The purr within his throat continues to vibrate as her head presses beneath his own, large, heavy paws kneading atop the grass upon the very start line he has decided upon- golden gaze turned upon the distance rock he has declared is the finish. He is a highly competitive creature by nature alone, few outside his pack ever truly daring to take him up upon any of his games, Tobias a notoriously poor loser. As such, there are few whomever dare to beat him, whether they are capable of it or not, Tetradore alone the only creature the boy is willing to concede to and yet- in their last brawl Tobias had managed to best even his own Alpha. It is a dangerous thing perhaps, to allow the Leopard to be so aware of his own power, the boy young, strong, well within the prime of his existence and indeed once more it would seem he has become entirely content to flex that metaphorical muscle. This game yet another desire of the prideful creature to exert much of the youthful energy that stirs within his masculine form. His previous rage has seemed to fade entirely, leaving only an overly energetic Leopard that braces himself upon the starting line, demanding his companion count as his tail lashes in ready anticipation. Every muscle coils and tightens within his form, waiting for his companion to say the word 'one'. He does not truly understand it, or the numbers, his mind simply waiting for the recognizable sound.

The moment he hears it the leopard very near explodes forward, his longer frame and wider stride eating away at the ground, leaving the wolf in the veritable dust as he sprints past her in a rush of youthful energy and adrenaline. His species is designed entirely for this, these stunning short bursts of speed that see him propel across the field far faster then Birdie can ever hope to travel and yet, it would seem, he has misjudged just how far away the rock truly is. His spotted form, eventually, forced to slow into a lope- long striding all the same and yet not near so fast as his initial sprint. For all his energy he is simply not designed for endurance- not as Birdie is, golden eyes darting to the side at the sudden appearance of the wolf at his side. A huff of irritation erupts from within him, Tobias seeming to find a second wind, launching himself forward again to pull away from his companion and yet still the wolf simply continues to run, her species designed for what his is not- the female slowly beginning to pull away from him until it is she whom crosses the line first, the spotted cat loping in behind her.

His form slides easily to a stop within the long, damp grass, features contorted readily into a scowl- that he has been beaten evidently not sitting well with the creature as his tail flicks, a huff erupting from within him, a muttering beneath his breath clear even within this form as he seats himself upon the grass in clear disdain. Like any child prone to tantrums in his defeat.

Birdie....maybe...cheated.

Surely this is the only conclusion to which makes any sense, Tobias hardly above cheating in any form though surely the boy would hardly admit to it. His Leopard fur drops abruptly from his form, leaving only a semi-clad boy within its wake, Tobias, fortunately, having shifted with jeans in place tonight. His arms fold abruptly across his chest, the man content to scowl like a perfectly petulant child in his loss. Losing, after all, does not become the boy particularly well. He is aware of his companion behind him, Tobias assured that Raven too had shifted back to her human skin, knowing entirely well she would seek to comfort him and yet this- it seems- has been his plan all along. To say the boy is not cunning is a terribly misguided thing indeed, Tobias abruptly pivoting in place as Birdie kneels down beside him- very near lunging at the woman in an effort to knock her abruptly backward and into the grass as he lingers above her. That he may well have lost on purpose remains to be seen (perhaps she truly had beaten him we shall surely never know), a snicker of sorts hissing between his lips all the same at the pleasure he takes from having knocked his companion down.

"I am....very clever."

Those stuttered words are uttered towards her upon a lopsided grin, the shaggy-haired creature so clearly proud of himself before his lips dip abruptly to her own in a kiss- pressing her easily into the soft grass beneath. This- perhaps, his plan all along.

madness, as you know, is like gravity: all it takes is a little push