In Sheep's Clothing

The calls of sparrows and wagtails lingering in the air. The fluttering of cherry blossoms high above. A warm afternoon sun that washed over the patches of green and through the branches of trees as they slightly swayed in the cool breeze. There were few landmarks as frequented in Tokyo as Shinjuku Gyoen, and it hardly took the average tourist’s wide-eyed curiosity to tell why.

The park sat magnificently amidst the surrounding industrial prefecture as one the few preserved parcels of nature’s beauty for the more urban residents of Japan, whose schedules never saw them too far removed from their towering offices or the hustle and bustle of metropolitan life. Here was a respite. A beautiful little venue filled to the brim with a natural splendor which attracted thousands upon thousands of visitors each day. At least, so long as the sign at the entrance is to be believed. The most remarkable aspect, however, is its seamless blend of the three distinct styles. The traditional Japanese has its historical value and ensures the park remains a popular destination for hanami. Meanwhile, the English landscape invites a more pastoral appeal, giving a glimpse into the idyllic European view of nature.

The French Garden, in particular, possessed a rather romantic atmosphere, popular among natives and foreigners alike. It was in this sun-soaked area, alongside a stone sidewalk that stretched long adjacent to an open clearing, where children played and adults squabbled, that one shaded figure sat comfortably on a bench. Despite the incredibly fair weather that saw not so much as a speck of white in the azure sky above, the figure sat with their hood on and their sweatpants tucked into a pair of work boots. Their physique near entirely obscured beneath the rudimentary attire, save for their hands which remained uncovered.

Between their fingers was a rose, picked from the nearby bushes. They brandished it in front of them, holding it above shoulder length into the air for no apparent reason. They merely sat with one leg crossed over the other, twirling it by the stem in their hands, as if waiting for some errant bird to swoop down from the air and pluck it from their waiting fingers.

Alaina had a date, a meet up of sorts. She had never done anything online but wanted to try to meet a guy not involved in wrestling. A breath of fresh air, an escape from the ring and life associated with it.

Alaina chatted with a fellow and was looking for a rose. Alaina herself was in a nice yellow sun dress. It was flowing, showed a bit of chest without being very low cut. It was tight enough on her backside to show enough of her shapely firm curves. It ended just above the knee and showed some thigh but not too much. She wanted to look good, be comfortable, and not look like a skank.

Alaina looked up and saw a man on a bench with a rose. This had to be him! Alaina walked up and smiled, waving as she got close. She sized him up, and it was hard to tell but he seemed gonna be a smaller body than her, but it looked tight from what precious little she could tell.

"Hey, I'm Alaina. I think you were the one I was supposed to meet. Do ya like what you see?" Alaina asked giving a slight turn and wink. He said he was cool with more muscular women which was good, as her arms and upper back were on full display.

And the appointed hour had finally arrived.

The afternoon sun was starting to work its harsh magic on the top of the hooded figures head. It was trying their patience, taking a degree of self-control to not simply remove a portion of their attire to withstand the climate. The rose continued to twirl in their hand, a constant reminder of the person all this patience was for. They persisted a while longer and would be rewarded when the woman in question finally arrived.

A small smile crept up through the darkness of the hood. Any man with only half their wits about them would have already fallen to one knee in front of her. But that was of no interest to the person sitting on the bench across from Aliana. They only desired to see one person on their knees.

“Simply ravishing, my dear Aliana.”

The figure brought their hand up to the brim of their hood and, with a quick yank, pulled it down to their shoulders, revealing an ever-so-familiar face to the former Entropy champion. Manami continued to sit in front of her with one leg crossed over the other, a vicious smirk growing on her lips. She placed an elbow behind her, resting her arm on the bench as she twirled the rose between her fingers, her eyes and mocking smile never once turning away from Aliana. “Very picturesque. This month’s summer catalog, I presume?”

The look on alien's face went from smile to scowl in record time. She glared at Manami and shook her head. "What the ehll is going on here?!" Alaina shouted loudly. She crossed her arms and tensed them up, partially trying to be intimidating and partially just as a reaction given how much her blood pressure just skyrocketed just now. "I have no clue what you are trying to do or what sort of point there is to this dumb joke. Did I do brain damage to ya the last time I saw you?" Alaina asked, recalling the brutal match they had and the methods Alaina used to end it.

It was worse than what she ended up doing to Jessica Wright to retain her former belt in a last woman standing match. She wondered how long it was before Manami got up, or if it was the medical team and stretcher that got her up. "I am not sure what your odd obsession is with me, but you need to back off." Alaina growled at Manami, shaking her head. Given her breakup and trouble she had dating, this was beyond an insult. She was really hoping to meet someone and this ended up as a mix of heartbreak and disappointment.

Manami hadn’t even attempted to hold back the little chuckle that came forth from her lips. In the minutes that passed since she’d arrived in the park, she’d spent the time envisioning exactly how Aliana would react to the situation she found herself in. Would she simply stand there slack-jawed at the revelation that the wolf was, in fact, not the man she was expecting? Would she fall back and Would she attempt to rush her while Manami was still sitting comfortably, clearly exposed and with her flank vulnerable?

The second option it was.  Not the most exciting reaction, but there was certainly some amusement to be had. The poor Amazon. For all the muscle she attempted to bring forth with those impromptu contractions her arms seemed to be growing through, she evidently lacked the strength to finish what she started. “A fractured shoulder blade a pair of broken ribs, actually. My head was very much clear of any shock, I assure you.” Her eyes trailed to the side for a moment, as if casually thinking over an idle thought before returning her attention back to the Amazon. “But I wouldn’t call it an ‘obsession’, necessarily. Call it...paying one’s dues.” She cocked her head to the side, her twisted smirk still very well intact on her lips as she pointed the rose towards Aliana. “You didn’t truly believe that you could simply demand an audience with me and expect all to be said and done after our little...squabble, did you?”

Alaina shook her head in shock but her eyes narrowed as her gaze locked in on Manami."What the hell do you want then you crazy bitch? You obviously have something on your mind to pose as a guy who wanted to date me as creepy as that is." Alaina said, her anger plain as day.

She really didn't hate many but Manami was quickly earning one of the few spots Alaina reserved for people she truly despised.

Quite the vexation this woman kept hidden.

Manami allowed the latter part of the Amazon’s comment to slip through her mind entirely. She, for one, had no idea what transpired in the chatroom between her and Aliana, for she was never there. Fumika had entertained those online forums on pathetic romantic distress. Never for companionship. Lord no. It was merely in the event she was in need of extra practice with her submissions and found herself low on...willing participants. Coaxing a thirty-something, newly separated has-been hadn’t been much larger of an order for a mind as warped as the blue-eyed She-Wolf’s. The results before Manami showed as much.

She uncrossed her legs and sat upright on the bench, the smile still on her face. “I will be departing for Rome in due time, where I expect my time in AFW to reach new heights.” She stood up on two feet, standing across from Aliana as she let the rose slip from her hand and fall idly to the ground. She stared at her, eye to eye, before slowly strolling in a circle around the former champion with her arms crossed. “Before that, however, a mutual friend just so happened to remind me of a certain loose end that needed tying. A disgusting pit in my stomach that I’ve been longing to get rid of for some time now.” She stopped in front of her. “You.” She raised a finger and pointed straight at the woman across from her. “I request a rematch, you putrid eyesore.”

Alaina rolled her eyes at Manami, already tired of being in her presence. She listened to Manami, jealous of her title shot. A shot at Valley Doll.

Alaina crossed her arms and shook her head. "Fine. I destroyed you once before and will gladly break you again. In fact I look forward to it, especially if you leave me the hell alone afterward." Alaina said, her voice clear in her resolution as well as her anger and contempt towards this woman.

Well, that certainly took less convincing than she had expected. From working entirely off first impressions, Manami had fully expected Aliana to be the pig-headed as she had been when the two were tearing across the arena from one side to the other. Indeed, as she had been when they first met encountered one another, that self-righteous voice echoing across the arena. There was nearly something admirable about her willingness to rise to any challenge, damn the circumstances.

But there still remained the price to pay for her arrogance.

“Indeed, you did. And for that exact reason, the next bout I have in mind will remove any hint of doubt. It will be a cage match. No running around. No tricks. No games. No creative usage of the environment to one’s advantage.” She reached down into her right pocket. ”And just to erase any lingering doubts you may have from our last encounter…” She pulled her hand from her pocket. A flash drive was in her hand, it flashed as she held it up between them, a glint of light catching the metal dongle. “Can that apeish, ‘Amazonian’ mind of yours take a gander at what this might be?”

Alaina listened silently as Manami spoke and rattled offer demand for the rematch. "I don't need the environment or special tactics to beat you. I will not back away from anything you think you can throw at me. I'm out to show everyone that Im the toughest woman to set foot in a damn AFW ring." Alaina said with a shrug.

As Manami took a flash drive out Alaina raised her eyebrow and tilted her head. "What the hell is that?" Alaina asked. What sort of blackmail garbage did Manami have on her? As Alaina thought of it a look of mild concern spread across her face, one that she couldn't conceal.