Meet and Greet

And soon they did arrive... Between both Sayumi and herself, they were able to coordinate a time and place that worked out for all parties concerned. Cicilia had been looking forward to this so much, she had a hard time getting any sleep the previous night. Key word being almost... Her girlfriend had very effective ways of convincing her to do things. It was about early evening by the time it was time to leave, though the one thing left obscure about their meeting was style of dress. When she was little, she remembered going to a LOT of fancy parties with her family, made to dress up in fancy outfits when the go to balls or something... She remembered how HARD it was to get in and out of these things and how long it took... how much it cost to actually buy and maintain one... A 'date' with someone this important warranted something special right? Glancing through her wardrobe, she found that she didn't have much of anything she'd consider 'fancy'... At least nothing she could dress in under 5 minutes.

Casual it is.... not like she had any other choice...

Spoiler:

Choosing a soft white hoodie with black rings down the arms, Cicilia thought she looked kinda cute as she flipped the hood over her head. Cute... She NEVER wanted to use that to describe herself... That was until Sayumi came into her life... Now it was somewhat of a concern of hers... She wanted to look good with her at the very least if they were going out together. Putting on some short-shorts and actual leggings, Cicilia dawned her boots to complete her look.

She looked like some sort of cross between a school-girl and a thug.

Heh. She liked it.

Once Sayumi had gotten into her outfit of choice as well, she'd take her hand and walk with her out of her apartment...

When they got to the assigned location, Cicilia's sanguine eyes widened at the beautiful work bubbles and Mariah had done with this place... Firstly, the room was just about spotless, the large area practically painstakingly cleaned so not a speck of dust was visible... There was a Ref on standby off in his corner but what really interested her was by the ring... atop tables were oodles of food of all sorts from soups to breads to a few desserts near the end... Cicilia had been eating as little as possible so she could fully enjoy this event with Sayumi and BOY was lit looking mighty enjoyable right now...

An entire karaoke machine was set up for them a distance back, complete with a sound-system, T.V. and microphones! The German was pretty much speechless with how much effort Bubbles and Mariah had put into this... How much money did it even cost them!? Cicilia couldn't hazard a guess...

"I... Wow..." She muttered, her eyes finally settling on their hostesses for the evening. Wow was appropriate here too... Bubbles' outfit was... provocative indeed. with her ripped short pants and her shirt tied across her chest, she was looking rather... impressive. Her gaze didn't linger for too long, though... She already had the most beautiful girl in the world with her.

"This is.... amazing..."

While Sayumi didn't own anything bought that could be considered fancy, much like her ring gear she tailored her own clothes when possible as well. From her collection of various pieces she threw together something that at least passed as being classy. Cicilia had been out of luck for a good hour or so, the bathroom had been locked down tight like a high security vault as she tended to herself. A shower with some nice scented body wash, the careful and precise application of makeup, and a little touch of perfume her mother had gifted her for her last birthday that hadn't seen use until now. It had been a trial, but she was finally ready to go.

Dress to Impress:

As nice as Cicilia looked, because to Sayumi the boxer always looked nice, she had been a tad bit disappointed. It wasn't her fault for not really owning anything more appropriate for what Sayumi assumed was going to be a mostly formal affair. If Cicilia was also going to be wrestling or boxing Bubbles, it also made sense she'd want to be comfortable thought the evening. Still, she was a bit let done. This was their first real date after all. She decided after tonight she would take her girlfriend shopping, or at the very least tailor her something to wear for a date down the road. She was able to tuck that away, and hide the tiny disappointment behind a smile and a kiss.  She wouldn't put too much thought into it, but she couldn't help but feel Cicilia was more excited for her potential throw down with Bubbles than having a nice night with her... Was this how jealousy worked? Was she jealous?

They had left the apartment only for Sayumi to shuffle them back to retrieve a few items left behind. Making sure Cicilia grabbed a bag of her gear to change if needed for the inevitable showdown as well as Sayumi grabbing a thick binder she had retrieved from her apartment earlier in the afternoon. Aside from the date, she had some personal business to take care of. She still had her doubts, but had sworn she would reserve her judgement until after hearing Mariah out and getting to know her a bit better.

She wasn't sure what to expect when they first arrived. When someone was talking about their go to destinations, a private ring in an arena someplace wasn't at the top of the list. After seeing what was waiting for them, maybe they should reconsider the list. While it wasn't hard to impress Sayumi, this was one of the coolest things she thought she had ever been a part of. She hugged Ciclia's arm, giddy with excitement as room sprawled out before them. Earlier disappoints faded away. as she scanned the room with her mouth hung partially open. "Yeah..." This was for them... well or Cicilia. She still wasn't sure how big a part she played in all of this.

She wasn't sure what else she could really say to convey how she felt. So she didn't try to vocalize. Her expression of childlike glee seemed to do the job for her. She threw up a hand, waving to their hostesses before tugging Cicilia along with or behind her to meet up with both women. "Everything looks amazing! I didn't even know we had a place like this for AFW let al- Is that lobster tails!?"

”I know, right?!” Bubbles waved to them from the ring, where she’d been occupying herself with some rope running while she waited for their guests to arrive, bounding from one side of the ring to the next. The second Cicila and Sayumi entered the room, she dropped down to her side and rolled out to greet them, giving them both a good look over as she neared and liking what she saw.

They matched in more ways that one, really - Bubbles and Cicilia were both wearing the most casual of casual outfits, while Sayumi and Mariah looked ready for a night on the town.

Spoiler:

Mariah straightened out her sweater as she approached the two, but wasn’t able to get too far before Bubbles gave her a big pat on the back. ”You can thank Mariah for all this. My lady’s really good at getting stuff moving when she wants.”

”Pshaw.” Mariah straightened up and winced. Sometimes, Bubbles forgot how strong she was and how fragile everything else could be. ”I just know the right people to talk to. That’s the great thing about the AFW. It’s so big, it’s easy to make some things fall through the cracks. Speaking of which, if anyone happens to open the door and ask, we’re having a ‘corporate team building exercise’.”

She even busted out the air quotes.

Mariah ushered them in and made her way to the plates, ready to eat as soon as they got settled. Her gaze lingered at Sayumi as she went, though. ”Love your outfit, by the way.”

Cicilia hugged her girlfriend's arm as well, holding her tightly against her as they surveyed the scene. Cicilia hadn't missed her lover's disappointment, even if she had tried to hide it with a smile and a kiss. With how much time the two spent together over all, the German had thought she knew Sayumi as a person at least... Enough to know when something was off. She made a mental note to make it up to her, whatever she'd done before the night was over...

But that was for later. As they entered, she glanced at Sayumi and smiled, happy to see all her misgivings had dissipated into her excitement. That's good... She'd hate it if she drug her sweetheart along to something she didn't approve of. She leaned in softly as Bubbles came down to greet them, giving the lavender beauty a quick kiss on the cheek. She wanted to reassure her that she was here for THEM, much more than this event. Sure, she was excited to be IN THE PRESENCE of someone such as bubbles and would get a chance to fight her no less, but Sayumi always came first... Where would she be without her...? Heck, even before they headed out, she was looking out for her, handing Cicilia a bag full of her boxing and wrestling gear...

Damn it... If only she could've worn something nicer for her...

Mariah and Bubbles approached them, The Virgin killer remarking how they should thank her wife, that she had a talent for getting things when she desires them. Mariah ushered them over to the tables of food, mentioning how it was all about knowing the right people. Right people, huh...? Would Mariah herself be considered a "right person...?" She'd have to ask her a favor later then.

"Thank you... both of you for doing this for us..."

She smiled as the woman complimented her date's outfit, Cicilia leaning her head on Sayumi's shoulder. "Absolutely stunning, isn't she...?" The boxer asked, looking at her sweetheart warmly. "I'm so lucky to know her..."

Unfortunately, she'd have to untangle her arm from her lover's, snatching up a plate before going over the options... And there were options... Actually thinking for once, Cicilia decided to stock up on the light food in preparation for the fight with Bubbles ahead. The last thing she wanted was to be bogged down with a stomach full of meat and even moreso she didn't want it all to come up later... She ignored all the WELL PREPARED heavier foods in favor of a small bowl of soup, some breads and a glass of ice water. Nice and light for a start... Maybe something later. She'd wait for Sayumi to obtain her foods of choice before going over to their dining table with her and sitting hopefully with her right besides.

Now came the awkward part... making conversation with their hosts, right...? Small-talk... oh boy, here we go.

Made a soft surprised 'meep' at the sudden kiss from Cicilia, smiling happily as she plopped her head down to rest on Cicilia's shoulder, holding her arm tightly. The food spread, the setup on such short notice, it was all very impressive. In her mind Mariah had earned a small check next to her name. This was a pretty good example of what kind of pull she actually seemed to have, which was good. "Yes, Thank you." She briefly parted from Cicilia, clasping her binder in front of her as she bowed deeply to the pair. "You've been most kind and gracious."

She scooted her way back to Cicilia before they headed towards the food. She perked up at the compliment from Mariah, beaming proudly. "Thank you! I made it myself actually." She blushed as Cicilia chimed in, leaning in to nudge the boxer. "Stooooop" She whined softly, a bit embarrassed of the praise in front of what amounted to two strangers.

She had found a place to leave her binder before joining the three of them at the food spread. Unlike Cicilia, Sayumi had no intentions of passing up on all these food she rarely had. It was going to waste otherwise. She may have goon slightly overboard with loading up her plate, barely enough room to cut or maneuver what lay on it. She had picked a little bit of everything overall, willing to try whatever they had planned to be out. If she could survive Cicillia's weird pickleloaf things, she could handle whatever Mariah had planned to serve them.

She had mostly been following Cicilia's lead, assuming she had been more familiar with things like this than her. She settled in beside her, opposite Bubbles and Mariah. Thankfully for Cicilia, Sayumi was a social butterfly. Making small talk was something she did without really even meaning to.

Ah, to be young and in love. Bubbles was starting to get up there in age, trending towards the heavier side of her thirties, and starting to enter her leopard phase, but she wasn’t so far gone that she didn’t remember what it was like back when she and Mariah had first been an item. The need to be close, feeding off each others energy, the little hints when you spoke, feeling like two halves of a whole. Sweet, cute stuff, and she could see why Mariah was so eager to know these two. It was as close as they could ever come to meeting their younger selves.

Mariah just waved off Cicilia’s almost-reverent thanks with a light smile, not wanting to make a big deal about. ”It’s not a super big deal. Honestly, we’re just happy to have some company for once. I’m good with my Japanese, but not super good, and Bubbles-”

”-knows about enough to get around the city, and that’s it.” Bubbles shrugged as she made her way to the far end of the table and started loading up her plate. Sampling a bit of that, adding some of that, putting gravy over this…

”And her accent butchers what she does know.” Bubbles stuck her tongue out Mariah’s way, then went back to loading up. ”So we haven’t had the chance to get into the mingling scene as much as we’d like to, meeting other couples. Japan’s still taking some getting used to, and this helps. You’re only the second we’ve come across since joining.”

Mariah started at the other end of the table and poured herself a glass of water, wanting to stay nice and light tonight. ”How’s Japan been for you, Cicilia? Munich to Tokyo, that has to be a big change, couldn’t have been easy.” She nodded to Sayumi. ”Aside from the obvious.”

Cicilia nodded and smiled, remembering how she was back when she came here... It was much like how Bubbles was now, her own german accent throwing off every other word, sometimes accidentally mixing in German every so often, especially when someone pissed her off. It took her a long time and tons of practice to get here, but finally Cicilia had gotten fluent with the language... and the country around her still left her perplexed.

"It's... uh... no, it hasn't been easy." Cicilia responded with a nod, taking a small spoonful of soup and sipping from it....

Exquisite...

"Learning the language was the easy part but I'm still getting used to everything here... The culture, the people, the customs... It's all so different from Germany... Example: 'Hentai' matches." They didn't have that back home. There, sex was considered a distinctly personal act, only something to be shared between both parties. Here, it was televised as entertainment! She could only imagine the riots that would occur if her government started employing their boxers to do that on screen.

Cicilia glanced at Sayumi as Mariah nodded to her, wondering what she meant by that... 'Besides the obvious...?' What did that have to do with her...?

"I think I'm getting used to it though... Sayumi being here with me has made it much easier." She smiled... "It's been difficult building up my reputation here but it'd been worth it... I don't know where else I'd rather be."

Sayumi.was familiar with the struggles foreigners faced over in Japan. For any many of the quirks and strangeness others found in their popular culture, the softer somber side of things was often lost. Many preferred to keep to themselves, even with other Japanese, some however outwardly disposed foreigners. It wasn't so bad here in Toyko, but she had been to more than one establishment that refused an American service just on the grounds they were not a native.

Much of what she knew about the world outside her country was from the trickling infleunce of the states. It was hard not to. A loud proud bunch, often times outspoken. She absentmindedly glanced towards Bubbles for a moment before looking down to  her plate as she began cutting her foot into small bite sized pieces, being  very careful of how she handled the silverware. .

They were taught early on that other cultures would not or could not come to see theirs for what it was. It was a stigma that never really took for Sayumi, not after her experiences with being persecuted for who she was or what she looked like.

She preferred to play the part of an educator though, believing deep down regardless of where someone came from they shared the space the called earth. Better to embrace your neighbor than to fear them... Though she still had a unshakable paranoia when it came to some people and situations. She preferred to not dwell on that though.

Sayumi reddened a bit at the casual mention of hentai matches over the dinner table conversation. She gave her girlfriend a light nudge under the table with her foot. Polite company Cicilia, please! Though, she seemed to be the only one at the table who had been really off put by the mention.

She remained mostly quiet, as most of the questions seemed directed at Cicilia. It gave her plenty of time to pick at her food, so she didn't mind. She wasn't surprised about the mentioned lack of couples. While she was still learning what it took to be in one, the lack of them being a public affairs was just another part of the culture.

Quiet, dignified, personal. It was much the same for most things here in Japan outside of the bustling city.

The mention of hentai matches brought a full laugh from Bubbles, one that petered out into a giggle fit. She wasn’t too familiar with the German wrestling scene - or really any wrestling scene out of the Americas and Japan - but she could imagine that sex-based wrestling wasn’t a big thing in Europe. ”Yeah, I can definitely relate there. That sort of thing is starting to gain some traction in America, but…” Her face scrunched up as she thought about the best way to describe it. Thankfully, Mariah was there to pick up for her lack.

”It’s pretty much a one step, two steps back sort of situation.” Mariah took a seat with her small plate of lobster tails and water. ”That’s one of the reasons we came over here, decided to try the scene out. Less stigma, more acceptance, don’t have to worry about the threats or the protests or any of that mess.”

Just recalling some of it was enough to get an exasperated sigh out of Mariah. She didn’t like to discuss it with Bubbles, but they’d come closer than she would like to litigation in a few instances. Particularly when some of her raunchier matches made it out onto the internet.

”But that’s our boring story.” Bubbles sat next to Mariah, though she edge a bit to the side to give her wife more room. ”What about y’all? Heard of a couple boxers who made the switch, but it’s still pretty rare, right? And you…” She pointed a fork Sayumi’s way. ”Well, I won’t lie, I did a little Googling, but I didn’t turn up much. What brought you to the AFW?”

Cicilia blinked as she felt Sayumi's foot shove against her's under the table, glancing over at her partner to see what she'd done to deserve that. Her face was red and blushing for some reason and the boxer couldn't quite figure out why... Was it something she said...? The only word she could think of with any remotely embarrassing content was "Hentai" but in that context it was more of a sport than anything else. It'd be like mentioning.... Hockey or mud-wrestling in passing conversation.

If that was what she was blushing over... Well, she knew what to avoid on dates for now on.

Bubbles, however, seemed content to continue on the topic, remarking how they had a similar situation in America which she was actually surprised to hear. With the stereotypes of Americans being rather... extreme and sports related, (Crazy beer-drinking, bomb-lobbing football lovers), She expected that this kind of thing would be a hit over there... Apparently not, seeing as the sport was still in it's infancy. Unexpected indeed... She'd never been to the new world. Perhaps she should head over there some time... vacationing and such if she could ever bring the money together...

Cicilia nodded along as Mariah continued on, mentioning how that was one reason why they came to japan in the first place, to try out Hentai wrestling for themselves. She smiled, knowing what it was like to want to try something knew. It was why she had taken up wrestling in the first place... besides the added income. Threats and protests... oh that was funny... True, but funny.

"Oh, I still do boxing. It's not like I gave it up entirely. I run two careers at once: My boxing and my wrestling. Unfortunately, the boxing business has been kind of slow... so I picked up wrestling, you know?"

Cicilia glanced over at her girlfriend again as Bubbles shifted her attention to Sayumi. This was something she wanted to hear too... She didn't think she heard much about her backstory before, either because she didn't want to share it or because she didn't ask. Maybe she'd learn a little more about her tonight.