Big Brawl 3: No Place For A Hero (For Alexandra)

"I don't think I really have a choice in this, Dixie." Asami replied in a sarcastic tone. "With the handcuffs and such."

Honestly even without them, Asami was sure she wouldn't want to keep fighting, at least not against the former Rumble Rose. She had turned her wrath on Dixie, the last person to deserve it. The thought of that was enough to make Asami lower her gaze to the floor.

"Sorry." Asami added in a softer voice. "That came out sounding bitchier than i wanted. I'm done fighting, ok?Just...say whatever it is you want to say, I'll listen. Beating me senseless should earn you that much at least...."

Dixie sighed as she heard Asami's retort, but she didn't let her sarcasm get to her. She squared her shoulders, and slid off of the crate, standing tall over the fallen kunoichi.

"Yer done with this street vigilante stuff, alright? It's over. Ah'm making sure of that." She shook her head, and sighed again, but kept her voice strong and demanding. "Yer gettin' herself cleaned up, and yer gettin' back where ya belong, alright? If ya want to keep fightin', that's what the ring is for. Not out here with a bunch of psychos that'll kill ya at the first opportunity they've given."

She stepped forward, and crouched down behind Asami, reaching out to take her arms, to help pull her up to her feet. "Ya understand me? Yer gettin' off of the streets, plain and simple. Ah ain't really givin' ya a choice here, so..."

Asami let out a brief "Whooa..!" when Dixie hauled her back to her feet. However the Asian shook her head vigorously at the bigger woman's statement that Asami was returning to the AFW.

"No, no! You don't understand, I need this!" Asami cried struggling to no avail against Dixie. "I'm nothing but a midcard nobody back in the AFW! My family never liked the fact I became a wrestler. Well, they finally got around to disowning me. Which is ironic, really because I've barely been in the league this year. Honestly, I bet nobody has even noticed. Being out here, though...it's all I've been good at! Out here, I'm not Asami, the failure, the loser whose family went and cut loose! I put on the mask and all of that falls away. I'm more than I was, I'm above the garbage pile that my life turned into!"

Realizing that she was babbling her inner craziness in front of the last person that Asami ever wanted to witness it, the Japanese woman stopped talking abruptly, taking a moment to collect her runaway thoughts. When she started talking again, it was in a calmer, more reserved tone.

"See? You should just go. You don't need any of this. Leave me. Go back to the AFW. Go back to Re-" At this the Asian coughed. "Go back to the people who deserve you and be the strongest wrestler they've ever seen. That's where you belong. Not out here in the streets. That's where I belong."

Dixie stared at Asami as the kunoichi finished talking. Not saying anything, or even showing emotion, just staring at her, long and hard, for almost a full minute before speaking up again. Her voice was soft, lacking it's edge from earlier, and there was obvious hurt in her eyes as she spoke.

"A midcard nobody, huh? And ya think ah'm the strongest wrestler they've ever seen?" She shook her head, and stared at the girl, her gaze focused completely into Asami's eyes, staring her down. "Ya realize ah'm a midcard nobody too, right? Ah might have been big shit in the Rumble Roses, but here? Ah'm jes' another wrestler, jes' another midcarder that ain't had a chance or a shot at anything that ah deserve."

She paused for a moment, then stepped closer to Asami, her voice cracking as she spoke. "Strongest gal they've ever seen? Please. Ah was the biggest girl back in the Rumble Roses, Asami, but things have changed." She glanced to the side, then back at the ninja, drawing closer to her. "Half the damn company is bigger and stronger than ah am! We got gals in the AFW that could snap me in half like a twig!"

She shook her head, then reached out, grabbing Asami by her shoulders, her voice growing colder again. "But ya know what? Ah ain't fallen like ya have. Ya don't see me out here riskin' my life, do ya? No, ya don't. Ya see me still going out there every night and kickin' as much ass as ah can."

She paused again, trying to calm herself down, before continuing again. "And that's why ah'm draggin' ya back. If ah can get out there and be happy with where ah'm at, so you can go. Yer comin' back to the AFW and gettin' off of these streets, and that. Is. Final."

Asami's eyes widened as she heard Dixie refer to herself as a nobody. To her, there was no way Dixie could ever be anything less than stellar. Yes, what she was saying was true. The AFW was getting more and more people who were bigger and stronger than the former Rose. But if you put Dixie Clemets in the ring with any of them and told Asami to wager money on it, she'd bet on the Texan every time. She had a strength of will that exceeded her considerable physical power. Asami had seen it demonstrated before, during their battle with Lash, and now she was hearing it in her voice as the cowgirl told her that she wasn't falling like the Asian did.

That stung, and Asami hung her head as Dixie went on. Her hair, grown longer during her time away from the league, fell over her face somewhat hiding it from view. While the Texan spoke the truth about Asami giving up on what was once her dream, she didn't like being reminded of yet another failure. She was jolted as Dixie caught a hold of her shoulders, making Asami toss her hair back so she could looked into the American's eyes as she finished talking.

"Alright....alright." Asami said in response. "I don't know why you're even bothering with me, but you win. My face hurts, my knee hurts. My head feels like those dwarf guys from Lord of the Rings are marching around inside it. I'm also just.....tired. I'm just going to go home, as soon as you uncuff me."
With that, Asami turned herself about, presenting her cuffed hands to Dixie...

"I'm bothering with you because I care, dammit," Dixie muttered, reaching for Asami's cuffs, more than ready to set the ninja free so they could be done with this awful, awful night.

She took pause, however, and thought about Asami's words for a moment, not releasing her just yet. "What about tomorrow, 'sami?" She asked, her voice tense. "Yer goin' home tonight, but what about tomorrow? And the day after? How am ah supposed to know yer ass ain't gonna try something stupid like this again?"

Asami blinked at Dixie's line of questioning.

"Wh...what!? Are you doubting my word!?" the Asian woman demanded hotly. "I said I was done, and I meant it!"

However, even to Asami her words sounded hollow. Oh she meant them very much, in this moment, to be sure. But...tomorrow? The day after? Asami wasn't crazy enough to think she could keep that promise forever. After all she had confessed earlier that being Kunoichi was, to her like an addiction. A way to turn away from the wreck she believed her life had become. But what was the alternative? Turn herself in and go to jail? The thought chilled the freedom loving girl. No, she'd have to handle this....somehow. One thing was certain though, Dixie didn't need to be involved with her problems. Well, more than she was already.

Although she tried to maintain her offended, indignant demeanor, but Asami's eyes didn't meet Dixie's as she began to doubt the sincerity of her own words....

"Yer doubtin' yer own word, Asami," Dixie said softly, looking sadly at the kunoichi. "Ya can't even look at me straight, can ya? Ya know in yer heart that after a few days, yer gonna be right back out here."

Dixie thought for a moment, and then turned Asami away again, reaching for her wrists so she could remove the cuffs. In one slick motion she removed them from the ninja's arms and reattached them to her belt, then she reached up, grabbing Asami by her shoulders to turn her around, to look directly at the cowgirl again.

"Here's what's happenin', and ah don't want to hear any arguments. Yer comin' to stay with me, got it?" She could barely believe what she was even saying, but she didn't really have a choice, not if she wanted to keep an eye on Asami and keep her safe. "Yer comin' to stay with me, so ah can keep an eye on ya. When ah go to train and work out, yer comin' to train and work out too. When ah'm at the arena, yer gonna be right there with me. Ah'm stickin' to ya like white on rice until ah can be sure ya ain't gonna do anything stupid, understand?"

Asami blinked as Dixie laid out her plan. Ironically, a short time ago, being the cowgirl's house guest would have made her slightly giddy. Now though, it absolutely mortified her. On top of the fact it sounded like she would be a prisoner of sorts, she would also be a burden on the Texan, someone she felt sorry for. Not to mention, the idea of living with the biggest crush of her adult life was spoiled by the fact that Dixie most assuredly didn't like her back. Knowing her luck, during her forced stay, Reiko Hinomoto would probably show up one night and Asami have to watch or listen to them make out, or have sex...or have fondue together.

"Wait, no!" she exclaimed. "Come on, you can not mean that! You don't want me in your home, having to share space with someone you think is crazy! And I'm not some....stray you can take home just because you pity it! I'll....I'll check myself into one of those mental health places! How about that!?"

When the cuffs came off, Asami put up a brief struggle, trying to pull away, but it was one that Dixie would find easy enough to overpower.

As Asami struggled, Dixie squeezed her shoulders tighter, keeping her in place.

"Stop fightin'!" She yelled, glaring at the ninja. "Ah don't think yer crazy, girl! Ah jes' think ya've fallen down a bad path, that's all."

She shook her head, and pulled the kunoichi in closer, staring straight into her eyes. "Ya need help, 'sami. Ya ain't crazy, but ya need help. And ah know yer ass ain't a stray!" She sighed, and loosened her grip, slightly, desperation in her expression as she tried to get through to girl.

"At least come and stay fer a week, alright? Jes' so ah can make sure ya ain't gonna do anything stupid or rash right out the gate. We can figure out what's next after that, alright?"