For the Want of a Book...

A few days prior to Eka and Irene visiting the library in search of the rare book by the long dead Russian scientist Natasha had received a call from her father back in France about that very book along with a few others one of the Tokyo universities possessed. Every wealthy man had his hobbies and her father was no different, having taken an interest in the collecting of rare books with the large libraries in each of his homes around the world serving as proof of that. Of particular interest for him were books by French and Russian authors, one such man being Trofim Lysenko whose work in biology had been sponsored by Stalin himself though without much ever coming from it. While only good as a research aid it was rare all the same for many of its copies had been kept in the USSR and destroyed when the communist party fell out of power, making it just the sort of book her father wanted to add to his collection.

Her father had already arranged to donate an unspecified amount of money to the university in exchange for that book and a few others he had an interest in, all Natasha had to do was facilitate the deal and make sure all went as planned. She had picked it up only yesterday and now the book sat on one of the countless shelves in the home's library which contained a couple thousand other titles, most of which she had never touched nor likely ever would. Natasha hadn't even given it another thought since putting it there and was sitting by a window in one of the living rooms when she heard the bell ring.

Unlike the houses Irene and Eka had passed along the way which had all been built in the traditional Japanese style the residence that matched the address they had been given was clearly built from French inspired plans, looking far more like the manor of some French royalty if such still existed in the world. In a city like Tokyo where even the smallest piece of land was valuable what stood out most about the home was the large yard around it, resembling a small piece of French countryside on the edge of Tokyo, with a winding driveway running from the road to the courtyard in front of the mansion completing the picture. The grass showed signs of having been recently cut and every tree, bush, and flower were clearly kept in top shape by a gardener of no small amount of skill, though as far as either of them would see there was no one currently working on the property.

As large as the home was it took Natasha a few minutes to descend the stairs and reach the front door, the few staff she did keep having gone for the day an hour earlier. She stopped to look through the peep hole to see who had come calling, expecting one of her friends from the AFW or perhaps even one of its lawyers but instead she found two women she hadn't seen before standing on her doorstep. Having come from a wealthy family safety had always been stressed upon her and so instead of opening the door she turned to the small monitor in the wall beside it, turning on the video conference system so that the video screen outside would come on as well.

"Sorry I wasn't expecting anyone today, might I ask who you are and what brings you to my home?" Natasha asked in a tone of voice that while cordial had an air of authority to it, telling them both she expected a good answer. Not only did Eka and Irene hear Natasha's voice but they could see her on the video monitor as well, the French woman boasting an athletic figure with a generous chest and long toned legs. She was wearing a blue and white blouse with loose fitting long sleeves and a hemline cut short enough for a peek at her heavenly mounds while still leaving a bit to the imagination. A matching skirt ran down to just above her knees and simple white shoes adorned her feet, giving her a look that was both casual and yet showed she was a woman of means.

A long, uneasy period of silence occurred after Irene rang the doorbell of Natasha's exquisite home. The girl shifted her gaze uneasily, marveling at the pristine courtyard in front of the house, but noting somewhat nervously that there were no gardeners or other such servants anywhere to be seen. It was all quiet inside the mansion as well, and for a second Irene wondered if Natasha wasn't in at the moment, or was refusing to answer.

She was startled out of her thoughts when the black screen mounted on the wall to her side flashed to life, revealing the wealthy woman who called it home. Taking in the details of the woman's appearance, Irene couldn't help but be a little bit humbled. Natasha was quite beautiful, with a keen fashion sense and long streams of shimmering blue hair that flowed like water down her head and around her shoulders. Despite her appearance, though, Natasha's no-nonsense tone of voice and facial expression made it clear she wasn't too happy to have been disturbed. Still undeterred, Irene took a deep breath to calm herself before giving her introduction.

“Hello, ma'am, my name is Irene Inger and this is Eka,” the girl flicked a wrist in the direction of her more imposing companion. “The two of us are students at the University of Tokyo, which your family recently donated some money to in exchange for some of the books in its library collection. One of the books you took is a commentary on the works of scientist Trofim Lysenko. The information contained in that book is crucial to the research topics of both Eka and myself, and the book's disappearance has placed our work in jeopardy. We've come to ask that the book be returned to the university, if it please you.”

Irene bowed her head at the end of her request, as a sign of humility. She had decided not to mention that the two women were both AFW competitors, as the information wasn't relevant to why they were there, and didn't really warrant a mention. Not yet, anyway.

Eka wondered if the awkward look on her face would be permanently etched in. The long period after the doorbell ring sent her on edge. She considered turning to her friend and seeing if she would leave to try and return to get the book some other time. But instead a small monitor flicked on and the awe inspiring Natasha stood there. The blue and white blouse made her hair pop and Eka felt stupid gawping at her like that. Natasha's chest was ample and her body was firm. The Georgian girl wondered if she was fashioned from stone like some fertility goddess come to life.

She quickly shut her mouth and did her best to look smart. Her companion took the initiative to speak up first and for that Eka was grateful. The Georgian listened with rapt attention to the words Irene spoke and bowed her head in the same fashion. She didn't think returning the book to the library would be part of the plan. But if you don't ask for it, you don't get it.

"Please. We are both students and we both place a high value on our educations. A woman of your, uh, stature..." The phrase came out awkwardly and Eka felt a pang of regret in saying them, "can surely understand our predicament. We would be most appreciative if you were to let us get our hands on it." The Georgian girl paused for a second. She wondered if she should mention that she was a fan of Natasha's, if that would even help. After a moment she decided against it. Although she could try to work the wrestler angle later on...

"We are asking you from the bottom of our hearts. Please?" Eka's voice was high and squeaky and she wondered if Natasha would mark her for some obsequious girl. She cleared her throat to try and find a lower register.

The first thought that ran through her head was that these two were looking for signatures for some kind of petition, but a closer look revealed they didn't have a clipboard in their hands for her to sign. They looked too young to be trying to sell her anything and they certainly weren't from any of the banks coming to seek her favor so they could get in with her father, leaving her curious as to what they wanted with her. The only other people who ever came knocking on her door were her fellow wrestlers in the AFW, the two women definitely had the looks and athletic bodies that the AFW looked for, but she had never seen them before so if that was where they were from they would have to be very new.

The answer to that mystery was soon revealed as the one named Irene explained that they were students from the local university, an explanation that made sense given their age and what they were wearing. She had thought it odd there wasn't a car in the courtyard but if they were from the university then they had likely just walked the short distance. Natasha wasn't sure how she felt about being called ma'am by someone near the same age as herself but she let the woman speak, Natasha starting to think she knew what this was about.

Irene then confirmed her suspicions as she mentioned the very book her father had sought for his own collection, one he had spent a great deal of money to obtain, the woman asking her to return it to the library so they could have it. It was quite the bold request considering Irene knew her family had donated to the school to get the book, did she think she could get a refund?

Before she could say anything though Eka chimed in with her own plea for the book, the woman taking a respectful tone just as Irene had though she didn't ask for her to return the book just to let them have it. Natasha certainly wanted to help them though she couldn't just give them the book even if she did want to as her father was expecting the book sent to France in a weeks time, but there were ways to help that wouldn't lose her the book. "Why don't you two come in so we can talk about this face to face rather than through the door." Natasha said before turning off the video conference and opening the door, standing to the side waving them in. "Come on in."

Eka stepped in as Natasha asked. She looked up and around and everywhere. There were almost certainly palaces that were not as fancy as this. Not that Eka had seen a whole lot of palaces but if she had she imagined they would look a lot like the room she was in. It wasn't the ostentatious nonsense of new money but rather the whole house was pure class. From Eka's viewpoint anyway.

The Georgain girl felt kinda small and adjusted the straps of her backpack. She wasn't really sure if she should hug Natasha or try to shake her hand or hug her or what. So she just stood there, shoulders hunched, marveling the room like some redneck.

It occurred to her to say something, anything. "Uhh, nice place." Eka scrunched her face up. God that sounded stupid. She looked over at Irene to see if her companion might say things that were a little less insipid.

Eka sighed. This woman had enough clout to procure the book from the library. The Georgian girl was beginning to have her doubts that they could even get their hands on the book, let alone return it. And even then only god knew what they would have to do to get it. She didn't feel like wrestling with the hentai champion. But if it meant she could write her paper... Eka's sigh was a little more breathy this time.

Following after her partner, Irene stepped inside the mansion. The interior space was beautiful and made the young scientist feel even smaller than she already was. There were hotels she'd been in that didn't have Foyers this exquisite in size or decoration. To show gratitude for having gotten as far as the interior, Irene turned to the intoxicating, imposing woman who had received them and offered her a bow, while Eka gave her rather simple appraisal of the place.

“Yes, your home is beautiful, unreal even,” she said. That was enough grovelling for the moment, though. It was time, again, to ask about that book. She was still trying to figure out exactly how much access they needed to the tome in question. Natasha probably wouldn't be open to letting them keep it entirely, but she might let them look through it. Question was, for how long? Trofim Lysenko's work would not make for an easy or quick read; it could take hours or days for both her and Eka to record enough notes off of the book's pages to satisfy their needs. It was longer than any person could reasonably expect to be another person's guest, even one as capable as Natasha. Maybe the two of them could offer something valuable as collateral in order to take the book with them temporarily.

“Thank you for having us, ma'am,” Irene continued using the term. It was how she referred to people who had superior status to her. “Might we be able to see the text in question, or will you need to know more about us first?”

The two women looked at each other for a moment before stepping through the doorway into the foyer, each one looking as if they had just stepped into another world rather than into someone's home. She supposed that was to be expected though, for most her home was some place seen from far away but never approached, a symbol of how the very few lived that they would likely never have, where for her it was just home. As much as she tried to keep herself grounded Natasha sometimes forgot how lucky she was to have been born to her parents, so used to the way of life they had provided her that she forgot how others viewed it. She was reminded of this however in the faces of Eka and Irene as the two women looked around the room like tourists visiting a cathedral or palace, Natasha smiling in amusement at the sight as she closed the door though she put on a bit more business like face before turning around to face them.

"Thank you for your kind words but please don't call me ma'am, were all around the same age after all so feel free to just call me Natasha instead." The Frenchwoman said after each woman had said their piece. Of the two of them it seemed Irene was more level headed of the two for unlike Eka she said more than three words, Eka seemed almost embarrassed to be there or perhaps just in awe at where she was. Irene remained on point though and wasted little time in bringing the conversation back to the book in question, a matter Natasha still wasn't quite sure how to resolve. "Well all I really know about you two right now is your names though I have to say you both look a little familiar, do I know either of you from somewhere?"

Eka closed her mouth and stopped looking at everything for a second. The splendor of both Natasha and her palatial house were easy to see. But she was on a mission. Right. Time to focus. Or at least make small talk. "If you go to the library a lot I am usually there. You might see me there? Or..." Or wrestling. Eka didn't want to bring it up. But she was too far down the rabbit hole to get out now. "Or you might know me from wrestling. I was at Avalanche. You were there too, yes? I fought in the dark match. We may have seen each other in the halls. And have had a few matches at the Arena. I am in AFW." Eka gulped and looked at Natasha. "As are you. Congratulations on your victory in Switzerland. It was very impressive."

The Georgian girl was feeling a little less stupid now. She was going to insert herself into this one way or another. Much like Natasha...nevermind. "I am Eka Guramishvili. I am not quite on the main card yet but I am working my way up." Eka's smile faded from her face to match Natasha's more businesslike demeanor. "But that is rather unimportant, yes?" The ravenhaired girl didn't want to brag. She had nothing to brag about. Not next to Natasha. And maybe not next to Irene.

She adjusted the straps in another nervous tic. The Georgian girl hoped someone else would come up with a plan. Because Eka sure as hell hadn't come up with anything.

Now it was Irene's turn to feel like the odd one out of the three people gathered here. Natasha was a giant among AFW competitors, and while Eka might not have as many accolades to her name, she was still a seasoned veteran, well established in the Friction circuit. Irene had only had two matches, and both of them had been over in Tension; she hadn't even debuted in Friction yet, although her debut match was scheduled and fast approaching. As long as Eka had been forced into the position of revealing her status as an AFW contestant, Irene would do so too, but she wished she had more to boast about. As of now, she would try to be somewhat vague with the details she revealed.

“I'm an AFW competitor too, although I wasn't at Avalanche. I've only had a couple of matches so far, so I think you've both got my number on experience. I have to admit, I've never seen you fight before,” Irene admitted to Natasha, shuffling her feet nervously. “I'm sure I'll get to see you compete one of these days.”

After she had finished answering Natasha's question, she kept her mouth shut for the time being, waiting for the blue-haired beauty to react. The ball was still very much in her court as far as what she would want to know about the two of them, and she didn't want to risk irritating anyone by speaking out of turn.

Her father had cultivated in Natasha a memory for faces for in the business world being able to put a name to a face, no matter how poorly one might know someone, was an important skill to have for when someone felt they were remembered they were far more likely to be open to requests. She had only seen a couple minutes of the dark match at Avalanche and so remembered only a little of it, but once Eka put the pieces of the puzzle together for her Natasha's memory seemed to come rushing back, now able to distinctly remember seeing the girl fighting in the match. The realization that she was talking to a fellow wrestler washed over Natasha, the two women noticing how her eyes widened and her business demeanor faded away into a more casual one as she let her posture slump a little bit.

"How is getting onto the card of Avalanche not important Eka? Be proud of that accomplishment, very few ever get the chance to fight there." Natasha said not knowing that Irene was a wrestler herself, though the woman let her know a few moments later, making Natasha feel a bit embarrassed in the process though that faded when Irene admitted she had never seen any of her matches either. "Well keep an eye out for my matches then and I will do the same for the both of you, its always good to meet the new women working their way up the ladder." Natasha meant what she said, her words entirely genuine for it hadn't been very long ago she had been in their shoes looking for a big name to throw herself against, it made her wonder if she might be able to help them in other ways.

But in all the talk of the AFW the matter of what to do about the book had been left unanswered, though now that she recognized Eka and knew where both her and Irene worked she felt a bit more obligated to lend what help she could. "Look you two seem like nice women, but I can't just let you have the book. My father paid a lot just to have the thing in his collection as odd as it might sound. Could you just read it here?"