Old Friends Make Great Fights

Cassie let out an embarrassed laugh. "No, it's not like thaaat..." She said. "Akashi is awesome, really really awesome, and she fights hard and wins a lot, but... I just don't think she's the most skilled wrestler around."

She closed her mouth and just looked at Tomomi for a moment. She wondered briefly what the pink haired popstar was up to. "And I think you're awesome, too. If that stupid match with Adrian wasn't such a fluke, it'd probably be you and Chigusa in the spotlight instead of Chigusa and Megumi." The thought was at least a little appealing to Cassie, if only out of spite for Megumi. She was immediately ashamed, and quickly pushed the thought away.

"I'm not really confident..." Cassie said thoughtfully. "But I've spent most of my life training one thing. I don't have to think about it. But... that thing alone doesn't cut it here. Honestly, I don't even know what to do when I get in the ring half the time, I start thinking about what I'd normally do, then I second guess myself because pro wrestling is different and what if the other girl does something I wasn't expecting and I really get hurt. Like Megumi. And Dark Angel..." She paused, then shook her head. She looked at Tomomi with big green eyes. "I'm scared to death, really. It's easy to talk, but if I had to have a match with Akashi, I'd die."

Tomomi nodded, understanding what Cassie was getting at. "Cassie-chan," Tomomi said. She reached out and grabbed Cassie's hand, gently holding it in her palm. It was smaller than Tomomi's. "There's nothing wrong with being afraid. You know, when I first started I was just like you! Trained my entire life to being an idol, and then suddenly they want me to fight. It was pretty jarring," Tomomi said with a wry smile, "I got hurt all the time. But it's made tougher. And braver too!"

Tomomi squeezed Cassie's hand. "You're already strong Cassie, so don't be afraid of getting hurt," Tomomi said, "You can beat Megumi-sempai one day. But only if you aren't afraid of getting hurt. Because she sure isn't." She let Cassie's hand go, leaning back a little bit.

"Well, don't think too much about it," Tomomi said, "If you act on instinct you'd be fine. That's how good I think you are Cassie."

"I know..." Cassie nodded, and stared off at the floor.

She pursed her lips and didn't interrupt Tomomi, though her first instinct was to defend herself. She wasn't afraid! It was just competition, and that's what she's done since she was old enough to start.

But she knew she was only trying to fool herself. Of course she was afraid. She had never known anyone that would want to seriously hurt her, and she'd never been so vulnerable. She'd grown up attached to her family, if her dad wasn't around then at least one of her brothers always was. She knew nothing bad could ever really happen to her with them around, but they weren't here. They were halfway around the world, this wasn't her dad's school, and now in the ring from the moment the bell rang she was on her own.

That was what she wanted, though. She wanted to test herself and push herself. She knew Taylor and Akashi would do anything for her, and she'd had long conversations with Taylor about having to grow into her own skin and learning it all the hard way. She had to do it alone, and the fact that she was afraid told her she was doing something right.

"Thanks." Cassie said. She reached over and clasped Tomomi's fingers on one hand. After a moment, she dropped her hand back down and added. "I could beat Megumi today, and you know it. She's just... she's used to fighting like this and I'm not. And she's tougher... she's so strong for her size. I just... need to get used to people like her so they can't surprise me anymore."

She folded her hands over her stomach and slouched down on the couch. She became calm, almost serene, while she reflected on the situation. She always liked thinking through problems. It was her analytical side, combined with her creativity and her endless practice, that made her submission skills so effective.

"I think the ring makes me stupid." She said plainly. "I think once I get in, I forget what I'm there for. I just have a lot of things to... get over. You know? I'll do it, though. Having you in there with me will help." She said with a warm smile.

Tomomi frowned again, though this time she was more questioning her friend instead of not understanding her. "Wow, you really have a case of nerves," Tomomi said, "Yeah, I can help. I've been exactly where you are before, getting over it isn't too hard. Though I want you to promise that you won't hurt me too much in the match!" She gave Cassie a big smile. "Just kidding!"

She patted Cassie's shoulder. "See, you already know what your problem is. And you're strong enough to get over it. I think I understand what Mamoru was doing now. Forcing you to be like that is one way of making you get over everything." She sat back, leaning against the soft back of the couch. "Hahh~ you're kinda scary Cassie-chan," she said, "You're totally technical. You know? A technician." Tomomi smirked. "That's not too bad of a nickname!"

Cassie frowned. She didn't think it was that bad. Maybe Tomomi misunderstood a little. Either way, she wasn't wrong.

"Well, what I mean is that I can't just hurt people." She said. Hurting people was much more a job requirement in AFW than it was in jujitsu competition, and she was very conflicted about it. "I love wrestling, and I want to fight, and some of it is just part of the game and all, but... I just have a hard time, like... not feeling bad about it, I guess. I don't ever want to really hurt someone, and... feel good about it. I don't ever want to like it.

"But... I dunno. I could still probably win if I just went in there and did what I've always done, but that's not very exciting and..." Cassie made a face and wondered if maybe she was only kidding herself with all her confidence in her grappling abilities. Maybe it was right for her to lose with her current skills, more than the result of a personal problem or something.

"Oh!" She said, suddenly excited. She brightened up and almost jumped off the couch. "I already have a nickname, though. My family used to call me Baby Bear, because I was always hugging people when I was really little, and I'd try to copy the people in my dad's jujitsu school, so I was always attached to people. Then Baby Bear turned into Cassiebear, and Taylor even started calling me that, even though she's never met my family. Now it's pretty much just Bear. Taylor calls me that, my dad calls me Cassiebear, my brothers call me Baby Bear, and my mom calls me Cassandra Grace." Her tone clearly indicated that she didn't appreciate the last bit.

She put a finger to her lips while she thought for a second. "I don't know if those are really good for wrestling, though..."

Tomomi nodded, understanding what Cassie was saying. Cassie seemed really shaken up after taking those two losses. Granted, losing to Megumi that way would probably hurt the egos of any wrestler, and her loss to Dark Angel only occurred after a long struggle. It was probably very damaging to the Canadian redhead that she would first be relegated to the sidelines, and then lose repeatedly after trying to take the center stage. At least the girl seemed excited about the nickname Tomomi thought up. It may not be very original, but Tomomi definitely thought it had a pretty scary ring to it. Cassie, the Technician. It certainly described the girl's style.

"Aww, you sound all cute and fuzzy with that name Cassiebear," Tomomi said, "You're right though, it doesn't really suit you as a wrestling name." She paused for a moment to think. "If I heard Bear, I would probably expect a really wild and tough girl to come out. Maybe with a bear costume. Or someone really big, bear big." She held out her arms and waved them around to indicate the size she was talking about. "And probably not to bright too. It would be pretty funny if your wrestling name is Bear Cassie though. Just imagine the look on your opponent's faces when you come out onto the ramp." She giggled a little, imagining the surprise when people expect a huge bearish wrestler to come out, only for the tiny Cassie to show up.

"It is good to learn some other fighting styles though," Tomomi said, "Grappling is good, but it has weaknesses. Like if your opponent is stronger than you." Her tone became thoughtful. "I'm most comfortable with grappling, but I know a few throwing techniques too, and I can use strikes if it really comes down to it. You gotta balance out in order to fight against all the different wrestlers in this league."

"I have a bear hat." Cassie said. "It has ears like this." She held up her fists on either side of the top of her head like the ears on her hat.

"Yeah." She said. She was always very excited to talk about technique and style. "I'm actually okay with kickboxing and things like that, I'm just really small. Good thing I'm fighting someone my own size." She added with a grin. "But... I really have been trying to learn the aerial stuff. The high flying. I... I'm not a natural with it like I am with submissions, but I'll work hard. I've only been learning for a little while, though, and I think I'm doing pretty well with it. I love it soooo much!"

She stood up off the couch. She hadn't had much of her sour fizzy orange drink, and she didn't know if it was more impolite to leave it there or take it with her. she ended up holding on to it. She turned to Tomomi.

"This is gonna be great, I know it. Don't underestimate me, though, I'm not just good at submissions these days. I have good training partners." She said with a smile. Her two main training partners were extremely skills at styles that were at once the polar opposites of each other and of Cassie's. There was a lot to learn from them.

She leaned into Tomomi and gave her a hug. "I'm really glad I came to see you." She said. "See you in the ring!" With a wave, she turned to leave.

Tomomi giggled a little when Cassie made her little demonstration. "Kawaii~" she said. She sat back a little bit as Cassie went on, describing her new skills. The idol was impressed. She still thought Cassie was a bit of a one trick pony, extremely good at technical grappling but not much else. The fact that they were the same size, and Cassie had been learning and training really hard, made Tomomi a little apprehensive. The idol knew she could probably overpower Cassie if it came down to it, but if her opponent was a better fighter, then Tomomi knew she was going to be in trouble the next match.

"I'll never underestimate you Cassie-chan," Tomomi said, "You shouldn't write me off either. I'll give you the fight you want. Don't cry when you get hurt!" She stood up with Cassie, hugging the girl tightly as she was about to leave.

"Yeah, I'll see you in the ring," Tomomi said, giving Cassie a little wink. As the door was closing behind her, Tomomi said something else softly, under her breath so Cassie didn't hear. "Good luck Cassie-chan," Tomomi said to the closing door.

Mamouru had made his way close to where Drake had kept his girls. He had known that Cassie was going to see Tomomi. It was for the best really. A match like this was perfect for Cassie. Tomomi would give her a good challenge but she certainly wasn't out of Cassie's league. And after the last match with Dark Angel, Cassie could stand to fight someone who wasn't going to fight her dirty while trying to toy with her head. Tomomi was a good, clean opponent that would properly gauge how far Cassie had come in the ring. Right now, that was what he felt she needed the most. A barometer. A place that clearly defined to her where the bar was so she could know what to do to raise it. For Cassie, it should be the most comfortable time she would have in the ring yet.

For Mamouru, however, the match was something slightly more than friendly. He had much more to prove than Cassie did. His only frustration came with the fact that all he could do was help Cassie be his vehicle. As far as managers were concerned, Drake was #1 in the AFW. Mamouru had just started. He was in the same shape as Cassie and had about as much to show for his effort. Similarly, he was a natural as a manager but, like Cassie, also wasn't as polished as he could be. He'd humiliated Cassie and himself when he agreed to have her fight Megumi. He'd gotten himself humiliated a second time in the ring personally by her, even if he had gained a modicum of revenge in their post-match endeavors. Endeavors he thought may had put some distance between himself and Cassie.

If Cassie could put down Tomomi in their next fight, Mamouru felt as though it would even things up. Maybe not professionally, but Cassie would be 1-1 against Eclipse, Drake's pride and joy. If nothing else, he was sure that he could secure a match eventually between Cassie and Chigusa. But that was light years away. That one he could prepare for. he wasn't going to get ahead of himself though. Tomomi was definitely no one to be underestimated. She'd proven herself worthy enough in her fight against Adrian.

Pushing those thoughts aside, he tugged at his tie and adjusted it. He then approached Cassie as she came out of Tomomi's room. "Cassie-san." He said, greeting her with a friendly smile. ""How did it go?"

Cassie wasn't surprised to see Mamouru. She was a little surprised that he managed to find her, though, but he was smart. She was used to him being smart.

"Hi Mamouru." She said with a little smile. She started strolling down the hall alongside her friend and manager.

"It was good. I'm glad I did it." She said, and breathed a sigh. "Tomomi's so nice. I really like her. She was always the nicest out of those girls. She seems like she has the least, er... ego. Megumi... has an ego." Cassie said, and her face darkened for a second, but she quickly added "But I like her too!"

She began kicking her feet up with every step, as if she were kicking dust up in the air. "I think it'll be a really good match. What do you think, can I take her?" She asked with a twinkle in her eye.