Kawaii Crossroads

Claire smiled and nodded. "Same here! I personally am pretty happy with where I am and what I am right now. I did mature a little bit after I first got here. Didn't get much taller, but, well...I think I went up a bra size or two, and I know people say I have a more mature look now than I did when I first arrived from the United States. But I still like to just let loose and have fun. Like I said, it's almost cathartic...at the very least, I just find spanking and tickling and wedgies and all those kawaii tactics to be a lot of fun."

Having heaped up a huge mound of onions, peppers, mushrooms, and a few other vegetables in her bowl, Claire would take it over to the cook station and handed it to the chef, along with her ticket, specifying her choice of meat—steak, naturally—as well as her choice of starch, in this case rice noodles. She requested a rich teriyaki sauce and stood back to wait for it to be cooked up, still chatting with Micca.

"Oh, well, we were planning a couple of different events, actually," Claire would reply, shuffling the profiles in her hands. "One being a kawaii pay-per-view battle, probably with a few different girls...and then the other being a title match. They've asked me to try to find a girl to fight for the title."

Also doing the same thing as Claire, Micca would then wait for her meal to be finished while she continued her conversation with the kawaii champion. It looked like being a champion sure had a lot of responsibilities. She mulled over the things that Claire had told her for a few moments before something came over her.

"Say..." Micca began. She wasn't sure whether it was right of her to ask her this, considering her own track record in AFW. But, she saw an opportunity there, and she felt like if she did not seize it, she wouldn't get it again. "What kind of girl are you looking for? For the title match, I mean," she asked, sounding a little nervous, hoping that she didn't sound too opportunistic. And she kind of felt bad asking Claire this. The champion had been friendly and accommodating enough, so she really didn't want to think that she took advantage of her friendliness.

It only took about four minutes for their food to finish cooking, with the chefs handing first Claire, and then Micca, big, wide bowls full of noodles, and vegetables, and saucy brown goodness so rich in umami that Claire could feel her tongue tingling just from the smell of it. She did have a weakness for a few select kinds of food, and this was one of them. Her mouth watered, and she smiled as she thanked the chef, put a couple of bills in the tip jar to cover both herself and Micca, then picked up her bowl to carry it over to a small empty table in the corner of the cafeteria, looking back over her shoulder to make sure the newer kawaii wrestler was following.

Micca's question was a very interesting one. Claire could tell, of course, what the girl was driving at. But the notion had crossed her mind, as well. She knew that Micca's record was not the best, but from the matches she had seen, that was largely a fluke, with every one of them coming down to the wire, and most coming against tough competition. Besides, the kawaii division was small enough nowadays—no pun intended—that management wanted to reward eager, tough fighters rather than those upon whom fate had smiled most warmly.

Claire sat down and gestured for Micca to sit across from her, smiling at her as she thought about that question. "Not quite sure. Why? Do you have someone in mind?" Claire would reply, deciding to play with Micca just a little bit.

Thanking the chef after taking her own bowl filled with noddly, saucy goodness, Micca followed after Claire towards an empty table where they would be sitting at. She couldn't wait to dig in and enjoy the meal. She would sit across the other girl, waiting for her response and hoping that she didn't look too anxious while waiting for it.

Still, Micca couldn't help but fidget a little when the current kawaii champion asked her whether she had someone in her mind or not. She couldn't just tell Claire right away that she wanted that opportunity, but she knew that this was a rare occasion that might not come up again in near future. "W-well... I-I was thinking if you're open for anyone regardless of their records," she said. "F-for the kawaii division, I mean." She wanted to tell Claire that she was interested in this opportunity, but she didn't want to blurt it bluntly because she didn't want to make the other kawaii think badly of her for being a bit opportunistic.

Still, right after she said that, she immediately regretted it, and she nervously fidgeted on her seat, trying to look at anywhere else as she waited for Claire's response. As of right now, her noddle-filled bowl seemed to be the most interesting to see here in the cafeteria.

The empty table they sat at was next to a couple other occupied tables where full-sized Friction girls were eating. Claire didn't recognize these girls, but they seemed to be deep in conversation, the two at the nearest table focusing on only each other, smiling and giggling and generally looking oblivious to anything outside their own little bubble. If Claire had ever been afraid of these girls, she certainly wasn't any more, and she would bet that Micca would get over any trepidations she had about the larger class of wrestlers soon enough!

Micca was obviously interested in moving up in the kawaii world, and Claire had been impressed by what she saw from the new girl. Micca might have been nervous for any number of reasons, but be it a natural inclination or her record, she was the sort of up-and-coming new wrestler whom Claire was looking for to give this opportunity. "Yes, we're looking at anyone who's motivated and talented...someone who could stand up to me in a fair fight." She smiled at Micca, then got a big mouthful of her stir-fry, swallowing it in an admittedly less-than-graceful fashion before coming up for air again, making eye contact with the other kawaii.

"So, what do you think? Did you want to throw your hat into the ring?"

Sitting at the same table as Claire, Micca glanced at the nearest table, where the full-sized Friction wrestlers were sitting at, chatting animatedly among each other. Micca had no reason to be intimidated by them, but due to their size, she sometimes felt nervous whenever she was around their vicinity. But, at the moment, there was no need for her to be afraid of them, and Claire's presence at the same table also helped.

Taking the first bite of her meal, she listened to Claire's regarding her looking for another kawaii wrestler to compete for kawaii title. The prospect of getting the title for herself was so enticing, no matter if the match itself ended with her win or her loss. "I..." Micca began before she stopped herself. She actually felt bad for taking advantage of this situation, considering how friendly Claire was, but then again, she remembered the reason why she joined AFW in the first place.

She wanted to have fun, and Claire seemed to be giving her a rare opportunity to compete for the kawaii title. The spirit of competitiveness was one of the things that drew her into this promotion in the first place, and if she refused to seize this opportunity, she was unsure whether this opportunity could arise again in the future. So, steeling her resolve, Micca looked at the kawaii champion with a determined expression before she told her what she really wanted.

"Yes. I'd like to," she said. "And I'd like to know what it feels like when competing with you for the title." She then smiled. "I think that'll be fun."

Micca hesitated, and the girl was still clearly getting over some nerves, even if in general she seemed to have relaxed completely in Claire's presence. Claire understood how Micca felt. She would have been hesitant to seize a chance like this when she was as new as the girl sitting across from her. But she knew that Micca had been really putting herself out there, had participated in more matches during the brief time she had been an AFW wrestler than anyone. And she had competed well against some very tough kawaii competition.

Micca confirmed what she wanted, and Claire grinned, chuckling before taking another bite of her meal. She had already put a good dent in the bowl of brown, delicious stir-fry, and she was only going to slow down eating enough to continue the conversation. "I think it'll be fun, too. We can choose any sort of match we want, really, so long as it's kawaii-style. Sumo panties...humiliation...I really like to think up some unique matches, sometimes, so if you have any suggestions, feel free to hit me with them!"

She paused, took another bite, and thought for a moment. "You know, I wouldn't mind testing your strength before we actually get into the ring..."

Micca felt relieved that Claire didn't seem to oppose to the idea of her competing for the kawaii title. "W-well, I don't mind any kind of match, really," she knew about the unique matches for kawaii division, and she deemed most of them to be fun. Like Claire, she was also eating her food, savoring the taste while listening to the kawaii champion.

Then, Claire suggested to her that she wouldn't mind testing her strength before they went into the ring. Looking at Claire's face, Micca then asked, "Really? What is it, then?" She was curious about what Claire actually had on her mind when she suggested to her that she wanted to test her strength before going into the ring. She probably wanted to see if Micca was actually the right girl for the title, and such a thing made the kawaii feel nervous a bit.

Claire tended to have a pretty big appetite relative to her small size, and she had always been a fast eater. Talking was slowing her down, but she was still able to make the food disappear pretty quickly, occasionally wiping at her mouth with a napkin in between bites and in between words. All in all, talking while eating a meal like this turned into quite an intricate dance.

There were all kinds of matches which they could dream up as the title match. Claire noted that Avalanche was coming up, and so with any luck they could tie it into the annual winter PPV, get a bigger audience, get a free trip to an exotic, if cold, locale...Claire hadn't exactly participated in many PPVs, and neither had many other kawaiis. She knew Micca hadn't. So that would be a fun experience for the both of them...right after Claire put Micca through just one little test!

Claire would finish up her food and wait for Micca to take a couple more bites before putting her arm on the table, propped up by her elbow. "Want to arm wrestle? I'm interested in seeing what kind of strength you bring to the table."

Just like Claire, Micca also had quite a big appetite for someone her size, and while talking to the kawaii champion somehow slowing her down, she was still able to reduce her food much faster than someone her size could manage, though a bit slower compared to Claire. When Claire suggested to her that they would be having an arm wrestle, Micca wasn't done yet, having a bit of leftovers of her food, but she decided to put her bowl aside, seemingly interested with this test of strength.

"Well, I gotta show you how strong I am," Micca said confidently. Though she wasn't actually that strong compared to other girls, she was confident that she could take Claire head on in arm wrestling. All she needed was to push Claire's arm down on the table, pinning it down. And back when she was in high school, she actually defeated some girls bigger than her in arm wrestling, so she believed that she could show Claire that she was strong enough to face her for the kawaii title.

Propping up her arm, she would then grab Claire's hand as she prepared herself, the look of cute determination was seen on her face. "Alright, I'm ready when you are, Claire-san," she said. Some other girls in the cafeteria seemed to be interested in this little contest and decided to watch. Some of them even started a betting poll for this little contest.