Habanera Act One: Lady Eleanor de Vere Beauvalot versus Gaia Eden

"Aha!" Eleanor exclaimed as she seized her opponent by the leotard, pulling her successfully into her foot to trip her up. Now the real work could begin as the heiress could start putting on a clinic with her submissions! "Oh how you've tumbled! Now I-eeyaaa!" She began but was rudely interrupted by her opponent's legs moving to trip her up.

Eleanor fell in the same manner, face first into the mat! Although the heiress was light as feather and didn't impact hard, taking the time to lift her head and turn to scowl at Gaia. "How dare you!" She sneered, slipping one of her legs free and looked to fire a kick into the center of Gaia's torso to try and give her space to scramble in a crawl away before she was pulled into anything.

“I dare, I’m daring.” Gaia had a bit of a laugh at herself as she started to push herself up. Her plans for getting the two of them back on their feet were cut short as a wild kick hit her hard in the abdomen, making her fall backward onto her backside. She clutched her stomach, letting out a few coughs, caught unprepared again. She might have been going a bit too easy now that she thought about it. Complacency was never a good thing. With a soft groan, she eased herself up, backing away from where Eleanor was scurrying off to.

There was a saying out there, she couldn’t recall the wording but it was something about the greatest threat to a master swordsman was the person picking up the sword for the first time. The meaning to her was twofold, talking about how one’s biases might be their undoing and that someone trained to mastery won’t expect the unskilled swings that come from someone unaware of how reckless a move might be. It could be applied here.

"Come here." With a soft snort and a nod, she psyched herself back up. It was time to get into this properly. She started forward, moving towards where Eleanor crawled off to. If the girl had gotten up by then, she would attempt to lock up with her in the typical collar and elbow lock. Unlike how easy she went before though, Gaia would immediately try to walk Eleanor back into the ropes if she managed to get ahold of her.

There was the right stink of someone who didn't know their proper place, Eleanor thought as her feet kicked and pushed off the mat. She managed a meter before the momentum made it easy for her to propel herself back up to her feet. Her gloved hands swiped across her bosom and stomach in an attempt to dust herself off. "Hmph~" She huffed, turning on a heel to face her opponent who was also just now picking herself up.

"You know how many miscreants today, alone, have sullied the very canvas we walk on?!?" Eleanor sounded disgusted, but she stood her ground. A small temper rose within her and within that temper was potential, so when it came to Gaia's approach this time, Eleanor took a step in and met her opponent in the lock-up.

Eleanor managed one hand around the back of Gaia's neck, her other pushing at the right shoulder of her opponent. Their heads had closed in as well and the heiress glared at the blonde before that look faded as the heiress was easily outclassed in terms of strength. "N-not fair!" She protested, one step back turning into two and then multiple until she was met with a full retreat. The only thing preventing her from flying out of the ring were the ropes as Eleanor's back leaned into it, being fully pushed back.

"U-Unhand me!" The heiress scrambled and resorted to her more sleezier nature of bringing her left hand, the one around the back of Gaia's neck, up to grab a handful of blonde hair and give it a yank! There was a sense of urgency in Eleanor, however, and she lifted her right foot tried to bring down her heel on top Gaia's left knee to try and force the other to retreat or yield before things got worse.

"I don't think I will." It started as a slow push but had Eleanor in a full backpedal as Gaia muscled the other girl across the ring until she was shoved up against the ropes. The blond broke up her own hold, the hand that was grasping at Eleanor’s elbow came up to brace her forearm just under her chin, trying to force her head up and expose her chest. Gaia reared back with her other hand, preparing a big chop that had the audience starting the customary chant of “Oooooooo” in anticipation of the hard crack of an open palm she was about to unleash.

“H-hey!” Gaian’s head was wrenched to the side as her hair was yanked. She flexed her neck muscles to fight the pull, winding up again for her attack. She didn’t see the heel of Eleanor’s boot come down on her knee but she certainly felt it, collapsing awkwardly down to one knee before the more petite wrestler, giving the other girl a momentary advantage with her leverage. Gaia reached out with her hand, trying to grab the middle rope to keep herself from falling.

If Eleanor wasn’t quick to capitalize on the opening she had made, the blond would thrust her shoulder forward, using her lowered position to slam her in the stomach with the full brunt of her weight.

There was a brief moment where Eleanor froze, wide-eyed in shock as she saw her opponent drop before her. She had never done that before outside of practice and even then, she had to demand her trainer to fall sometimes. Yet the advantage didn't quite escape the absolute novice fighter as she moved on instinct to the first thing she could think of to capitalize.

Her right hand lifted above her head for one moment and then it was cocked back behind her, her torso twisting slightly to compensate. It was at this point the earlier fandom who were rallying towards Gaia, now rallied behind the build-up of Eleanor's own flattened hand.

"Oooooo" Came the more attentive and engaged crowd subjects prompting a grin to pull at the cheeks of the heiress's face. She brought her hand around with all her might, an open-flat palm to swing and strike across the blonde's cheek!

SMACK!

Even with her hand gloved, the impact was visceral as the crowd roared in delight. Eleanor's delight caved to the throbbing pain in her hand as she took her left to hold the wrist of her right. She winced and stomped her feet. "Owie.." She whined under her breath but a heave of a fresh breath had her open her eyes in wicked glee. She had scored a hit! The first of many, she knew. "Aha! You have been sent reeling from that impact! I am sure the masses are stunned you managed to maintain consciousness!" Eleanor giggled in a wicked villainous glee as she tried to slip around to her opponent's backside and give the blonde a boot to the back to send her into that rope she so desperately needed to prevent an utter collapse!

Gaia had been playing nice up until now. Eleonor seemed as fresh as they came and what sort of match would it have been if the veteran blond had just run the smaller girl over? Not terribly entertaining for many, past the few who showed up to these tapings to see smaller opponents get rolled. The knee strike had taken her genuinely by surprise but she had fully intended to rectify that immediately. For as fun as it might be to tease the newbie, she didn't plan on giving her enough wiggle room to win.

As she gripped the rope and prepared to slam her shoulder into Eleanor's guts, the blond glanced up to her opponent briefly with a wry smirk. The slap wiped it from her face immediately, as the smaller girl caught her cheek completely, snapping her head to the side and nearly knocking her onto her back. She had managed to keep from falling due to the ropes yet again, but was reeling in equal parts shock and pain. Eleonor gloated over her but Gaia was unsure just how much of that was an act. The slap had been surprisingly impactful, making her see spots as she blinked her eyes.

Eleanor would find it easy enough to move around Gaia who seemed to still be recovering when a boot hit her in the back. She was shoved forward, going part way through the ropes, her upper body dandling outside the ring as she was hung up on the lower of the two cables. Her backside bobbed in the air as she bounced in place suspended on top of the rope, reaching back to blindly reach for the apron to keep from slipping out completely.