Breaking the Tension!™ Episode 9: Who are SEME?

Curiouser and curious.

Patty found herself genuinely interested in  Mitsuru. Oh, she was interested in all of them, really - that was her gut instinct as a journalist, her talent to zone in on a subject and give it her full attention. But the idea of such a promising, brilliant mind applying herself to wrestling as a way to further goals? An enthralling notion.

"Through Mitsuru's version of hell?" She raised her eyebrow at the rather interesting phrase, as an idea struck her for the next path to start traveling down. "Let's focus on that aside from Hikaru. You all readily admit that your experience in the ring is somewhat limited. How have you been making up for that gap? What's your training consisted of, and how does it prepare you for the challenges ahead?"

"You all do seem connected in a way that few teams enjoy in the AFW, whether it be Tension or Friction." Patty nodded Mitsuru's way. "While you're not the first team in Tension, you're the only one I'm aware of who had much of a plan. The Valkyries seemed more interested in random chaos and domination, while King's Crew seemed to just care about..."

Patty had an awkward pause for a moment, as she got lost in thought. What did King's Crew care about? They never seemed to specify what their goals were.

"Anyway," She waved off the thought and made a note to edit out that awkward pause. "While I can certainly see the strength behind your convictions, I think some people might feel you need to be tested more before you're worthy of standing against the UKE. Is there anyone you might have in mind as a stepping stone to the champions?"

"And I'd agree with those people as well. It wouldn't be fair nor reasonable for a rookie to challenge a title-holder right away, and we don't want any special treatment. We're more than happy to crush the other teams beneath our heels while we climb to the summit upon which the UKE await." Mitsuru added on to Patty's next question. Her gracious smile turned upwards into a grin as her flowy prose turned into the first real trash talk they had heard from her so far.

And naturally, when asked about who they might also want to face, Hikaru had an answer in spades. "We'll take on anyway fool enough to step into the ring with us!" he declared excitedly, sitting up from the slouch in his chair. "There's plenty of fodder floating around. The Higurashi boys, that Vegas Foursome or whatever, the Valkyries, even that pussycat crew you mentioned, doesn't matter, we'd fight em all!"

When Hikaru popped up, Patty leaned back and reached under her desk, feeling over the emergency taser she’d had stashed away, a little precaution against wrestler rowdiness. She eased when it looked like it wasn’t anything to worry about, and the smile on her face quickly returned. He was just excitable. Very excitable. She was glad she’d decided to make the table between them so large, though. He looked like he smelled bad, quite frankly.

”More bold words.” She nodded Hikaru’s way, full of sage wisdom. Or appearing that way, at least, which was the most important thing. ”But bold words have been uttered in and around the ring before, and sometimes the methods behind those words can be less than scrupulous. Since you three are working together, there will be those who expect you to use numbers to your advantage, to cheat. Will you be defying those expectations?”

"A bit of an ominous statement there, and I'm sure the AFW Universe will hold you to your promises of civility." Patty wagged a finger Mitsuru's way. "I'm sure you'll find they can be harsh, but fair."

Patty tapped her chin for a moment, searching for her next question, when the coats caught her attention. She'd been curious about them from the start, and they'd be a good way to bring things home. "The coats." She pointed at Mitsuru's and canted her head. "I can't help but feel there's a story, there. What is it?"

Mitsuru laughed and smiled at Patty's latest question about the jackets. "That one was all me. As you mentioned, the three of us dont seem like we'd normally mix, and SEME needed something to tie the three of us together visually. Everyone looks good in fur, everyone.

There's different styles to accommodate different looks as well. Hikaru prefers street clothes, so I chose a grey coat with mixed fur, like you might see in a winter hoodie. Ryuunosuke on the other hand is usually dressed crisp and professional, a sleek black coat goes well with his look. Finally this coat has been one of my favorites for a while now, I haven't found an outfit it cant accent perfectly."

While the camera was focusing on each of SEME's coats, one after the other, Patty reached across table and ran a hand over Mitsuru's fur coat, giving it a nice patting. Very soft, looked very comfortable, and she found herself wanting one. Or two.

"It certainly does give you a refined and unique look." Patty agreed. "Tension tends to be less about aesthetics and more about substance, but I'm glad to see someone realizes you can have both in equal measure."

She glanced over to Ran, who was giving her the signal for time - the unfortunate thing about being an 'official' reporter was that the AFW put limits on how long her segments were allowed to be. "Mitsuru, Hikaru, Ryuunosuke..." She sighed and wished she could pat herself on the back for pronouncing all three correctly. "It's been a pleasure speaking with you today. Before we leave, are there any parting words you have for the AFW Universe? All eyes are on you."

Mitsuru had a feeling that Patty's admiration for her coat was more than just interviewer pleasantries, and made a note to send her one as a gift from SEME for including them on her show. "Thank you again for having us, Patty. SEME appreciates the chance to give future fans a better look at us up close. To those sitting at home, unsure of whether our grandstanding is all talk, I'll promise you this: you haven't seen anything yet." Mitsuru smiled charmingly, blowing the camera a kiss and winking.

"We talk big, but we can also back it up. Please wait for our team debut." Ryuu answered calmly, looking directly into the camera without hesitation.

"To wrap things up, bring it on, bitches!" Hikaru declared with gusto and emotion, ending things on a charged and excited note.