In The Garden

"WHENFAITHALONEISNOTENOUGHTOKEEPOURHEADSBARELYABOVEWELOOKFORREASONAND COME UP EMPTY HAAANDED!"

Taylor had Rise Against cranked and she sang along at the top of her lungs while she turned out sit up after sit up. Her feet were hooked around the legs of Akashi's chair, her hands tucked behind her head, and her sweat glazed body was covered only by a black sports bra and spandex shorts. Each sit up showed the impressive definition in her slender body, her rippling abs, and given how she was singing it seemed like she didn't need to take a breath to do it.

"ANDWHENOURCHILDRENFIGHTOURWARSWHILEWESITBACKJUSTKEEPINGSCOREWE'RETEACHINGMURDERNOT UN-DER-STAN-DING NOW!"

They were backstage at Madison Square Garden, in Manhattan, in New York City. Home. Taylor was home and only hours away from facing Kelly Conway for the Friction World Title in front of who knows how many people, right there in her home town. She couldn't contain herself.

She had begged Akashi to keep her calm. She would settle down into a serene, zen-like state and smile placidly... for a few seconds before she came up with some excuse to spring out of her chair and resume bouncing off the walls. At one point, she did literally do backflips off the wall. Calm maybe wasn't in the cards... though she was a little hungry.

"WE'RE SETTING THE FIRES TO LIGHT THE WAY! WE'RE BURNING IT ALL TO- hey, are you hungry? Kahsi? Hey. Hey, are you hungry?" She began kicking the back of Akashi's chair to get her attention.

Somehow all of the distractions, the loud music, and Taylor's singing had not fazed the large sumo one bit. She sat cross legged on a chair, letting all of the cacophony swirl about her while her eyes remained and her body remained still except for the sudden jostle of Taylor's chair kicking.

She opened one eye while her head bobbed with each kick before she slowly turned her head and looked at Taylor with one eye. "Usually you're out cold for a little while longer. I'm glad to see you're so excited, Imouto-chan." Akashi said in a gentle voice. She had known her task was impossible form the beginning so she hardly put in the effort. As long as she could remain calm enough for the both of them, it would somehow work out.

"Only if you have chicken. I only eat chicken on fight night." She said. "Otherwise, I'll find something in a bit."

Akashi fully turned around and looked at Taylor. "Should you be working out before a match, Imouto-chan? I'm sure you'll need all the energy you can muster, even if that's a boundless amount."

"Well!"

Taylor sprang to her feet in front of Akashi and lifted her hands up in explanation.

"I can't even help it man we came all this way like, on the plane and through time and junk and I gotta be ready for Kelly and for the crowd and the cameras and my body's gotta be hittin' on all cylinders know what I mean because I can't even FUCKING DEAL WITH HOW BIG A DEAL THIS IS I mean what if... who's watching, and..."

Like someone had flipped a switch in Taylor's brain, she was suddenly crying. She put a hand to her face as tears welled up in the corners of her eyes, but before one could even reach her cheek she was grinning again and bouncing back and forth on the balls of her feet.

"EVERYONE's gonna see, Akashi! I'd say that all my friends are gonna be watching, but I didn't really HAVE any friends back home, except for Cassie and OH MY FUCKING GOD SHE DIDN'T SAY IS SHE HERE? DID SHE KEEP THAT A SECRET? WHAT THE FUCK WHAT IF SHE'S... WHAT IF..."

She flailed her hands in the air and then bolted to find her duffle bag. She squatted down next to it and pulled out a large container of a mixture of almond butter and dried fruit and nuts and who knows what.

"I have to make sure I don't have anything in my teeth!" She beamed as she ripped off the lid and happily crammed three fingers full of the goop into her mouth.

Akashi raised her eyebrows as Taylor giddily percolated. It was infectious, but Akashi kept cool for both their sakes. "Taylor-chan, I don't think that a few extra crunches are going to make a difference. You look good, really." She said and stood up, placing both of her hands on Taylor's shoulders as she licked at her fingers.

"You're going to win and you're going to look great doing it and everyone's going to be so happy and it will be just great." Akashi said, nodding enthusiastically. "There's only one thing you need to focus on, though. You need to block out everything but Kelly Conway and focus on taking her down and putting her out. The rest, you'll have time to bask in the moment, Imouto-chan." Akashi said with a grin.

"But, we will have to stay a few extra days for sure so you can show me around, but... after, ok? After, after, after." Akashi lifted up her hand and rapped Taylor's head with her knuckles gently with each word. "I'll check with Cassie-chan to make sure she's not hiding in a closet somewhere waiting to pop out at you, ok?"

"Aha!" Taylor lifted an almond buttery finger at Akashi with a sly smile. "That's the thing! I DON'T need to focus on Kelly. That's what she wants. That's what she's ALWAYS wanted. She can go fuck herself, because she's not getting in THIS head!" She tapped on the side of her forehead with her clean finger.

"All I have to do is enjoy the moment, and when the time comes, I'll do what I do best. I'm not gonna let all the bad stuff weigh me down and make me second guess or get stupid. Not gonna do it. The first fight with Angel, the first one with Kelly, whatever, I let my head get all skeezy. Not this time. Now... It's alll goood."

She plowed down another mouthful of the goop, and struggled to swallow it all. "And ya know," she began. "Right now, right this second, I don't even hate Kelly. I'm not doing this because I hate what's wrong with her, I'm doing it because I love what's right with everything ELSE. And THAT'S the trick, right?" She wagged her finger at Akashi.

"Ahhh, Hai!" Akashi said and bowed her head a bit. "I feel the same way. Hatred will not rule me tonight either." She said. "Though I intend to dispense a valuable lesson to Saito-san, I am looking forward to it and I hope that she is as well."

Akashi raised a clenched fist in the air. "Sometimes this is the best way to show how much you care. We both know that and I will show that to Saito-san as well." Akashi looked at Taylor and smiled. "Yosh! Now I am pumped as well!" She said. "I'm invigorated for a battle!" She said, pumping her arm in front of her.

"She will be coming back with us. Saito-san, that is. When I beat her, she will renounce Conway-san and join our dojo so you will not have to worry about her or any of Kelly-san's group either. You'll have a fair, honest fight with Conway-san. Well, as honest as she will allow, but I think that will be no problem for you, Imouto-chan."

"Yeah! I am also invigorated for battle!"

Taylor leapt up and shook her hips, and even as the music stopped she kept dancing to her own. She bounced and wiggled like she was in the club while she stepped around Akashi.

"Yeah," she laughed. "I think that about everybody, man. Like, after I beat you you'll have to shape up and come to the dojo and stuff. Wouldn't it be so great if all the AFW bitches suddenly just came in like hey, teach us. It's good, it's so good. I think I know what I'm gonna do to Kelly, too. It'll hurt."

"Heh." Akashi grinned. "Yeah, it'd be great. Saito-san, however, will have no choice. She's signed the contract that says she'll have to. She is honorless though, but I'm not afraid. She shames me as a Japanese woman so I take the matter to heart."

Akashi paused and lifted her finger in thought. "Does Kelly shame you as an American woman or does it not matter to you?" She asked, curiously. "I know there's enough personal things between you that it's probably a moot point, but... hm." Akashi paused.

"I would like to see you be victorious as an American as well as a wrestler and my sister. Please defeat her wholly on all fronts." Akashi said and bowed deeply to Taylor. She then went in for a big, patented Akashi hug. "I'll be there after the match, Imouto-chan and I'll be watching for sure, so let's make sure we can both celebrate tonight."

Taylor laughed, still dancing away. She raked her hair around to one side and wiggled her shoulders, her feet still moving to the music in her head.

"Man, you guys are so full of shame. Everything is shame!" She shook Akashi by the shoulders, only she ended up moving more than Akashi did. "In Japan, everyone's the same. America's really big, and full of so much different stuff, and everyone's an individual. Kelly represents America just like I do, but she sucks, so no one wants her. I think... people will be happy not to have an asshole like her on top, especially in America."

She threw her hands up and took a few slinky steps back. "I dunno, man! I don't think about that stuff like you do. I know what I'm gonna do and to hell with Kelly! And tonight, if we can both still walk, we are going to get fuuuuucked uuuuuup! I don't even care, I just wanna get out in the city and like..."

Suddenly, she was crying again, and she dabbed her eyes with the back of her wrist to wipe away the little happy tears. "Do you ever think that... if you can change yourself, you can change the world?"

"It's how we've wanted it to be, for some reason." Akashi said, shrugging a bit. "But, I don't mind it so much. With the shame comes honor and pride, so, it's not so bad, really." Akashi smiled at Taylor, even as she began to cry again. Akashi was too excited to be her usual blubbery self and Taylor's outbursts never lasted long enough for Akashi to become overwhelmed by them.

"But, change the world? Hasn't that already happened?" She asked. "A butterfly changes the world even if it only thinks of beating its wings and sipping on nectar. So, I can imagine how easy it might be for one who is purpose-driven to do so." Akashi said with a smile.

"You'll understand when you walk out into the arena, if you don't already." She paused. "But, yeah! I want to show all your Yankee friends what a fool's errand it is to try and keep pace with Tanikaze Akashi at a party!