Coming Up Roses - Masuyo Ai vs. Sabrina Rose

Rules: Standard rules apply.
Victory Conditions: Gained by KO, submission, pinfall.

Breath in. Breath out.

Masuyo let out a steady stream of air from between her lips as she opened her eyes again. Her mind still weighed heavily from the many weights she’d allowed to burden her thoughts these past weeks. Avalanche. Elsa. Home. But the worst of them at the moment was the weight born from the memory of the last time she’d stepped into the ring. Her first hardcore match. Her hardest match.

Seren. Her back still shuddered from even thinking of the name. But that wasn’t all. It was how much she liked it. The warm blood, the endless shouting. It was as if she’d lost a piece of herself in that madness, and wasn’t sure if it left the arena with her. Her fingers fidgeted as she shook her head left and right, trying to shake off the last bit of nerves.

She could come back from this. One good match. Just one good match was all she needed.

Masuyo Ai:

Masuyo sighed, rubbed her scarf, and closed the locker door. A minute later, the koto filled the arena. Out from behind the curtain came the Demon of Shibuya came, walking toward the ring with the best smile she could muster. A flourish of the hand to one side, a flourish to the other, all with a slight bit of worry on her brows that the attentive onlooker may notice easily enough. Not at her best, clearly.

She rolled underneath the bottom rope and popped to her feet. She turned to each and every side of the ring, giving a bow to the audience, and even the vacant ramp. Those nerves evidently still working their magic, she placed her hands on her knees and waited at the opposite side of the ring, watching the ramp as the koto faded away from everyone’s ears.

Just had to wait and see now. Who was it? Who was it?

Sabrina's Theme:

Sabrina Rose:

To answer the question of who it was, an unrecognizable theme of Chinese music would play out on the speakers, the crowd thinking if this was to be another new wrestler. However, it was one that had her debut, the Rose of the Orient that is Sabrina coming out of the curtains, greeting the audience and a serious and zen look. Having enjoyed the koto that played, something from China would have to play to at least be on the level of that.

Sabrina coming out with her long red Chinese dress, reaching to mid thigh this time but still having the side splits and the black panties underneath. The ridiculous long sleeves are there and the massive side buns on her head. While the Demon may have came with uncertainty, Sabrina didn't seem to. At least not outwardly. Inwardly, she had those nerves. But it seems she found it better to cope than the more taller Japanese opponent. No thanks to some pep talk with her manga heroes.

Coming down the ramp, she would take the long sleeves off as she walked down, walking with a sense of royalty like an empress, despite not being as big as the honorary title.

Sliding underneath the ropes before doing a windmill kick to recover and stand up with grace. Slipping off the red and gold slippers, Sabrina would walk up near the middle of the ring and bow to all four sides of the ring, fist on palm, bowing to the east (literally), before bowing to Masuyo. She didn't say much since coming in but she gave a nod of approval. Not the biggest of opponents but an opponent nonetheless.

Chinese? She certainly was. Very much so, in fact.

Having nothing but the name to go by, Masuyo hadn’t been quite expecting what came flourishing through down the ramp. Sabrina came across as more Latin. More European. And the Rose close accompanying it seemed to complete that image. An image of Gwendolyn passed through her thoughts. Sure, she could have simply been a foreigner of Chinese heritage paying her respects. Nothing wrong with being in touch in with your roots.

But this woman seemed to carry the pride of her homeland in every step she took. Made it part of her appearance and bound it with her aura. What pushed the envelope even further was her entrance into the ring. The graceful kick followed by a humble, respectful series of bows, even one to her opponent. It was a spectacle that was too often forgone in this ring. Hell, the whole federation, save for a few scraps. The MMA maven felt her face light up. Looks like she was getting that good match after all.

Masuyo returned the bow in kind with on her own, just before the referee called them both to the center. The Demon met her adversary above the Friction logo, letting the official continue with his instruction as she looked down, managing a better smile this time.

“Ganbatte, Sabrina-san.” She crossed her arms, tilting her head to the side a bit as she showed those pearly whites. “You might get this a lot, but is it alright if I swing a little low? I’d rather fight you instead of that lovely hair.”

Hopefully, she didn’t take that the wrong way. Someone was going to point it out sooner or later, might as well get it out of the way.

Whilst she didn't come from a noble upbringing with a sterling spoon wedged comfortably in her mouth, she did looked like she had that aristocratic flair as she made her entrance that in truth was Sabrina showing respect to her Chinese heritage. Unbeknownst to her, the comparison to one Gwendolyn DuPont Bettencourt would make sense, from the mixed heritage, the rose that they take as their alias to their hair. However, such comparisons were only for appearances. Only when the battle starts when you see there are more differences than similarities 

Like the act of courtesy, which seems to be lost. Truly a shame that such an act has been forgotten, seems that the masses have backslidden to the more casual ways than to give respect and show formality. If she becomes the reason to bring it back then that would be a good change. At least in her eyes.

Seems to have worked well, even the demon bowing in return. Inside her nerves soon began to settle, which might not say much given how she looked like to be made of steel on the outside. As the officials have them the rules, Sabrina looked up as Masuyo having a better smile on her face. 

The Rose of the Orient stood tall despite the major size difference with confidence and pride. "Xiéxié, Masuyo." She made a slight bow when she replied .Soon her opponent would point out her hair and it was hard for it not to come up in conversation. "I thank you for that compliment, nûshi. But I will give a gentle caution that should you swing low then you'll find yourself in great trouble in battle. Swing however you wish to swing..." A small smile soon creeps on her lips. "...That is if you can hit me, demon."

Pleasant? Pleasant.

There were quite a few words to describe her first impressions of this woman, but pleasant really did seem to fit Masuyo’s read of things best. It had been quite a bit of time since she’d encountered someone in the ring with a genuine care and respect for the opponent and everyone around them. It wasn’t just the very formal ceremony that was Sabrina’s entrance, though that had certainly helped her image.

It was also her response, how she took Masuyo’s words and fired right back with a bit of friendly banter. The appearance, the look, the attitude. She could see a bit of herself in it. Now she couldn’t wait for that bell to go off.

“Oh, believe me. I’ve been up and down the height ladder ever since the octagon. I’ll hit you, Ms. Rose.” She grinned, cracking her knuckles as the referee neared the end of her prematch spiel. “Just get ready to see those petals fly when I do.”

And there it was. She was getting drawn into their little exchange so quickly she nearly didn’t notice the bell ring out. The MMA maven took a step back. She wouldn’t stay there for long, however. She was eager to see what the Chinese newcomer was really capable of. What that small frame could really bring to the table. Masuyo started with the basics, lunging forward on her back foot before stomping firmly down on her left. Bringing her right leg up, she’d swing around towards Sabrina’s head with a roundhouse kick, aimed right for the smaller woman’s temple.

A little banter can help to calm the nerves before the fight would begin, Sabrina had found. Both definitely were in need of that, Masuyo seemed to have been needing it more than her however. At the very least, Sabrina wasn't Seren. New fight, clean slate. Focus on the now and not the past.

The Rose of the Orient would crack a bigger smile, obviously having a quip or a witty retort to send back to the Demon but the sudden bell of the ring would interrupt that before she has a chance to say anything. Nevertheless, Sabrina was excited to duel with her. There was something that she just like about her that she just can't quite put her finger on it...

Masuyo stepped back and so would Sabrina, settling into a stance more fitting to the Chinese martial art Kung Fu. The noticeable Cat stance that she uses. Despite being so small, expect big things for the exotic woman. "The petals of the rose will indeed fly, Demon-san...though not in the way you would think...for now, like the petals in the wind, let us dance." The Demon started out simple enough, your standard roundhouse kick that aimed high (or mid for Masuyo?) towards Sabrina's head, the Chinese woman having to swing her left arm up for a block with her forearm, her upper body twisting some to the left. "Gnnnh..." Sabrina never liked blocking, her small frame wasn't built for taking hits. Though some mental conditioning could come into play that would serve the Rose well. Back to the fight, Ms. Rose would try to counter as quick as possible, sidestepping in, her right leg swinging low, her left foot planted to the ground as she looks to hook her leg with Masuyo's and try to yank it away and pull her off balance if she can...

A cat stance? Now there was something you didn’t see every day.

Masuyo hardly recognized it at first. She’d never had the privilege of going toe-to-toe with any style like that. She was going to be in the dark this time around. It was in that moment, however, that she started to remember why she joined AFW.

There were a lot of new things cropping up this time around. Masuyo’s excitement just kept building and building.

Thankfully, she was the first to kick this match off. Though it was only the first strike, she was already getting a feel for just how the dynamic of this match was going to work. Sabrina’s frame was light, nothing too crazy packed into her at a glance. Even when she blocked the attack, Masuyo could still knock her around with relative ease. Those defenses would crumble if she just kept up the pressure.

But her opponent didn’t strike her as particularly aloof. Far from it, she likely knew that already. So how was Sabrina going to deal with it?

Speed. That answer couldn’t have come any quicker. Masuyo hadn’t even managed to bring her foot back behind her when her Chinese adversary came in and hooked her leg, pulling out from under her with a quick yank. Her leg flew up in front of her, having her land square on her back. Letting out a rough cough, she brought her knee up in front of her and kept her fists raised, looking out for an attempted mount. With her free leg, she'd try and push herself back. Make some distance so she could stand back up again.

There was always more than one way to win than just the one. Probably many example of wrestlers in AFW not being the best in everything to get what they want. Even though Sabrina is genuinely not the strongest out of the two or even the biggest, there is one thing she can always, always fall back on. Her with and experience.

Again, she hated to block. But setting things up for the mental game is going to help in the long run for her. What was more important was her counter attack. She couldn't have Masuyo keep up on the pressure on her so the diminutive Chinese combatant used her speed to slide in, her leg taking out Masyuo's standing leg before she could even recoil her leg back to the ground.

The crowd watching in awe, not the first time they had seen a small girl like her taking someone to the ground, she even took the Juggernaut down from the first strike. Such is the fate when going up against someone who is so good at countering and punishing someone's attempt. With the Japanese MMA maven on the ground, she brought her guard up, a wise decision indeed and shows her experience. Sabrina didn't dare that however, remaining standing, thought. While most would chase after and give them no quarter, Sabrina waited till Masuyo would get up, having a principle that she keeps true with herself. "Yúchûn de èmó." She taunted in her own language, a slight smile on her face. "Seems the petals are falling too soon..."

Wonder if Sabrina did any fishing? There weren’t many other explanations Masuyo for what exactly was happening right now.

She got her good, hooked the Demon perfectly on her leg and reeled it right in. She could have pressed that attack, took any number of approaches really, without much to stop her. But now, she seemed to be letting her get away. Giving the line a bit of slack and letting her catch get away. Whether it was done out of respect or merely strategy, she couldn’t tell right away, but Sabrina seemed content with her actions all the same. Just stepping back with a cruel little smile on her face. Masuyo raised an eyebrow when she noticed it before letting out a chuckle. She was some getting flashbacks from her first match.

Her best match.

“Come on, I wouldn't be that dramatic.” She slapped her hands against the canvas, bring her leg down as she stood back up to her two feet. “I was just a bit too eager and got pricked by a thorn. Nothing I can’t handle from a little rose.”

A few snickers made their way to the ring from the crowd of onlookers. Great. Even more deja vu. If she was going to avoid any more pratfalls this evening, she was just going to have to approach this differently. Use her opponent’s stature against her. Fight power with power.

Masuyo took a couple steps forward, just to get into striking range before rounding Sabrina’s side, taking close side steps. Then, she’d break into a lunge, kneeing low and twisting her hip to bury an elbow strike into the Chinese woman’s chest. Her adversary’s reflexes spoke for themselves, but without any air in her lungs, they wouldn’t mean that much.

Sabrina was amused to see her on her back after the leg sweep that befallen the Demon. Her principle might have been such a con for the rose, a lot of things she could do, especially mounting Masuyo, though with her experience, it wouldn't be a easy ride. No, Sabrina remained respectful and waited till Masuyo would rise to her feet.


"Little or big, a Rose's thorns can hurt just the same." Sabrina would simply say as she got into her stance once more, Masuyo getting to her feet before stepping towards the Rose. Sabrina remained cautious, last time she tripped an opponent here, the opponent came back hard. So she has to be ready for anything. 

The Demon came into striking range, Sabrina remaining neither too stiff or too loose as she sidestepped in, the Rose moving back slightly, though finding herself just a few more steps towards the ropes. Soon, the Japanese MMA fighter broke into a lunge and firing a elbow strike for the smaller girl's chest. Sabrina seeing the twist and shot her palm out, not so content with blocking this time, almost reverse the twist of Masyuo's as she looked to parry a move with another, her palm aiming for the forearm. Using the momentum, her lower body turned afterwards, her leg from the same side swinging up before her leg would come under the Demon's arm,  then around and back, attempting a hook kick for the back of Masyuo's head. It would have been a massive stretch if Masyuo was still standing but since she lowered herself to her level, why not take advantage of that?