of her knees with my heel, and she crumples up like a folding chair, hitting the ground gasping for air.
I offer her a hand. She's earned even more of my respect, now. "That was pretty good. You almost had me there, for a minute.'
She grins, not a trace of enmity. "No. I never really did, did I?"
