Panther's Claws, Angel's Wrath (For Underdog21)

There was a loud bang as Chris was shoved forcibly back into the lockers. Risako pressed in close, her forearm at the taller woman's throat causing her breath to catch for a moment with a soft gurgle.

*Oh here we go...* the American thought to herself. *The Panther bares it's claws. But, I'm not the confused, young woman she beat down and knocked out. And while I don't bear anyone else from the old league a grudge, I do have an issue with you....Queen of Queens. Oh yes I do....*

Reaching up, Chris's hand found Risako's throat and with a strength that seemed to surpass the level of power she had during her time as a Wrestle Angel, she lifted the Panther off of her feet and then, with a loud yell, took a few long strides to the lockers on the opposite side of the narrow hallway, slamming the Japanese woman against them with a loud crash. Rage blazed in her eyes as she then let Risako slide down the lockers so her feet were on the ground again, although her hand remained at the Asian's throat.

"You betrayed me!" Chris screamed.
The sight of her now would probably shock Valley Doll, or anyone else that she had either known in the Wrestle Angels, or met since her return to wrestling. Chris was usually the poster child of the saying 'walk softly and carry a big stick.' Generally the tall American was known for being calm and collected both in the ring and out. But here, now, with years of anger and guilt carried on her shoulders? She couldn't, despite, her best efforts, leash both her voice and her words. So, with an effort, she lowered her voice.

"You. Betrayed. Me." she repeated, putting stress on each word in a quiet, but terrible tone that equaled Risako's snarl in both intensity and anger. "You came out that night with your surprise challenge and took from me something I fought, sweated and bled for, just for the chance that I could have it. You, who knew all of the flaws and weaknesses I had in the ring during that time. There was no discussion of what you planned to do, no chance to prepare! You were barely a step above someone who comes out with a steel chair and then brains someone with it when they don't expect it!"

Letting Risako go, Chris took a step back.
"We had our arguments before that point, and the one the night before was bad. You accused me of sleeping with the President of the league to keep my hands on the belt. I accused you of being jealous of my success, of hating the fact I was beating all of your Japanese friends."

Chris shook her head, remembering just how far off base Risako's claim was. She hadn't given men as much as a thought sexually, not since she was a girl in high school. To have Risako accuse her of cheating, with a man no less....it seemed like insult upon insult. Although, Chris had to admit, looking back, her own accusations were almost as far off. Risako had done more to help her than anyone else, had cheered her victories and helped her after her defeats. When she won the belt, Risako was the first one to meet her in the locker room. Chris still had the pictures that were taken of them in that moment.
Her towel had slipped during the scuffle, sliding down her body enough to bare her breasts. Feeling the draft brought her out of her short trip down memory lane. With quick, sharp motions she pulled it off and rewrapped it around her body so it would cover her again, speaking as she worked. The brief moment of nudity revealed a body that, despite it's feminine curves, carried hard, defined lines of muscularity. Chris had been preparing for her eventual showdowns with both Hibiki Izayoi and Migiri Oozora with workout, training and sparring schedules that were spartan-like in intensity, even before coming to Japan. The results showed clearly, even if Chris's intentions to try and protect the other Wrestle Angels from them weren't.

"That morning though, you came back to me. No words were spoken, you just climbed into bed with me, and we...well, that was the last time we were together wasn't it? I woke up later, and you were gone. I thought all had been forgiven. What a fool I was, wasn't I? Because later that night....you revealed that you're no panther, nor a queen. Just a viper. A back-biter. All for your.....fucking Angels."

Chris didn't curse often, but the situation, the feeling of betrayal that Risako chose the rest of the roster over her, needed to be expressed.

Risako wasn't thinking. It was pure anger driving her actions-- anger that Chris had the audacity to come here, after all that she had done, and start hurting her fellow angels like she had before. If she had stopped to think for a few seconds before, Risako would have refrained from attacking Chris directly, or would have at least done it in such a way that Chris wouldn't have been able to retaliate effectively.

Instead, Risako was reminded of just how strong Chris was when the American woman lifted her up by the throat. Her eyes widened, just before her body shook violently as she was slammed against the lockers. "Aghhhlkk!"

Even as her feet dangled off the floor, she looked into Chris' eyes, and saw the frustrated anger welling up in there. It was shocking, to say the least-- for as long as Risako had known Chris, she was never the type to get angry, never the type to lash out and hurt someone. This was a new, unsettling side to Chris that she was seeing.

She waited as Chris spoke, as she released all of that pent-up anger and sadness. She almost didn't notice the way Chris' towel slid to the floor, but paid no attention to it. Her focus remained on Chris' face.

"I betrayed you?" Risako finally spoke back. "You really don't remember what we were arguing about, did you? I warned you what you were doing-- that you were siding with a man who was destroying the league piece by piece, bit by bit. A league that I was doing my best to make you feel like a part of! But you never LISTENED! You kept doing what you were doing, ignorant of how many people you were hurting in the process! People like me, Chris!"

"After that night, I thought you were going to change. I thought you knew what you were getting into, that you would see reason. But I was wrong, wasn't I Chris? Instead, you went out and won a title against a woman who was already suffering from a sprained elbow. THAT was all I could take." She paused. "You should have known better, Chris. It's one thing to be a pawn in an evil scheme, it's another to be willfully ignorant about it."

Chris would've loved to be able to dispute Risako's telling of how she had begun her first title reign, but unfortunately her former love was right. The only thing she could say in her defense was that she hadn't known Bomber Kishima had been injured at the time. She had discovered that much later. As for the President, well, the man was the first person to be friendly towards her, even before Risako took note of her. He had been there when she won her debut, in fact. His supposed vision of having a league where people could belong, no matter where they came from, had drawn the foreigner in, making her willing to fight for him directly. Risako was right, she should have seen him for who he was. Maybe if she hadn't been blinded by his false idealism, and sadly, by her own desire to wear that coveted belt, she might have.

Still, all the maybes she could come up with couldn't change the past. But perhaps the past could help deliver a veiled warning of sorts, to try and put Risako on her guard. Despite her conflicting feelings for the Queen of Queens, Chris didn't want to see her victimized by either Hibiki Izayoi, or Migiri Oozora.

"It was Kishima's back." Chris said tonelessly, lost in the memory of that night as she thought about it. "Bomber Kishima had faced Beauty Ichigaya the night before, and hurt her back. I guess that's why she attacked me so relentlessly at the start of the match, to keep me from discovering the injury, maybe put me away early. But eventually, I did something that hit her back, and she writhed around on the mat. I did like you taught me, you know....find a flaw, and attack it. Backbreakers, powerbombs, any slam that I could think of that attacked the back, I used it. Eventually, I put her in a torture rack. She gave up....but not before she screamed. I put her out of commission for four months."

For a moment her eyes were haunted by the guilt of what happened that night, but after running a hand across her face, Chris managed to settle into a neutral, poker face expression.

"But, did you know I'm not the only person in the AFW that's put a Wrestle Angel on the shelf? Migiri Oozora is around somewhere. You remember what she did to Chisato Sakurai, right? Left in the ring, bleeding, nearly broken. Almost paralyzed her. And if Hibiki Izayoi has her way, she'll do something similar to one of the other Wrestle Angels...."

"But we're not talking about Oozora," Risako cut in, "or about Iyazoi, or any of the others. We're talking about you, Chris. We're talking about what you've done."

Despite herself, Risako ran a hand down one of Chris' cheeks-- a motion that brought back the memory of that face looking at her from across her pillow. "I risked a lot by standing up for you after what you did to Kishima, you know that? No one was willing to trust you-- heck, Yukiko wanted nothing more than to get revenge on you at the first opportunity. But I trusted you...I let you in...because I saw you for what you were. You were new, you were scared, and you had a lot to prove."

She stopped caressing Chris and took a step back. "That's why it hurt so much when you did what you did, Chris. You can talk about being betrayed all you want, but I'm the one who placed confidence in you, only to see you use it in the worst possible way." Her expression hardened. "And that's why I'm asking you, Chris, to leave AFW now while you still can. Every single Angel who knows what happened will be out for your blood, and the management here is even worse than in the last one-- you'll either become a pawn again, or get abused. Just...leave, Chris. You will be sparing everyone else a lot of hurt if you did."

Chris blinked as Risako blew right past the news of Oozora and Izayoi's return. She certainly didn't expect that. The thought of two heavyweights going after the Wrestle Angels as if open season had been declared on them had made Chris more than a little concerned. Did Risako had that much confidence in the Angels' ability to handle them, or in her own ability to protect them?

She instinctively leaned into Risako's touch as the other woman ran her hand down her face. It was strange, even though so much time had passed, some things just came naturally.
Then the Asian pulled away, and then spoke of Chris leaving. She thought for a moment, then made her reply.

"No." Chris stated simply. "I have my reasons for being here. And if any of the former Angels, yourself included, feel the need for revenge, I'm not hard to find. I'll neither run nor hide. You see, I have my own point to prove, Risako."

She focused her gaze on the Panther, her blue eyes narrowed.
"Despite what some may think, I was the champion of the Wrestle Angels. The Phenomenon of Heaven. I got both the title and the name by fighting for them, earning them. Now, here in this league where there is no question about management favoring me, I am going to show everyone, beyond the shadow of a doubt I deserved both that belt, and the honor of being called a champion. And if that means I go through each and every pissed off girl from our former league, so be it...."

Risako's eyes narrowed as Chris spoke. She wanted to believe Chris had changed, she really did...but here she was, not only ignoring her, but also boldly proclaiming that she was going to hurt and maim every single Angel that stood in her way. This was not something that Risako would stand for.

"No. It. Doesn't." In an instant, Risako had grabbed Chris' shoulders again and pinned her roughly against the wall. "If you want to prove yourself, then fine, but I am NOT letting you trample over what's left of our league to do it! As far as I'm concerned, Chris, you've done enough damage!"

Releasing Chris, she took a step back, glaring at her lover. "If you want to go through the Angels, Chris, then you're going to have to go through me first. Either here, or in the ring. Either way, you'll have to deal with me."

Chris found herself up against the wall again as Risako took exception with what the American had said. The sad part about of all of this, at least from Chris's view, was the fact that they were both concerned for the well being of the girls from their now defunct league. However, when Chris looked deep enough into her own heart and soul, the fact of the matter was she also had the desire to prove that she had been and was still worthy of being a champion of the Wrestle Angels , not just to the fans, or the other former Angels, but to herself.

*Being a champion is much more than simply wearing a belt and heading out to the ring. It's about sacrifice as well. To have goals, and the will to do what it takes to attain them. I'm going to keep the Angels safe, yourself Risako. I'll stand against Migiri, Hibiki, and anyone else that threatens them. And if I have to endure the worst of what the Angels, yourself included, have to offer along the way, then so be it.* Chris thought.

The blonde gave a heavy sigh before responding to the Queen of Queens, steeling her resolve. She knew when she came back that she would be at odds with everyone from her former league. But to have Risako, the woman she had loved years ago, emerge and declare herself an enemy.....it sank in for Chris. When it came to friends from the Wrestle Angels, she had none. She felt a pang of sadness and pain, but then pushed it away. Later on in the safe and solitary space of her apartment Chris would deal with it, but it would do her no good here. She closed her eyes until she had herself under control.

"If you and the rest of the Angels want to hate me, that's fine, go ahead and hate me. But when this is all said and done, all of you will respect me." she stated coldly. "But I won't fight you in the locker rooms or back hallways Risako. Despite what you think of me, I'm a wrestler, not some street alley brawler. Find me in the ring. Like I said, I won't run or hide. Then again, you've always known that about me, haven't you? That's why you dropped that surprise challenge. You knew I'd fight, even when I wasn't prepared. Well, this time, I will be. Because now, I'm always prepared. It's a lesson you taught me, Risako."

With that, she reached into her locker and got her gym bag, preparing to leave. She would have to find somewhere else to change, but she knew she'd find another locker room, or barring that, a bathroom. But for the moment, Chris felt all the turmoil and feelings unearthed by Risako's appearance starting to overwhelm her. She needed to get home. And, by God, she needed that bottle of red wine she had in her cabinet.

Risako blinked at Chris' accusation, in part because she'd knew it was true. All those years ago, she had openly challenged Chris to...to do what, exactly? Punish her? To see if she still had a shred of honour left? To vent all of her anger and frustration on her? Risako didn't know, but it didn't matter: the damage was done by this point. And now, it looked like history was repeating itself.

She didn't want this. She was still angry at Chris, but by the same token, she didn't want to hurt her more than she already had. But it looked like she wasn't getting a choice in the matter.

"Fine," Risako said. "You want to meet in the ring? We'll meet in the ring. This new league is a second chance for all of us, so you might as well get a second shot at beating me." Her eyes locked with Chris'. "But if I win again, Chris, then it will be up to you to decide whether you have a place her."

For a moment, their eyes locked, and Risako's hand balled into a fist, before it finally relaxed again. "Just...take care of yourself, okay?" she finally said. Without a further word, she averted her eyes, collected her things, and headed for the door.

She didn't look back, as much as she wanted to. As soon as she exited the locker room, though, she leaned against the nearby wall and clenched her eyes shut to force back the tears. Why? Why did she have to come back? Why couldn't I have just left that painful part of my past behind?

There was no answer. Taking a deep breath, Risako headed for the exit.

Chris listened as Risako spoke. Apparently, she was destined to contend with the Queen of Queens in the ring again. Except this time, the blonde made a silent, solemn vow that the next match they had was going to end much differently. Although, Risako's last statement, that Chris take care of herself, was a strange contradiction to what she had said earlier. Still, today was a day of tangled feelings, and the Californian knew she had to try get hers sorted out before stepping into the ring again.

After Risako left, Chris waited a moment to make sure the Japanese woman wasn't going to double back. Then she leaned against a nearby locker wearily. She felt tired, and not just from the after workout fatigue. Quickly, Chris changed into a casual outfit. As she left, one thought cut through the jumbled hazr of emotions and memories.

*God I need a drink...*