Here Be Dragons

Business as usual as Ivanka showed up for her scheduled fight. Her opponent was a female giant with an aggressive brawler style. The giant stood at a height several inches taller than her and was far more wide and buff. Ivanka herself was a tall, slender woman with only some muscle definition, but certainly not enough to make her look like much of a combatant. Her outfit of choice was a sports bra, tight-fitting leggings, and barefoot. Her long red hair was tied up into a messy bun. She uttered nothing as the giant taunted her in the ring.

"Careful! Wouldn't want to break limbs like twig!"

In reality, they were decently acquainted outside of the ring. This was a bit of showmanship combined with playful jabbing. A wide smile crossed the redhead's face. She stood straight, feet spread apart slightly, and raised her hand. She beckoned with one finger. Her opponent grunted and proceeded to swing. The fight that ensued proved to be a fierce one. At first it appeared one-sided with the dragon repeatedly dodging and being on the defensive. Some hits certainly got her, but she didn't attack back. How odd....

That is until she spotted an opening. One slide to the right, kick to the gut, and complete with a follow-up kick to the chin. She gracefully backflipped off of her opponent as the hits caused the giant to stumble. Just as she was about to land on her feet, she lunged forward with an elbow strike and proceeded to wail on the baffled victim. Eventually the giantess regained her footing and swung, only for Ivanka to dodge underneath the fist and strike directly at the bone of the ankle. This led to the fighter tumbling forward. Hopping behind, ivanka shoved with all of her strength and grabbed the misplaced leg for a leg lock.

Several poundings and tense grapples later, the newcomer emerged victorious. She went to the locker room with a couple of large bruises on different portions of her body. She wiped the sweat off her face with a towel and turned to get water. As she chugged, her nose sensed a different entity with her. The scent told her a feline.

"Looks like the room dragged in the cat."

Ms. Stepanov noted dryly as she turned to face the reporter. "Are you journalist? Heard something about an interview."

@Lotharingia

Ivanka beamed at the compliments. "Thank you. Young ones think only strength." She flexed her arm. "But it is technique that gets you ahead." She relaxed her arm and sat down on a bench. She leaned up against the back. Her head shook as the interviewer offered to postpone. "Am fine. We may start." She survived worse beatings. Nothing today was enough to really require more rest than she already got.

@Lotharingia

Ivanka debated how much information she should give. She was an honest woman, but she wasn't sure how the reporter or the public would react to her criminal background. She decided to keep it simple but direct. "Self-taught. Was once hunter. I learned patience and weakness detection."

@Lotharingia

Ivanka noticed the reporter's curiosity. Seeing that she was being somewhat boring with her answers, she decided to open up a tad more. "In a sense. Though I didn't realize it at the time." She tapped her fingers on her knee. Now how bad would it be to reveal her crime? She went through rehabilitation and changed since then, but she knew those kids were still attending the school. Likely scarred for life by her actions. "I lived in constant rage. Bouncing from place to place with red-tinted glasses. It took one moment to realize what I was doing and what I needed to do to live a better life. To be a better person."

@Lotharingia