Great minds think alike?

It was a couple of days since what happened in the ring, and from what Lina could gather, nothing else has gone wrong or felt out of place since. Going to bed that night she decided those around her were calm enough to warrant giving Rhein a call the following morning. She remembered the thought when she woke up, but she was having one of those mornings where one distraction lead to another, which lead to another, then another, and by the time noon came around she forgot about Rhein. As the afternoon progressed, she couldn’t help but think that she’s forgotten something, but was unable to put her finger on it. By the time she went to bed that night she had dismissed the thought, feeling it must not have been something important.

After using the bathroom in the middle of the night she was about to fall back asleep when she remembered what she forgot to do the previous day. She reached for her phone and called the green haired manager from the other day. No surprise there was no answer at this hour, but she did leave a message. “Hi Rhein, sorry for calling so late, it’s Lina. I would have called you earlier but it was a hectic day. If you want to meet up later today and discuss things I’m free pretty much all day except for a quick drop-off early in the morning, but that won’t take long. Anyway you got my number, talk to you later.” The thought of maybe she missed call from Rhein and didn’t notice didn’t enter her mind, though the fact that she established contact put her mind at ease, at least for the time being.

Truth be told, Rhein had forgotten about the arrangement she had with the smaller Manager, Lina some time ago. Rhein had actually grown rather busy as of late, needing to meet with her clients, actually conducting a large meeting with the “Heels” of her clientele and making sure they all understood one another, keeping them out of prison and other such trouble. All of that was foregoing the mountains of paperwork she needed to get through every day, plus the progress report the AFW workers constantly wanted practically every hour.  Rhein was preoccupied pretty close to every hour of every day, with still enough paperwork to bring home and work on before finally getting to bed.

She had finally gotten her mountain of paperwork finished, her reports written down and sent out, and she had met with the majority of her client and discussed with them their needs and how she could best help them. That night was the first night she actually made it to bed on time since she had begun working at AFW…it also happened to be the night where someone decided to call her work phone at one in the morning. The sharp ringing roused the women from her slumber, cursed quietly when she noticed the time. She had no idea who could have been calling her that late, and by the time she found her phone, it had stopped ringing. Rhein waited for a minute, figuring whoever it was would leave a voicemail if it was anything important. Sure enough, a notification popped up on her phone that a new voicemail was available.

After listening to the voicemail, Rhein couldn’t help but wonder why Lina had just called her now, and not in the morning. She really couldn’t understand how this girl worked, as she was far away from the normal type of person the German often dealt with. All she could really remember about Lina as that she was a bit of a firebrand, and had almost tried to fight Rhein when they had met backstage.

Deciding to try and push the negative image of Lina out of her head, Rhein simply texted Lina, looking to schedule a meeting the next day.

Hey, it’s Rhein.

Glad to hear back from you. Would you like to discuss this around noon? I will meet you by your office.

Thanks,

Rhein.

--

It had taken the German a few minutes to actually find Lina’s place of business, as the girl was well known for walking around, and not many people were sure where her office was. eventually, Rhein had found the way, and was standing at a hardwood door that appeared to be the entrance to the manager of the team “The Champions”.

With a heavy sigh, Rhein let out all the stress she had gathered up when thinking about dealing with Lina’s shenanigans again, but put on a friendly smile as she knocked on the wood door, signaling her arrival.

That was alright with her, and she replied with a simple confirmation message. Nothing about the outside of her office made it stand out compared to the other buildings surrounding it, but it wasn’t one of those blink and you miss it places and it did look presentable. One benefit she had to the location was two people she managed had day jobs in the area. Daisuke could sometimes be seen with her patrol duties, though she more often was on residential neighbourhood beats. Sion was within a throw of a stone at a nearby comic and card store.

Rhein’s time of noon gave Lina time to take things easy as the only thing she had to do that morning was drop off Sion and Dai’s kids at school, which knowing them outside of the ring she’s done for them before. Thankfully her busy previous day gave her plenty of time to meet with Rhein, it was just a matter of occupying herself before she arrived.

‘Do I have time?’ Lina thought to her self, wondering she could get take off and get a quick bite before Rhein arrived, knowing it was almost noon. She quickly got the answer as there was a knock on the door, feeling it was who she was expecting. She wasn’t far from the door and took her only a few second to open it. “Hi Rhein, come on in.”

When Lina opened up the door, she was treated to a kind smile and an open posture from Rhein. As soon as the woman showed her face, Rhein made a point to greet her warmly, waving slightly and giving a quick chuckle before saying her hellos.

“Hey Lina. It’s been awhile, hasn’t it? I must admit I was a bit shocked to get your call this morning. Do you always stay up so late, or was yesterday a special case?”

The last bit of Rhein’s comment was in a joking tone, the suited woman teasing Lina in a good fashioned nature as she stepped inside the office. It was a bit different from Rhein’s own workplace. If she had to describe it, Lina’s office felt more “at home” then her own. It wasn’t a mess as Rhein expected, but there were a few piles of files and folders strewn about, along with some family pictures on various surfaces of the office. Rhein absently picked one up, a group photo of Lina with what looked to be her friends and family…even a few kids had snuck there way into the photo. It looked as though Lina was very much a family-oriented woman, and probably treated her clients as an extension of that family.

Rhein set the picture back in its spot. She was here on business, and while normally she had no issue with small talk, she figured Lina may not want her to hang around too long.

“So, would it be right to assume this meeting is about my offer? A match between the P.D.S.M against the Champions?”

Rhein adjusted her glasses while casting a glance over to Lina, her expression now just a neutral smile.

“If so, we need to talk about the details. Dates, times, safety issues, even match types and opponents... of course, if there was something else you wished to discuss…well then I supposed you have my attention.”

Rhein walked over and stood in front of Lina’s desk, one had in her suit pocket, the other clinging to a massive binder filled with paper, notes, files, and even a few pens. It seemed Rhein was working, even on the way over to her destination. The German’s jade eyes seemed kind, but they were noticeably watching Lina in a suspicious manner. Rhein didn’t seem to completely trust her host quite yet, but only the most observant would even guess that fact. Rhein hid her suspicions well, and remained rather pleasant for the moment.

"Not usually. I was going to call you earlier in the day, but with all I was doing that day it slipped my mind and I was reminded of it while in bed. Sorry if it woke you." Even if it was in a joking tone, Lina was trying to have it come across that she intended on calling earlier but did so the second she remembered.

Noticing Rhein eye one of the photos, Lina mentioned "It helps that I know them outside of wrestling before I started managing them, so it's easier to know how they might think about matters, though I'm not perfect with it. While she isn't in the group and I don't manage her, Sion's mother is very important to them, and with my own personal respect for them I'm sure you can understand how I felt that day." Lina wasn't mentioning it in a hostile tone, in fact was calm when she brought it up. "I can't say I know about yours or your team's personal lives, but if you ever have someone that close have that done to you I wouldn't fault you if your reaction was the same." While she didn't have any kids herself, the ones that Sion and Daisuke had were ones she's no stranger to. "Yes it is." After inviting her to sit down, Lina gets right to it.

"I'm sure both teams want a piece of each other, and judging by the crowd's reaction that day they'd like to see yours be on the receiving end. While I'm not against the thought of arranging it, there are some problems I see. Your team is one that just showed up, compared to the champions who have been around and, well, have earned their spot. Not wanting this come off rude sounding, but other than that attack, what else have they done? That being said I'm sure we can arrange something. The other thing I see getting in the immediate way is they have a title defence coming up, so I wouldn't want them both facing yours before hand or right after. Though I'm sure you noticed a third member of the group took exception to what happened so maybe they can face Daisuke and Lita. A singles would be alright as well. Let me ask you something. If you saw your mother being attacked like that, wouldn't you want make her attackers feel the same? Even though Kelly's doing alright I know Sion would jump at the chance do to just that. That being said, if your team did well in whatever match or matches we agree to it could very well put them in contention themselves. Any thoughts on what we could do come to mind?"

Before Rhein had a chance to respond, something came to mind on Lina's end. "Up to you, Sion works close by and I'm sure I can pull him away from there for a few minutes if you want to hear his input on our discussion. From what I gather you didn't order the attack, and given he's been the ring since he was fetus maybe if he understands how you were that day it might give us some ideas."

Rhein listened patiently, taking the offered chair across from Lina’s desk and leaning against it leisurely. Rhein didn’t even try to interrupt Lina, who really did strike her a the over excited type. Instead, she sat and watched Lina, her expression a solid mask with a simple smile painted over the top. A poker face was a simple negotiating tactic, one the green haired woman locked down years ago. As far as Lina would know, the fellow manager in front of her was listening intently and happily. There would be no way that Lina could see a mounting irritation growing inside the emerald manager’s heart.

“Well, you certainly have some interesting questions,” Rhein said kindly, giving a kind smile from across the desk, “And I can see why you would ask them. I’ll try to answer your questions in the order they came, if that’s alright.”

Rhein sat up a bit, searching through her memories and plucking out the two mental files she had on her team. She very much could have used the ones she brought, but since Lina seemed to care about people on a personal level, the German thought it would be better to approach it this way.

“Let’s see…Question one: what have they done previously? While I am not at liberty to share personal details with you, both women have had quite a bit of combat experience in the past. Selina has won a few…interesting awards and trinkets from her experience in another league, while Día apparently did so well on her recruitment tryout she was hired on the spot. While they have only just debuted, I would say they are more then capable of giving your team a satisfying enough fights no matter the outcome. I would ask you take them a bit more seriously…if you don’t mind.”

Rhein didn’t take offense in Lina’s disregard for her team. In fact, the German’s tone was closer in line with a concerned warning rather then a sharp comment. To disregard two wild individuals like the ones in P.D.S.M could lead to dire consequences.

“Question two: What about the title match? You don’t want the two teams to clash because it will either make your team tired and weak for the title defense, or the title defense will make them weak for my team, is that right?” Rhein flashed a sympathetic smile, “Don’t worry. I have no interest in any of my clients earning belts so early in this stage. If the need is great enough, I would be willing to wait a few months for your team to recover from whatever titles they hold onto. That being said…” Rhein’s jade eyes stared deep into Lina’s, “I do want to get this over with as soon as possible. I have my own employers who are keen on getting my team out to the public. Both of them. I afraid I have to insist on a tag match. What type, and what rules, I don’t really mind…You can even choose who you want to go against them…but a single match simply won’t work for me.” Rhein’s smile didn’t budge, even as she took a very hard stance in the negotiations.

“Finally, Question three…I feel I have to make something rather clear to you, Ms. Inverse.”

Rhein’s eyes narrowed considerably, and her smile disappeared. Her expression was one of displeasure and disappointment, like a parent trying to hold back from yelling at their child.

“I don’t agree with you on how you manage your clients. Don’t get me wrong, I can see a few benefits to working with friends and family…but I the risks far outweigh any benefits you could get from such a foolish act. When you put loved ones in a dangerous situation, even one like a wrestling match you should expect dark things could happen at any time. I really don’t appreciate you trying to absolve yourself of your actions and write them off as if your anger issues are the result of your love for others.” Rhein could still recall reading Lina’s file. Her slap to the face was minor compared to what the manager was known for, and Rhein had found her lack of professionalism absolutely annoying.

“In my opinion, my team was doing their jobs, and so was Kei. So, if I may, please stop asking me how I would feel if that happened to one of my family members. As you said earlier, you don’t know my personal life, and to toss around such uncaring words is uncalled for.”

Lina had spoken to Rhein like she had no idea what it was like to see a loved one hurt or in pain. To see them be beaten into submission and left on the floor, seriously injured…Rhein was aware of that feeling all too well. The difference being her loved one didn’t make it to a medical facility…and she was helpless to stop any of it.

There would be a long moment of silence before Rhein would speak again, those strong Jade eyes never looking at Lina during the silence.

“If you wish to bring Sion here, I won’t object to another opinion. Perhaps an outsider view may shed some light on a solution we are not seeing…”

Rhein spoke calmly, but she continued to avoid eye contact with Lina. Instead, she stared at another of Lina’s family photos, as if she was getting lost in their smiling faces.

That wasn’t the reaction she thought she would get, and looked a bit surprised when being told her managing them had more bad to it than good. Before she could respond to it though Rhein continued. After Rhein mentioned Sion’s possible involvement before she could get a word in, Lina was finally able to respond.

”You’re right I don’t know what you’ve been though and I apologize for bringing that up. While I don’t disagree with the logic of the negative outweighing the positives of managing someone you know well, believe me I have thought of that. But on the flip side there are some benefits many cannot see, or at least not right away, but I won’t dig deep into that right now. It might be wrong to you, but can we agree on there could be a group of managers in room, for anything, and odds are no two styles completely mirror each other? Not saying how you go about your business is wrong, this is our first proper meeting, but wouldn’t you say I’ve done something right if I’m in the corner of champions? Just a thought.”

As she’s about to call Sion she mentions to Rhein “This might come as a surprise, but I must thank you. It’s been a while since I’ve been against another manager such as yourself.” As she waits for Sion to pick up on his end she tells Rhein “It’s a good thing, trust me.” She was able to reach him without trouble, but it would be a bit before he could join them. “He’s dealing with a customer, but said he’ll come over when finish, shouldn’t be more than a few minutes.”

”While we wait on him, and if you don’t mind me asking, what got your into this? The whole managing of wrestlers. Not necessarily your team, but in general.” Lina figured maybe what caused Rhein to get involved might help her better understand who she was dealing with. "Not trying to pry into your personal affairs, but thought maybe it might make things a bit clearer."

Rhein simply decided to let her grievances go. She explained why she didn’t agree with Lina’s style of management, and the woman acknowledged her problems. Lina seemed to be aware of some of the issues in doing business with friends and family, but decided to do so anyway. It was something Rhein would never have done herself unless it was the direst of circumstances, and the idea that Lina kept bringing up about damaged family members proved her right. If Lina had taken a more business-like relationship with her clients, then this meeting either would never have happened, or creating this match deal would be much simpler then it proved to be.

Still, progress was being made…even if it was slow. Rhein sighed silently, finally looking at Lina with a neutral look and the same, dull smile.

“I suppose we can agree to disagree.”

Lina would go off and call Sion, letting Rhein know she apparently enjoyed their…“competitive” relationship. It was an awfully strange way of putting it, especially to someone like Rhein, who actually valued good relationships and the perks they could get you. Perhaps Lina was just happy she was getting into some of the action for the first time in a while. The Jade Manager had seen how far some managers will go to get into the action. The newest woman in the office was always jumping into the ring with her clients and dressed up like some strange ghost/ghoul. Lina certainly wasn’t as crazy as that, but with all of the time she spent managing her group, she probably wanted to be a bit more involved, even once. Rhein couldn’t say she hated Lina…the fellow manager just did things in a way that was irritating to her guest.

After finding out it would be a few more minutes before Sion would be able to arrive, Lina apparently reverted to small talk. The question wasn’t an abnormal one, really it was one many would probably ask others when the need to fill the empty air arose. Truth be told, Rhein didn’t like speaking about her life too much. Even when it was simple as how she got the job, Rhein was hesitant to spill too much information to someone she had only just met.

“I was called up a requested to help with a certain group of individuals. My employer wanted my help to adjust the attitudes and standings of certain clients, and I agreed on the job. When I got here, I found out it was a wrestling federation. I don’t agree with many of the things my clients do, but I try to correct the ill behavior I see. I’m just here to do a job and do it right.”

While a bit vague, Rhein was sure Lina would be satisfied. She answered her question truthfully enough without going into her background, which was something she didn’t want to go near. Rather then give Lina any time to push on with her line of questions, Rhein simply asked,

“What does Sion do?”

Rhein’s response did pose some follow up questions, but Lina didn’t feel the need to ask it, even if it gave her a thought to keep an eye out for someone else. For all she knew the referenced employer could be anyone, though with all that has gone on up to this point she didn’t feel it be wise to pry further. Even if she wanted to, it didn’t appear that Rhein would give her a chance to do so, which didn’t bother her.

“Believe it or not, Sion was once where I sit. Not in this exact spot mind you, but you know what I mean. He works at the card and comic store close by. It’s helped him adjust to things since moving here from Canada.”

It wouldn’t be much longer until Sion showed up, allowing them to get in each another question if they wanted, but there was nothing new that came to mind on Lina’s end. Other than wearing a shirt of something from a comic series from back home he liked that one wouldn’t consider mainstream. “Hey Sion, thanks for coming. As I mentioned on the phone we would like your input on what we should next.” While he was fine with Lina coming to a decision on her own, he wasn’t one to stay quiet if he disagreed with something. Coming in he knew Rhein was present, but he wasn’t sure what to think about her just yet. He did know she managed the team that recently became a thorn in his groups’ sides, but other than that he had nothing else to go by to form an option. “As you know” Lina turning her attention to Rhein, “Sion’s a second generation wrestler so I’m sure with him here we can agree on something that will good for everyone’s interest.”

Despite being unsure of her, Sion did offer a hand out to her. “Hi Rhein, Lina mentioned you guys would like my thoughts on what your discussing. What’s on your mind?”

Rhein had avoided Lina’s probing well enough. The bifocal woman didn’t care to describe her life story, and preferred not to talk about her personal life when on the clock. She tried to provide that courtesy to those she spoke with, even to Lina, but those types of questions did still come up from time to time. It was only a matter of being quick but polite to brush off such questions. Rhein had asked the first question that popped in her head, curious as to what kind of job someone like Sion might have.

Turns out, a comic shop. The Jade manager didn’t really know what to expect, but a comic shop was not what she would have guessed someone was working at, being a part time wrestler and all. It was a it interesting, though Rhein wondered how well a business like that could be doing. While it was true that superhero media has never been so prevalent in the world as it was now, reports show that while the genre is bigger then it has ever been before, many comic shops from all over the world are closing down due to poor business. Long gone were the days someone could walk down to their local shop and pick out a few comics they enjoy. Honestly, having a shop like that was like finding a fossil in this day and age. The only thing that could be keeping it going was the fact that Japan seemed to indulge in their hobbies a bit more then other cultures, and a shop could have a much wider variety and thus, chance of success. Perhaps Sion’s shop carried multiple things such as models, paints, cards, and comics. Rhein wouldn’t know she never cared for such things. Truth be told, she only knew about this sort of stuff from business reports and stock market websites.

“Sorry, do you mean he was once a manager? I suppose that would make a bit of sense…still, a card shop is quite a jump from one career to the other.”

Sion would finally arrive, wearing some strange shirt with a beast on the front Rhein didn’t recognize with a color pattern that practically screamed the word “Comic book guy”. With his addition, Lina finally felt confident they could reach an understanding. A part of Rhein passively wondered if this was an odd intimidation tactic. Rhein was now outnumbered, and with Sion’s experience as a wrestler, many could say he was a type of muscle person that could be used to lean an offer towards a certain party’s favor. Rhein didn’t truly believe the idea, since these two didn’t seem malicious enough to do something as dirty as that. Still, Lina’s phrasing after Sion had finally arrived felt a bit off. Sion seemed cautious around Rhein, watching her carefully as tried to be polite and stick his arm out for a handshake. Being the manager of such psychos, there was little guarantee the woman was as sane as she appeared.

But Rhein simply smiled kindly at Sion as she stood up and shook his hand with a warm “Nice to meet you, Sion.”

After Sion asked his question, Rhein sat back down and gestured to a chair beside her as if this was her own office.

“Well Sion, we seem to have hit a bit of a brick wall. See, after our two teams clashed the other day, I figured there was some bad blood we would need to clear out, and what better way to do so then in a match? The crowd seemed to enjoy the event and what happened, so I proposed an idea to Lina: Lets have the two teams battle it out in a Tag Team match. If the Champions win, they get their revenge. If the P.D.S.M wins, then they get a huge boost in the polls.” Rhein paused to adjust her glasses, her eyes looking Sion’s dull brown orbs, “However, Lina has some issues. Particularly with the timing. She doesn’t want to have the match too soon before or after the upcoming title defense. She had suggested a singles match, but I’m afraid I can only offer up a team match at the moment due to my restrictions.”

After spelling out the situation Rhein leaned back into her seat,

“Lina seemed confident you could come up with a solution to our problem. While I admit I am not so sure, I won’t deny another person’s opinion may be useful in this case. So…what do you think?”