Sans Serif

Mai took one last look in the mirror and adjusted her tiny tie. She wiggled her fluffy tail and ran a finger along her furry ears. Once everything looked right, she put on her headset and took a deep breath. She flashed the sound guy a Vee and a bright smile and when he did his thing, she did hers.

her biggest hit began to play over the loudspeakers. It was a cloying j-pop tune that was catchy enough to melt even the toughest of hearts. A love ballad to all the nerdy people who had built up her career and helped to make her a star called "NOtaku no Love!"

Mai loved the spotlight and as she sang the words and spun and danced tot he rhythm, the smile never left her face. She winked when she caught the eye of adoring fans and waved between breaths. Her long, pretty hair swung about as she swirled around in her tight body suit, leaving none of her curves to the imagination but still staying classy. Mai knew how to work a crowd, that was for sure.

She had timed the song perfectly so that by the time it was finished she was in the middle of the ring. The spotlight guy was a pro too and not once did the light leave her. It never wavered and moved seamlessly. She loved it and as it shut off, the arena lights turned off and Mai bowed to the crowd as they cheered the impromptu musical act, a fun respite from the violence and sexuality that came with the AFW.

"Ohaaaayoooooo!" the Mecha Neko chirped. "Is everyone having fun tonight!?" She called out and put her hand to her cat ear. The crowd cheered loudly. "Whaaaat?" She said and shrugged her shoulders like she couldn't hear them. "I SAAAID, is everybody having FUN tonight!?" The crowd strained to be louder and Mai grinned even more brightly.

"The show has been amazing so far, most definitely! I had to come out and see for myself! I like to have a good time but I like to compete as well! I've been busy with Summer Splash." Mai took a moment and pouted. "Ahh, if only I could have been in the ring!" She said and flopped a little bit. "But any of you lucky enough to make it to the show still got to see a little taste of the Mecha Neko dressing for the part in the pavillions that were set up! I had such a great time being an AFW ambassador." Mai had dressed up in a "race queen" out fit during the fan gatherings the AFW had. It amounted to little more than a spimpy metallic bikini. With ears and tail, of course. "What I love the most about this business is meeting all the fans. I come from the land of otaku and I think that wrestling fans are definitely their own brand of otaku! So passionate, so lively and so eager to take it all in! I love you all, really I do!"

Mai smiled brightly and strolled tot he camera, looking at it directly. "You don't prefer to be called an Otaku, you say?" She said, quizzically touching her finger to her chin as if deep in thought. "It's not a bad thing, that's for sure. The great thing about otaku are ANYONE can be one as long as they have passion so I mean it as a sincere compliment!" Mai leaned in and kissed the camera lens before spinning on her heel, knowing that another camera would catch her sauntering away mischievously. She knew where all the cameras were.

"What I really wanted to say was that I'm primed and ready for another match so you'll be seeing me quite soon! But in the mean time, I am honored to continue entertaining you in ANYWAY I can! Before we get to the next match tonight, I'll do one more song!" The crowd approved with cheers and whistles. They wouldn't pass down a free concert from the Mecha-Neko

"I'm sure you all know it, so feel free to sing along! If you don't, just pretend, no one will know!" Mai made a shhh noise as she pressed a glove finger against her lips. "It's called OTAKAWAII and it goes something like this!" Mai waved a hand to the entrance ramp, anticipating the sound guy to start playing the music so she could get this crowd grooving again!

Helvetica Lee was staring daggers through her pint glass. Why was she here, she asked herself. What was she doing? She'd been hanging out backstage, tonight, the AFW promoters telling her that it was a good idea to get a feel for the backstage environment. They told her to see what kinds of things the other girls did, to work the crowds. As if she was going to learn something, from these pathetic bitches. Helvetica had been in Japan for weeks, now, getting settled in, and she was absolutely aching for some solid entertainment. Theoretically, she was eager to give Mai's show a chance. But pop singing wasn't exactly wrestling, now was it? With every prancing bit of pop stardom, with every ounce of energy that Mai had invested in entertaining her fans, Helvetica found herself sitting back, stewing in her resentment for getting talked into showing up for some robo-cat-girl-neko-nyani-something-something-bullshit. Or whatever.

Helvetica watched, as the pop idol stood out there, pandering to the crowd for cheap pop after cheap pop. Granted, the girl had the entire crowd eating out of her hand, but come on. “Blatant pandering,” Helvetica muttered, as she took a sip from her drink, rolling her eyes. “Really, 'Summer Splash?' How desperate can you get? You wouldn't catch The Great Judo whining that she wasn't thrown into some bullshit bikini fap fodder show, like that ...”

God, why was AFW even giving time to filler crap like this? Helvetica's head rolled backwards, her standard eye-roll apparently insufficient for expressing her current level of disdain. When Mai started trying to lead the audience in a singalong, though, the “student of the game” bubbled over with outrage. Seriously, this was the kind of crap that AFW was going to let happen in a wrestling ring? Quaffing the last of her drink, snatching a mic from the hands of some hapless backstage twit, Helvetica marched out onto the entrance ramp, ready to give this little pop-star techno-furry an earful.

“BOOOOOOOOOOOO-RING!”

Hevetica lingered a moment, on the entrance ramp, letting the audacity of her interruption sink in. She was dressed in a rather plain outfit, a snug sweater and pair of slacks, her attire not giving any hint that she was anything other than a particularly disgruntled, irritable fan. Pulling the mic back to her lips, she shouted out, again, “Boooooooo-ring!” Helvetica began to pace from one side of the ramp to the other, as she glared at Mai. “What the hell is this crap? Do you even realize you're in a wrestling ring, you goofy little bitch? This isn't singalong hour with the perky little fox, this is AFW. And if you aren't here to wrestle, then why on earth are you wasting our time?” Holding out the microphone expectantly, Helvetica waited for Mai to respond, all too eager to hear how this little pop minx was going to try and justify herself in the face of Helvetica's criticism.

“BOOOOOOOOOOOO-RING!”

That wasn't how OTAKAWAII started last time she checked. Mai wrinkled her brow in confusion when she saw what appeared to be a mere fan walk out from the backstage area. She didn't recognize the bespectacled girl one bit and the crowd seemed too confused to even boo the disrespectful "student."

She repeated it again and Mai tilted her head, giving her cat ears Helvetica's full attention as she spoke her mind. The Mecha Neko blinked when the brunette finished. What a sour woman!

"Catfox, nyan!"

Mai corrected with a bright grin and a wink. She wasn't going to let Helvetica's attitude damper HER spirits. She raised one hand and held out her index finger. "I have come to wrestle, though! Not tonight but soon enough. For now I think that it's important to do what I can to make everyone happy until they get a chance to see me shine in the ring once more."

Mai then turned tot he audience. "I can take criticism." She said. "One complaint receeeived!" She did a mock salute. "If the rest of you feel my performance tonight hasn't been up to snuff, I'll graciously dismiss myself, and my cute tail, from the arena."

The resounding cheer was everything that Mai needed to know and she pivoted back to face Helvetica. "I'm sorry." Mai said and bowed to Helvetica. "For now, it seems like the "Hais" have it." Mai extended her hand out as if Helvetica was close by.

"But, now a question from Mai. I think we all would like to know who YOU are." This time the crowd was able to muster up a boo at the girl who spoiled Mai's act. Mai shook her head, her long, brown locks swaying as she gestured for them to quiet down. "Now, now. It seems as if she is passionate about her feelings. At least let's hear her out." She said. "Come into the ring! I don't bite!" She said, waving Helvetica closer, her cheerful grin ever present.

"Oh, bless my stars and garters," Helvetica muttered to herself, "this little bitch just said 'nyan.' Out loud. When people could hear her." It seemed like Mai wasn't too phased by being interrupted, which gave Helvetica some measure of confidence. The self-described "catfox" had to expect that someone would come out to eventually shut her up, right? One could only hope. With long, confident strides, Helvetica made her way down the entrance ramp towards where Mai stood, in the ring. Some of the audience was already booing the outspoken critic based on her reputation (not to mention the boldness with which she'd pretty much just ruined an otherwise enjoyable concert), but most of them seemed to have no idea who Helvetica actually was. So, the "student of the game" decided, it was time to clarify a few things, for them.

"It's good that you can take some criticism, honey," Helvetica started, giving a snarky nod of her head as she addressed Mai. "Because if what I just saw is any indication, you should have a lot coming your way. See, I don't know if you've been told, but this is a wrestling ring. 'Wrestling,' you understand that word, right? It's that thing where someone puts away silly little girl bullshit like tails, and fake little ears, and gets down to business." Helvetica could hear the mounting boo's of the fans, at her neck, though it didn't seem to faze the young woman. "See, if these pathetic, drooling fanboys knew what was good for them, they'd be calling for you to get your toned little butt out of here, so that some real wrestlers could put on an actual show. None of this 'otaku-kawaii-desuu-who-gives-a-damn-crap."

"Now, my name is Helvetica Lee. Maybe you've heard of me. World's foremost authority on professional wrestling? Ascended fangirl? If not, that's okay," she added, giving a pronounced shrug to the audience. "I mean, I'm speaking to a crowd that was just now losing it's shit over some little twit in a robot fox costume, wailing out generic pop crap. Clearly, these people don't have the education, to appreciate someone who knows anything about wrestling. Which is where I come in."

Helvetica squared her shoulders, trying to stare down Mai from the entrance ramp. "You say you want to get into a match, fox-girl? How about you let me throw you around the ring, a little bit? It's not so bad. Just roll around a little bit, get your ass kicked on live television, and then you can go back to counting your furry-pop-star dollars. What do you say?"

"Catfox." Mai corrected once more, this time with less enthusiasm.

She had heard Helvetica's rant and understood exactly what sort of person this girl was. She didn't believe that girls could be both idols AND wrestlers. However, it seemed, from what Mai was able to put together, that Helvetica wasn't actually a wrestler... yet.

Mai took a step forward and looked at Helvetica as she leaned against the ring ropes. "You don't think I take wrestling seriously?" She said and tilted her head. "I take everything I DO seriously!" Mai closed her eyes and drew in a breath. "There's more to wrestling than what happens between the mats. If it was just about a fight then you and I could settle things in the gym behind closed doors."

Mai turned and threw an arm out to the audience. "But they came to see a SHOW!" The audience cheered. "And if we're not wrestling with them in mind then a perfectly executed suplex is completely meaningless!" Mai turned back and looked at Helvetica with a grin on her face. "But, I can certainly show you how a hurricanrana works up close in personal if you're skeptical." Mai said with a wink.

"I accept your challenge, Lee-san." Mai said with a respectful bow. She then perked up and looked at the audience. "However, it's not our decision. Would YOU like to see my take on Lee-san!?" She asked as she outstretched her arms and pivoted back to face Helvetica, smiling as the crowd gave a resounding yes.

Helvetica was having a harder and harder time containing her derision, with every word the self-described “catfox” said to her. Seriously, if the “student of the game” had to roll her eyes any harder at all of this blatant audience pandering, she was going to sprain something. Instead, however, Helvetica rolled her head from side to side, lazily, a bored expression on her face and her tongue extended in mock exhaustion.

Still, it was impossible to ignore the pop that Mai's rambling was drawing from the crowd. “Cheap heat,” Helvetica muttered, off of the microphone. “She might has well have been complimenting the local sports team ...” Still, some of what Mai was saying manage to pierce Helvetica's blasà glare, and strike a chord within the young newcomer.

When Mai finally seemed to be done wooing over the crowd, Helvetica pulled her mic back to her face. “You little pop brat,” she started, eyes narrowing as she sized up her foe. “Do you really think you can show me what a hurricanrana looks like? It's bad enough you think you can come out here and show these drooling plebes what any moves look like, but I'm the student of the game! I've studies the greatest wrestlers in this business, and if you think you can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with that crowd … Well, then, hell, I'd be happy to let you embarrass yourself.

“So, yeah, these people,” she said, waving her hand in a sweeping gesture, towards the entire audience, “say they want to see us go at it? That's fine. Maybe they can stop ogling you long enough to actually see how a real, actual wrestling match is supposed to go down! And maybe then, they'll learn better than to cheer on some caterwauling bimbo, and you'll learn to spend more time in the gym than on goofy little costume accessories!” Finished, Helvetica dropped her mic. This seemed like a good time to drop her mic, as she huffed indignantly.

Mai took a step back and watched as Helvetica attempted to put Mai in her place. She was shocked, for sure. However, when it was over, Mai shook her head.

She lifted her head up and pressed the microphone against her lips. "Lee-san." She said, not knowing, or caring really if she got Helvetica's attention. "I've learned a lot of things in my careers. Things that transcend wrestling and performing. I don't think you'll listen but if you don't take my word now, you'll see soon enough in our match."

She held up her hand and extended an index finger. "One, when you spend all your time watching others, the only thing you'll see is them passing you by." Mai took another breath and made a Vee with her hand. "And two, you never, ever bite the hand that feeds you."

Mai bowed as the crowd cheered. She waited for Helvetica to leave and finished OTAKAWAII like Helvetica hadn't even interrupted.