Taking (the) Flight (For Acuya)

Finding a decent pub in Japan was hard enough that when Gemma had finally located one, she clung to it like a life preserver. And after this week, she desperately needed that life preserver. "MacIrish's" wasn't a great pub- a far cry from the local taverns of her youth- but any place in Japan willing to import whiskey and put a flight of it in front of her at a time like this, was a Godsend.

It had been her moment, she'd thought, staring down at the light bouncing off her amber drinks. Big return after a long absence from AFW. A chance to get back in the ring, show the world she wasn't the loser she'd walked out of AFW looking like, before. She'd come so close to winning. Her opponent, Valley, was good. Possibly the best that Gemma'd ever been in the ring with, from a technical standpoint. She hadn't been too familiar with her, but it was obvious from the onset that underneath the tan, the bouncy blonde hair, the crowd-pleasing grin, was a woman who knew what she was doing. On top of all that, Valley had been on a hot streak, leaving a trail of beaten opponents behind her before stepping into the ring with Gemma. But despite all of that, the Brit was certain she'd had the match in the bag. She'd had Valley on the ropes, fighting back again and again. Valley had tried to put her down time and again, and Gemma fought back. She'd hit the springboard underhook DDT, even. She'd flown high, just a hair's breadth away from landing her most devastating diving attack to put the veteran away. And yet still, somehow, Gemma had been carried out, the loser.

Gemma downed the first shot of whiskey with a pronounced grimace. She slammed the glass down hard, drawing a look from the other patrons of the pub. Centering herself, Gemma considered where her career could possibly go, from here. She had first come to AFW with dreams of proving herself a serious competitor. Somebody more important than the "daddy's girl" that her opponents back home insisted she was. Coddled, booked in easy matches and given a spot on match cards for any reason but her talent. And what had she proven, thus far? Apparently, that she could cry a hell of a lot, before tapping out.

A couple of young men started to approach the Brit, but she warded them off with a withering glare. Fans or admirers, she had no patience for them. It made a few of the other barflys nervous The Brit eyed the remaining shots on her flight. She hoped that by the last one, she might know how she could move forward, what she could possibly do next ...

It wasn’t often that Valley drank, but when she did, she liked to go to MacIrish’s. Located conveniently near the Friction arena, friendly to those who hadn’t quite mastered the Japanese language yet, with one of the best pool tables you could find in Tokyo, with an owner that liked to encourage wrestlers to drop in by giving them the occasional discount. If there was a more perfect way to wind down after a good match, she couldn’t think of it.

Well, actually, that wasn’t true - it would’ve been better if her girlfriend, Haley came along. But they both had their own lives to live, and they didn’t always intersect. Valley had no problem drinking alone.

She made her way into the bar with a little smile on her face, waving to a few familiar faces as she weaved her way through the seat. Many of the more frequent patrons were familiar with the sight of her coming in after a match, decked out in her ripped jeans and her Led Zepplin t-shirt. Usually, though, she was a lot louder after a good win. A lot more energetic. A lot more pep in her step. People figured she had something heavy on her mind tonight, and they were right.

Gemma Faraday, Gemma Faraday, Gemma Faraday.

She’d beaten the rising star and secured her sixth straight victory, bringing her amazingly close to finishing the year without a single tally in the loss column. That should’ve been enough to put anyone in a good mood, but for Valley, things felt hollow. Unearned. She hadn’t done anything wrong on paper - she’d fought the match cleanly, won fair, didn’t cheat. But, somehow, she felt like a bully, battering the poor woman around the ring, punishing her with the kick, stomping on her hopes and making her pass out. She couldn’t imagine what else she should’ve done - hold back? Let her win out of pity? That would’ve been an insult to everyone.

Even so, it was far too close to the bullying that she despised in the AFW, and…

Valley paused as she approached the bar, noticing some girl off to the side with enough drinks to put down a man twice her size. At first glance, she didn’t think much of it - but then she noticed the hair. That bright, white, glamorous hair. Not a common sight in Tokyo by any stretch of the imagination. She leaned to the side to get a better look, and sure, enough, her guess was right: of all the bars in Japan she could’ve walked into, she picked one that Gemma Faraday had chosen to drown her sorrows in.

At first, Valley considered leaving, not wanting to start a scene. She even took a step backwards, getting ready for it. But she stopped herself with a heavy sigh and shook her head. She was Catholic, devout, and her mother always talked about stuff like this. Being guided into certain places, nudged by God. Maybe it was just dumb luck, or maybe she’d been pushed here for a reason. Either way, it didn’t feel right to just go. So…

Valley straightened out her shirt and walked over to the bar. She tapped Gemma on the shoulder with one hand and patted the stool next to her with the other, looking cool and casual all the way. ”Is this seat taken?”

Gemma settled back in her seat, while her nose twitched and scrunched with the overwhelming sensation of the shot. MacIrish's wasn't pulling their punches tonight, it seemed, and that's exactly what the suffering Brit was hoping for. She twirled the empty glass in her fingers for a brief moment, then dropped it hard on the counter, before snatching up the other.

The excited murmers of some of the customers caught her ears, causing Gemma to squirm, slightly. She could hear the footfalls approaching her, knew that somehow had taken an interest. Exactly what Gemma was hoping to avoid, tonight, as she tried to drink away the shame of her latest, greatest loss. The young Steampunker brushed her white hair over her eyes as she glanced over her shoulder to see who was coming into the bar. She was white-knuckling the next shot on her flight. "What now," she whispered, dreading the thought of yet more attention. And, holding true to the luck that had dogged Gemma since the moment she'd come to AFW, the woman walking into MacIrish's was exactly the last person she wanted to see, right now.

Valley cut an imposing figure, even outside of the ring. She was athletic, yet classically beautiful. Fiery, but decidedly feminine. Imposing in every way Gemma could have wished to be. The Brit didn't notice Valley until she was already making her way to her. Gemma's shoulders rose, tensing visibly as Valley approached, and asked if she could take a seat.

Gemma swallowed hard, lifting the tiny glass off of the bar. "Well," she said, tersely, "if you wanted to sit down, it's not as if I could stop you, eh?" With that, Gemma threw the drink back hard, and failed to hide her attending grimace. She glared at the veteran nervously, waiting for any sign that this encounter could go awry ...

Valley paused for a moment after Gemma finished speaking, trying to figure out what her plan of approach was, here. The dreary-eyes young wrestler did not look at all in the mood to talk to anyone, least of all her, but Valley wasn't sure that leaving was the best option, either. The last thing she needed was to make another enemy that could bite her in the butt as some future date. Best she deal with this now.

Besides, she frankly looked like she might be needing a designated driver, and Tokyo wasn’t exactly the best place for a young, drunken foreigner to be roaming around at night.

”I don’t know, you might have a good chance.” She kept her tone nice and light, trying to be as cordial as you could with someone who’d been kicking you around only a few hours earlier. ”Hardcore matches were never my thing, and you’re a little tougher than I am.”

She gave a quick wave to the bartender and ordered a nice, light beer to sip on while they talked. Valley let silence reign for a moment, before she finally spoke up and brought a little seriousness seep into her voice.

”So.” She tapped the bar a few times and blew the pink-highlighted hairs out of her face. ”I should apologize. For the match. Things got a little heated, and my aggression level was taken up a notch too high. Made it a little personal, shouldn’t do that.”

Gemma shifted uncomfortably in her seat, as Valley kept her place next to her. That flash of ill-advised bravado wasn't enough to scare the veteran wrestler off, and Gemma felt like she should have expected as much. Gemma hunched over the bar, pulling her flight a bit closer as she did so. She attempted a fierce frown, which came off as a rather exaggerated pout.

Out of all the things Valley could have said next, though, Gemma wasn't expecting a compliment. What was that, she wondered, as her eyes narrowed. Gemma ran her slender fingers through her bangs, as she listened to Valley. Thus far, she wasn't threatening her. She wasn't insulting the Brit, or mocking her. To be honest, it wasn't what Gemma had come to expect from AFW. So, what was it?

Gemma risked a turn toward Valley, as the vet ordered her drink. For a moment, there was a clear sign of vulnerability in the Brit's wide, brown eyes. That vulnerability turned quickly to irritation, however, as she listened to what Valley had to say next.

"Apologize?" Gemma asked, when the American was done. "Apologize? Are you having me on?" Gemma's fingers were white-knuckling her next drink, already. "You really think you need to apologize to me, do you? Feel like you were a little too rough with the wee one, were you? Think I can't take it, is that it?" At this point, a few heads were turned toward the pair. Gemma was trembling, faintly, as she glared at Valley. Her lip curled, slightly; Valley had completely humbled her, the last time they'd seen each other. Gemma was desperately hoping that wouldn't happen again.

"I don't need pity, luv," Gemma said, slowly turning back toward her drink. "No matter what anyone says."

For a moment there, Valley really thought she was making some progress with Gemma, but that turned out not to be the case. Should’ve known it wouldn’t be that easy. She was a feisty woman inside the ring, and it didn’t look like things changed all that much on the street.

She looked around, exchanging a few glances with the concerned patrons, trying to put them at ease. They were right to be a little worried - it wasn’t exactly an unheard of for matters in the ring to spill out and cause property damage. This wouldn’t be one of those times, though. She hoped.

”I’m not saying you can’t take it, Gemma.” She took pains to get the pronunciation of her name right, even with her SoCal accent. ”I just…”

Valley caught her drink as it slid down the table, narrowly stopping it from knocking over some of Gemma’s growing collection. She had a quick sip for courage, then moved on. ”Look. I don’t pity you.” Her tone was soft, but frank. Honest talk. ”There’s nothing really to pity. We’re wrestlers. We had a fair match. It was competitive. I won. That’s the job, and I’m not apologizing for winning. But.”

She leaned back a bit and brought her gaze up to the ceiling. ”It was my attitude. I was a little condescending at the start, and we got off to a bad start. There was this animosity that didn’t have to be there, you know? It’s a competition, yeah, but it shouldn’t get that heated. Wrestling should be fun, enjoyable, and what happened out there…” She shook her head. ”So that’s what I’m apologizing for. My attitude. Too many people in this business act like they’re out to crush everyone they come across, and I’m trying really, really hard not to be one of them, you know?”

Gemma hunched over the table, while listening to Valley talk her down. She began to nod slowly, as she listened to the American's words. Partly because she actually didn't want things to spill out into another fight, tonight. And partly because she knew the American was right, and that Gemma wasn't exactly being reasonable, at the moment ...

As Valley was struggling over the pronunciation of the Brit's name, Gemma could tell that the veteran was at least trying to afford her some respect. Moreso than any of the other women who had delivered Gemma any of her numerous beatdowns, since her debut in AFW.

Gemma nodded along with everything Valley had to say, while the pair of them sank into the bar. Gemma bit her lip, her embarrassment growing as she realized how wrong her reaction to Valley's approach had been. Wins, losses ... this was the business they were in, after all. Still, the burning shame of passing out in front of the fans was a lot to ignore. On the other hand, how many of her previous opponents would have gone this long in conversation without humiliating her yet again, if they'd really wanted to ...

"Thank you," Gemma said, staring hard at her next glass. "I- I appreciate that. I do. You ..." Gemma sighed, trying to let go of the ego as much as she could, for this next bit. "You were ... honestly, you were bloody amazing, out there. Watching it, I don't know I've ever seen a better sodding in-ring comeback than that." Gemma planted her hand against her forehead, leaning hard against the bar.

"You were just so poised, so pretty, so damn good. There was no way to take you down. I ... I just ..." Gemma shook her head. "I just don't know how to be ... to be that, you know? And- and it made me be a shit to you and I'm sorry and, and yeah. I'm sorry." Gemma leaned forward, her pale skin blushing a bright red, deepening with every word she spoke. The Brit's shoulders slouched, her body looking drained.

”Yeah,” Valley had a quick chuckle and drowned it in her drink. ”I am pretty awesome.”

Valley made sure to load that little comment up with plenty of mirth, obviously just playing around. For the most part, anyway. She did think she was at the top of her game these days, but she didn't want to be the sort of wrestler who felt the need to tell everyone how good she was over and over. Besides, she knew a lot of things about herself that would've deflated any ego she could try to build.

”But you were great, too.” Valley leaned over and gave her a quick, playful nudge with her shoulder. ”If I’d even tried a shooting star press when I was your age, I’d have broken my neck. And you never gave up.” Valley shot her finger up.”I’ve made people tap with the headlock before, but I’ve never had them get knocked out. But not you. No matter how rough it got, you kept on. That's the important thing. I…” She hesitated with the next part, as it wasn't something she even wanted to think about, much less talk about with a woman she'd met a grand total of two times. But it needed to come out, and she hoped it might put a few things into perspective.

”I haven't always been able to say that, really. I'm good now. This year I’m on a winning streak. Last year, though? Losing streak. An ugly one, too.” She shook her head and looked straight forward, sighing at all the unpleasant memories that would never go away. ”For a little while, I just had no fight in me. If we’d fought back then, you probably would've won. I can almost guarantee it.”

Gemma couldn't help but laugh, when Valley broke the tension with a joke. She sighed, glad that at least her petulant whining hadn't earned her yet another ass-kicking.

The Brit took the playful jab with a smile, as she listened to Valley say her piece. The compliments were nice, of course, but Gemma found herself only able to take them so close to heart. She'd been told before that she was resilient. "If only I could figure out how to turn 'too dim to tap' into 'actually winning a match,' I'd be all set ..." she muttered.

Gemma took note, though, focusing intensely on what Valley had to say next. She could tell the admission of a losing streak wasn't an easy thing for her to bring up. Honestly, after her encounter with Valley, it was hard to picture the blonde bombshell on the losing end of anything. Still, Valley's face broadcast loud and clear that she was being completely honest.

Gemma sipped at her next whiskey. "That couldn't have been easy to say," she said, after a moment. "Thanks for sharing that." Gemma looked at her glass, twirling the whiskey around a bit, before another sip. Her brow furrowed in thought, for a moment, before she finally asked, "I ... I know the feeling. Nearly retired after my last match, before you. Thought I was done. Got squashed flat in like a minute by some nasty bint, then got myself worked into another match right after. Cannibal slag chewed into my cheek, and her tartlet of a manager nearly ground my boobs off with her boot. Took me forever to talk myself back into a ring, and look how that worked out. Not to be contrary, mind you, but I have a hard time picturing someone like you getting put through all that, now." Gemma looked at her, eyes a bit wet her recollections. She looked vulnerable then, her 'petulant punk' demeanor dropping completely. "It's terrible and lame and pathetic, but I just don't know how to compete, with that ..."

This was good. This was nice. It wasn't like Valley had no one to talk to in her life, but all her friends were wrestlers, and wrestling could be a busy life sometimes. Her girlfriend, Silver Ace, and Chris Morgan were busy with their own careers, especially as things heated up towards Avalanche. It was refreshing to just sit down with someone and have a drink.

"Hey," She shrugged and inched a little closer now that they were on more friendly terms. "It might not sound like much, but being as tough as you are really pays off. The AFW is just filled up with stories of women who came in, thought they were going to set the world on fire, then had a bad time of things and left after a couple of matches. I hate that we lose talent that way."

She listened to Gemma's tale, shaking her head every few seconds and wishing she could be more surprised to hear it. Valley offered the rising high-flying a napkin for her tears and placed her elbows on the bar, leaning hard on them.

"It's hard. If this life was easy, anyone could do it, you know?" She huffed and blew the hairs out of her face. "For me, it was a combination of a lot of things." She suddenly wished she'd bought something a lot harder to drink. "I teamed with my girlfriend at Summer Splash, we lost, had a big fight, broke up. From there it was just rolling downhill." She spun her finger around as she recounted the conga line of embarrassments she'd gone through near the end of the year. "Akashi flattened me in the ring, then Taylor Parker came out and made fun of me in front of everyone, then this crazy redhead beat me and ripped off my clothes, so I had to walk to the back stark naked. The fans hated me, other wrestlers hated me, I started to hate me..."

Valley threw her hands up and let it all out with a big sigh. "But I didn't stop, and that's the key. You're young. You're talented. And if you stick with this, I think you can change things around, too. You just have to take it one match at a time. That's the great thing about wrestling - you always have another chance to turn things back around."