Post by "Lady Luck" Fujiko Mine on Aug 11, 2015 17:54:47 GMT -5
Fujiko listened to the click behind her as she locked the door. The grip of her right hand was around the telescoping handle of her luggage, and she pushed it so that it led her out of the foyer, and into the living room of her condo.
It felt a less empty ever since she got home from Elsewhere. The primary isolation, and ability to train alongside her father figure, Hiro; was a refreshing change of pace. She was allowed the ability to be alone with her thoughts, without the reminders of what she’d lost recently. She found that she was being distracted by things that remained in the condo. She’d packed away pictures and keepsakes that reminded her of Sasha. Her replica of the Mid-Atlantic Legacy championship was not on display in any way, including at Elsewhere. She just wanted the chance to focus on getting better, and going to the secluded compound did that.
As far as she knew, Hiro had stayed behind when she left to get herself prepared for her match with Joey Miles. The lingering thoughts that her conversation with him produced hung tightly to her as she got herself settled.
"Maybe it’s time to just...start over?"
She let the thought mull around in her head as she looked at the few downturned picture frames, and empty spaces where she knew things of sentimental value once sat. Maybe it wouldn’t be a terrible idea to just get rid of those things, instead of letting them torture her in subtle ways. Hiding them didn’t stop the images and memories from placing themselves in her minds’ eye when she took a glance at the strangely placed items. Listening to herself go on about them, she decided it was probably in the best interest of her sanity to do so. It wasn’t going to be something that she could do now. She was still doing her best to recover from the journey home. With resignation, she let go of the handle on her suitcase and made her move over to the couch. As she did, she saw one of the lone frames that wasn’t placed strategically to hide something. It stood out because of this, but today it caught her eye for a different reason.
It was a photo of herself, much younger than she was now, with Hiro Nagashima on her left, and Tj Jones on her right. The background of the photo was of the then named Black Sparrow Dojo, where she was officially trained to become a professional wrestler. She’d thought back to a less distant past while she was down there, but this picture reminded her of her absolute beginnings. The only person missing in this photo was a man that she hoped that she’d never have to see again. Despite his absence in the photo, she could see his face there. It sent a nasty, unwelcome chill up her spine, visualizing him there. Daisuke “Diamond” Shurizaka’s cold, ill-planning grin wafted next to Hiro in the picture like a ghost. Daisuke was the man who taught Hiro everything he knew, and he helped Tj train to beat Arkia Fisk, in what was likely to be their final match against each other. She’d heard horror stories about his rather brutal training methods. She tore her eyes away from it, and looked out the large curved window that showcased the dimming Milwaukee skyline.
"Ugh…"
She remembered the harsh “teachings” that he employed in teaching her self defense, and it brought a feeling of sickness to her stomach. But it was a necessary part of remembering. She couldn’t just cut him out of the past, as much as she wanted to. But thinking about that time, in which she was first introduced to Daisuke; she had to give thought about what changed between her the very first time she stepped into the ring, and now.
"Oh, so much…"
She said outloud, breaking up the silence with her own voice to reassure herself. But to be fair, there was a median point, a break point that had to be addressed between now, and the beginning of her career. With a sigh, she pushed herself off the couch and forced locomotion towards one of the spare bedrooms. It was a room she tried to push out of her mind, as it also held some of the things that Sasha and Fujiko shared. It was also home to things that Fujiko wanted to forget that didn’t involve Sasha. One of those things, she was about to bring back to the light.
She felt herself growing anxious as she reached the lightly stained wooden door. She pushed at it lightly, as if she was afraid that the personification of all those horrors would reach out and rip her to shreds if she dared to open the door any further. She reminded herself that she needed to do this. She needed to endure the pain. She inhaled sharply as she pushed the door open, and the the first thing to greet her was the faint scent of her former lover. It weakened her resolve, and she had to power past it to go to the far end of the room. Underneath the bare bones of the bed that occupied the room was a hastily stuffed box. She bent down, digging her knees into the plush carpeting and peeked under the bed. The box was the lone item there, and it almost peered at her as she gazed at it. In one swift motion, it was unearthed from its resting place, and the lid was set aside.
Almost as if it knew what she was looking for (or perhaps in a wicked sense of foresight), the paper she was looking for was right at the top, the large bold headline already ripping at her emotions. A faint voice called at her, but she ignored it; enraptured by the headline.
FFW WRESTLER FUJIKO MINE RETIRES
She had to take a moment to wipe away a few tears that made it past her defenses, and rolled onto her cheeks.
"Stupid, stupid. Why are you crying?"
She could not answer her own question. It seemed so long ago, when she felt utterly defeated and destroyed to the point where she chose to no longer compete in wrestling. She remembered sitting in Samantha Star’s office, fighting with everything she had to keep a straight face. She could not break down and cry in front of Ms. Star. She had to keep some respect. What little she tried to keep though, was quickly stripped away by some nasty twitter barbs directed at her by some of FFW’s staff. She thought it an incredibly unprofessional and childish move, but she couldn’t split hairs about it now. The fact remained that the headline that was in front of her labeled her something she hated more than anything else.
A Quitter.
"So stupid…"
She suddenly felt bombarded by failure. Anything that she’d failed at in recent memory formed a line and hit her ego repeatedly. It was enough to push her towards another breakdown, but she tried to shake it off.
"You are not terrible. You are great. Better than everyone knows. You aren’t going to fail, Fujiko. You aren’t going to fail. Everyone has their ups and downs, and you’re due for another 'up'."
A voice behind her made her jump.
"You are indeed."
Fujiko spun around, surprised and afraid at the same time.
"OH MY GOSH!"
Tj Jones, the owner of said voice, shook his head and made a distressed face.
"Sorry Fujicakes, didn’t mean to scare you. I thought you heard me come in."
Fujiko swallowed hard, trying to catch her breath and calm her heart at the same time.
"You almost scared the absolute crap out of me! Oh my gosh!"
Tj placed his hands in front of him, palms facing Fujiko, in an attempt to calm her down.
"I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I just wanted to check in with you. I heard that you were back from Elsewhere, had to make sure that things were alright."
Fujiko got a hold of herself, and then placed the lid back on the box. She hoisted herself back to a standing position.
"I’m sorry, I guess I was just...thinking."
Tj resets his positioning, closing the gap between them and taking her in an embrace. She pushes away after a few seconds, giving Tj pause. He looked her over, and raised his eyebrows slightly.
"Going to need to talk, hm?"
Fujiko diverted her eyes. She didn’t want to have to talk about how she was feeling, but she knew that she wouldn’t have much of a choice, considering how things were going.
"I mean, I guess. But not in here. I need to get out of here."
Tj meant to ask why, but looked around and saw the amount of things inside it. He knew better. With a slight smile, he removed himself as an obstacle, and she heard him making his way into the living room. She took a look over her shoulder and the box that she just placed the lid on, and after spying it for a few moments, she relieved her anxiety by leaving it, and the room behind. With a forceful pull, the door shut louder than she’d intended it to.
"Already slamming doors, I see. Wow."
Fujiko bit at her lip, not realizing how much her anxiety came through in that simple act. She emerged from the hallway that led to the bedrooms, and scowled a bit.
"Sorry. Just...it’s been a day."
Tj shrugged with his left shoulder, dismissing it. Fujiko noted that he’d already made himself comfortable on the couch, his attention mostly on the night falling over his home city.
"Beautiful view."
Fujiko drew her attention to the window as well, nodding in agreement. She watched what she could of the city transforming to compensate for the lack of light, but Tj’s voice snapped her out of it and caught her attention.
"Feeling ready?"
Fujiko took in the question, and answered it quicker than even she anticipated.
"Of course. I’m beyond ready."
Tj shook his head, almost as if Fujiko misunderstood the question.
"I don’t mean for Joey Miles. I know that it’s a match that you can, and most likely will win. I’m talking about for the Frontier Lions’ Cup. It’s more than just a couple of matches, you know."
It dawned on Fujiko how right he was. She’d arrived after last years’ cup had passed, and so wasn’t as familiar with it as she could have been. Was she really ready? She told herself she was, but there was a difference between her convincing herself, and actually being ready.
"You’re going to have to be your own manager through the whole night. If you lose, you’re obviously done, but if you want to emerge as the sole survivor, you are going to have to be the smartest and the best. Just being good won’t be enough. You’re going to have to turn in a performance that sets you apart from the rest of the pack, including people you’ve lost to recently."
Fujiko didn’t need the reminder. It was possible that she could meet Izzy Anders, the brand new Mid-Atlantic Legacy champion in her quest to win. Sure, Izzy seemed rather enamored with Fujiko, but she’d already demonstrated that something like that would not stand in the way of her getting a victory. She could also end up facing Johnny Karma, who was more than full of himself after getting the victory at All Star Showdown IV. If she ended up having to face him, she wouldn’t have much of a leg to stand on in terms of verbal jabs. She’d have to just come at him harder than last time. Or, she could end up facing...her. The woman she’d promised not to talk about, a promise only she seemed capable of upholding. Fujiko secretly would revel in the chance to shut her up totally, getting the last laugh. It promised not to be easy, however.
"Yeah...I see your point."
Making matters worse, she could face any combination of them all in the same night, along with someone like the Gold Rush winning Cordy Stevenson, who would likely be chomping at the bit to get another chance at dethroning Chandler Scott. Or Dan Herrera, who would be laser focused on proving he could be the one to take the belt from the dominant champion. Or maybe an upstart like Ochosi, whom she’d never heard of. Perhaps he could slingshot from veritable unknown, to number one contender to what Fujiko considered one of the most important prizes in all of wrestling, the FGA World championship.
She had to make sure that she made it to Above and Beyond as a member of this tournament. Absolutely had to.
"Fujiko, we will do whatever we can to prepare you for this. I’m confident you can get past Joey Miles, but the true test will be having to have up to three matches in one night, with the difficulty being ramped up to insane levels. Kayden, Velma, Frankie, myself, and even Arkia will do what we can to get you prepared for this."
Fujiko seemed lost in thought as his words poured through her auditory senses. Sure, they would all be on hand to offer advice, or to give strategy, but if she was a weak vessel, she would buckle under the pressure once game time was on.
She had to do something about that.
"Thomas…"
She began, her anxiety coming back tenfold and making her doubt the idea that danced a wild dance in her brain. She watched Tj turn to face her, almost in slow motion. The words were almost caught in her throat. She felt as if she was about to ask for her death. She truly did not know what it was that she was about to ask him to do, but she was growing desperate. So she had to ask. Meanwhile, Tj turned to her in confusion. It was rare for her to use his given name when addressing him, and the face that she did so in such a nervous, soft fashion only worried him further.
"Yes, Fujiko? What’s up?"
Tj watched as she seemed to struggle internally, the pause between her getting his attention, and following it up with the question being way too long for his liking.
"...Fujiko?"
She swallowed hard. She didn’t know what she was getting into, but in her mind, it was the only way.
"Can you get Shurizaka-sensei to train me?"
Tj’s blood ran cold, and his jaw went slack in shock. If he was in a better mindset, he might have seen Fujiko visibly shaking as she asked this. He had no immediate response. Fujiko felt the need to repeat it, with a little more resolve in her voice, and as a statement this time.
"I-I... would like Shurizaka-sensei to train me."
It felt a less empty ever since she got home from Elsewhere. The primary isolation, and ability to train alongside her father figure, Hiro; was a refreshing change of pace. She was allowed the ability to be alone with her thoughts, without the reminders of what she’d lost recently. She found that she was being distracted by things that remained in the condo. She’d packed away pictures and keepsakes that reminded her of Sasha. Her replica of the Mid-Atlantic Legacy championship was not on display in any way, including at Elsewhere. She just wanted the chance to focus on getting better, and going to the secluded compound did that.
As far as she knew, Hiro had stayed behind when she left to get herself prepared for her match with Joey Miles. The lingering thoughts that her conversation with him produced hung tightly to her as she got herself settled.
"Maybe it’s time to just...start over?"
She let the thought mull around in her head as she looked at the few downturned picture frames, and empty spaces where she knew things of sentimental value once sat. Maybe it wouldn’t be a terrible idea to just get rid of those things, instead of letting them torture her in subtle ways. Hiding them didn’t stop the images and memories from placing themselves in her minds’ eye when she took a glance at the strangely placed items. Listening to herself go on about them, she decided it was probably in the best interest of her sanity to do so. It wasn’t going to be something that she could do now. She was still doing her best to recover from the journey home. With resignation, she let go of the handle on her suitcase and made her move over to the couch. As she did, she saw one of the lone frames that wasn’t placed strategically to hide something. It stood out because of this, but today it caught her eye for a different reason.
It was a photo of herself, much younger than she was now, with Hiro Nagashima on her left, and Tj Jones on her right. The background of the photo was of the then named Black Sparrow Dojo, where she was officially trained to become a professional wrestler. She’d thought back to a less distant past while she was down there, but this picture reminded her of her absolute beginnings. The only person missing in this photo was a man that she hoped that she’d never have to see again. Despite his absence in the photo, she could see his face there. It sent a nasty, unwelcome chill up her spine, visualizing him there. Daisuke “Diamond” Shurizaka’s cold, ill-planning grin wafted next to Hiro in the picture like a ghost. Daisuke was the man who taught Hiro everything he knew, and he helped Tj train to beat Arkia Fisk, in what was likely to be their final match against each other. She’d heard horror stories about his rather brutal training methods. She tore her eyes away from it, and looked out the large curved window that showcased the dimming Milwaukee skyline.
"Ugh…"
She remembered the harsh “teachings” that he employed in teaching her self defense, and it brought a feeling of sickness to her stomach. But it was a necessary part of remembering. She couldn’t just cut him out of the past, as much as she wanted to. But thinking about that time, in which she was first introduced to Daisuke; she had to give thought about what changed between her the very first time she stepped into the ring, and now.
"Oh, so much…"
She said outloud, breaking up the silence with her own voice to reassure herself. But to be fair, there was a median point, a break point that had to be addressed between now, and the beginning of her career. With a sigh, she pushed herself off the couch and forced locomotion towards one of the spare bedrooms. It was a room she tried to push out of her mind, as it also held some of the things that Sasha and Fujiko shared. It was also home to things that Fujiko wanted to forget that didn’t involve Sasha. One of those things, she was about to bring back to the light.
She felt herself growing anxious as she reached the lightly stained wooden door. She pushed at it lightly, as if she was afraid that the personification of all those horrors would reach out and rip her to shreds if she dared to open the door any further. She reminded herself that she needed to do this. She needed to endure the pain. She inhaled sharply as she pushed the door open, and the the first thing to greet her was the faint scent of her former lover. It weakened her resolve, and she had to power past it to go to the far end of the room. Underneath the bare bones of the bed that occupied the room was a hastily stuffed box. She bent down, digging her knees into the plush carpeting and peeked under the bed. The box was the lone item there, and it almost peered at her as she gazed at it. In one swift motion, it was unearthed from its resting place, and the lid was set aside.
Almost as if it knew what she was looking for (or perhaps in a wicked sense of foresight), the paper she was looking for was right at the top, the large bold headline already ripping at her emotions. A faint voice called at her, but she ignored it; enraptured by the headline.
FFW WRESTLER FUJIKO MINE RETIRES
She had to take a moment to wipe away a few tears that made it past her defenses, and rolled onto her cheeks.
"Stupid, stupid. Why are you crying?"
She could not answer her own question. It seemed so long ago, when she felt utterly defeated and destroyed to the point where she chose to no longer compete in wrestling. She remembered sitting in Samantha Star’s office, fighting with everything she had to keep a straight face. She could not break down and cry in front of Ms. Star. She had to keep some respect. What little she tried to keep though, was quickly stripped away by some nasty twitter barbs directed at her by some of FFW’s staff. She thought it an incredibly unprofessional and childish move, but she couldn’t split hairs about it now. The fact remained that the headline that was in front of her labeled her something she hated more than anything else.
A Quitter.
"So stupid…"
She suddenly felt bombarded by failure. Anything that she’d failed at in recent memory formed a line and hit her ego repeatedly. It was enough to push her towards another breakdown, but she tried to shake it off.
"You are not terrible. You are great. Better than everyone knows. You aren’t going to fail, Fujiko. You aren’t going to fail. Everyone has their ups and downs, and you’re due for another 'up'."
A voice behind her made her jump.
"You are indeed."
Fujiko spun around, surprised and afraid at the same time.
"OH MY GOSH!"
Tj Jones, the owner of said voice, shook his head and made a distressed face.
"Sorry Fujicakes, didn’t mean to scare you. I thought you heard me come in."
Fujiko swallowed hard, trying to catch her breath and calm her heart at the same time.
"You almost scared the absolute crap out of me! Oh my gosh!"
Tj placed his hands in front of him, palms facing Fujiko, in an attempt to calm her down.
"I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I just wanted to check in with you. I heard that you were back from Elsewhere, had to make sure that things were alright."
Fujiko got a hold of herself, and then placed the lid back on the box. She hoisted herself back to a standing position.
"I’m sorry, I guess I was just...thinking."
Tj resets his positioning, closing the gap between them and taking her in an embrace. She pushes away after a few seconds, giving Tj pause. He looked her over, and raised his eyebrows slightly.
"Going to need to talk, hm?"
Fujiko diverted her eyes. She didn’t want to have to talk about how she was feeling, but she knew that she wouldn’t have much of a choice, considering how things were going.
"I mean, I guess. But not in here. I need to get out of here."
Tj meant to ask why, but looked around and saw the amount of things inside it. He knew better. With a slight smile, he removed himself as an obstacle, and she heard him making his way into the living room. She took a look over her shoulder and the box that she just placed the lid on, and after spying it for a few moments, she relieved her anxiety by leaving it, and the room behind. With a forceful pull, the door shut louder than she’d intended it to.
"Already slamming doors, I see. Wow."
Fujiko bit at her lip, not realizing how much her anxiety came through in that simple act. She emerged from the hallway that led to the bedrooms, and scowled a bit.
"Sorry. Just...it’s been a day."
Tj shrugged with his left shoulder, dismissing it. Fujiko noted that he’d already made himself comfortable on the couch, his attention mostly on the night falling over his home city.
"Beautiful view."
Fujiko drew her attention to the window as well, nodding in agreement. She watched what she could of the city transforming to compensate for the lack of light, but Tj’s voice snapped her out of it and caught her attention.
"Feeling ready?"
Fujiko took in the question, and answered it quicker than even she anticipated.
"Of course. I’m beyond ready."
Tj shook his head, almost as if Fujiko misunderstood the question.
"I don’t mean for Joey Miles. I know that it’s a match that you can, and most likely will win. I’m talking about for the Frontier Lions’ Cup. It’s more than just a couple of matches, you know."
It dawned on Fujiko how right he was. She’d arrived after last years’ cup had passed, and so wasn’t as familiar with it as she could have been. Was she really ready? She told herself she was, but there was a difference between her convincing herself, and actually being ready.
"You’re going to have to be your own manager through the whole night. If you lose, you’re obviously done, but if you want to emerge as the sole survivor, you are going to have to be the smartest and the best. Just being good won’t be enough. You’re going to have to turn in a performance that sets you apart from the rest of the pack, including people you’ve lost to recently."
Fujiko didn’t need the reminder. It was possible that she could meet Izzy Anders, the brand new Mid-Atlantic Legacy champion in her quest to win. Sure, Izzy seemed rather enamored with Fujiko, but she’d already demonstrated that something like that would not stand in the way of her getting a victory. She could also end up facing Johnny Karma, who was more than full of himself after getting the victory at All Star Showdown IV. If she ended up having to face him, she wouldn’t have much of a leg to stand on in terms of verbal jabs. She’d have to just come at him harder than last time. Or, she could end up facing...her. The woman she’d promised not to talk about, a promise only she seemed capable of upholding. Fujiko secretly would revel in the chance to shut her up totally, getting the last laugh. It promised not to be easy, however.
"Yeah...I see your point."
Making matters worse, she could face any combination of them all in the same night, along with someone like the Gold Rush winning Cordy Stevenson, who would likely be chomping at the bit to get another chance at dethroning Chandler Scott. Or Dan Herrera, who would be laser focused on proving he could be the one to take the belt from the dominant champion. Or maybe an upstart like Ochosi, whom she’d never heard of. Perhaps he could slingshot from veritable unknown, to number one contender to what Fujiko considered one of the most important prizes in all of wrestling, the FGA World championship.
She had to make sure that she made it to Above and Beyond as a member of this tournament. Absolutely had to.
"Fujiko, we will do whatever we can to prepare you for this. I’m confident you can get past Joey Miles, but the true test will be having to have up to three matches in one night, with the difficulty being ramped up to insane levels. Kayden, Velma, Frankie, myself, and even Arkia will do what we can to get you prepared for this."
Fujiko seemed lost in thought as his words poured through her auditory senses. Sure, they would all be on hand to offer advice, or to give strategy, but if she was a weak vessel, she would buckle under the pressure once game time was on.
She had to do something about that.
"Thomas…"
She began, her anxiety coming back tenfold and making her doubt the idea that danced a wild dance in her brain. She watched Tj turn to face her, almost in slow motion. The words were almost caught in her throat. She felt as if she was about to ask for her death. She truly did not know what it was that she was about to ask him to do, but she was growing desperate. So she had to ask. Meanwhile, Tj turned to her in confusion. It was rare for her to use his given name when addressing him, and the face that she did so in such a nervous, soft fashion only worried him further.
"Yes, Fujiko? What’s up?"
Tj watched as she seemed to struggle internally, the pause between her getting his attention, and following it up with the question being way too long for his liking.
"...Fujiko?"
She swallowed hard. She didn’t know what she was getting into, but in her mind, it was the only way.
"Can you get Shurizaka-sensei to train me?"
Tj’s blood ran cold, and his jaw went slack in shock. If he was in a better mindset, he might have seen Fujiko visibly shaking as she asked this. He had no immediate response. Fujiko felt the need to repeat it, with a little more resolve in her voice, and as a statement this time.
"I-I... would like Shurizaka-sensei to train me."