A Modest Proposal (for Acuyra)

”Ambitious.”

Jack repeated Makie’s word with no small amount of reverence, nodding along with it. There was no getting around the truth of what she said - this was a big ask for an early Tensioner, even without the titles attached. As fractured as the scene could be at times, certain things weren’t done.

”You’re not wrong, Ms. Akamatsu, though it’s not unheard of - relatively new wrestlers take on champions all the time in the AFW. Even in title matches. There is a precedent, right or wrong.” Lock took a step forward and brushed some hair away from her eye, making sure her full face was on display. ”We are already scheduled for a small match against a new team, Gemini, and I’m sure they’ll put us against other teams in short order. I would add, though, that we’re far from ‘early in our career’. In our previous promotion and beyond, we’ve had a good deal of experience - not much of it televised, I’m afraid, but I can provide references with ease.”

Jack stepped forward and brought his fingers out, ticking them off as he spoke. ”White Gale is good, though a bit of the spotty side these days. The Valkyries are in their own little feud at the moment, don’t want to get mixed up with them and the Dire Pack. The Dominion are interesting, but-”

”Gross.” Key ran a hand through her hair and stepped to the side with a snarling sneer. ”Fucking speedos. Why’s that a thing, here?”

”Not the way I’d put it, but yeah, still trying to suss them out. And with the UKE going rouge, there’s pressure coming on British teams. Already been accused of siding with Ryan Knight and whatever his band is up to.” He shook his head with a long, rueful sigh.

Lock reached up and placed a hand on Jack’s shoulder, giving him a gentle squeeze. Key’s brow furrowed at the sight and she drew an audible huff, but that was as far as it went - she folded her arms and stayed silent. ”It’s ambitious, yes. But wrestling is about ambition. Taking whatever opportunities you can find, when they come your way. This is one we’re respectfully asking for from you.”

We're respectfully asking. On the surface, everything about this seemed respectful: Mr. Riley and his associates had done nothing to threaten, insult or demean them. Nothing on the surface, that was: Kyo was still pretty sure that that incident with the money hadn't been an accident. Even though there had been nothing superficially untoward going on, Kyo's gut instinct still told him not to trust a word Jack Riley said.

But then, that's what made this all so difficult. Since Jack and his cohorts had, at least on the surface, done everything legitimately, Kyo couldn't simply refuse him out of hand. That's what made this all so damn difficult...and what was worse, Jack probably knew that, and was counting on that, damn him.

He glanced at his sister. "What do you think?" he asked.

Makie sighed, and shrugged. "I guess?" was all she could offer.

He folded his arms. "Fine," he said, "a non-title match. A regular ring match, standard prostyle rules in effect. If, of course, that is acceptable to all of you." Though Kyo didn't raise his voice or insert any aggression or emotion into it, he modified his tone to make it clear that, acceptable or not, that was what they would be getting.

Lock and Jack looked between each other, as genuine tension loomed in the air, their entire plan hanging in the wings. He’d heard that Kyo was old-school, but underestimated just how old-school a man so close to his age could be. Most of the time back home, a little coin was enough to grease the wheels, get things moving in the right direction - even if he never dropped any real cash. That marked the first time it flat-out didn’t get him through, didn’t let him make a bit of headway. Disappointing? Sure. And more than troubling. He knew Japanese wrestlers marched to the beat of a different drum, but he didn’t think the rhythm would be that different.

So relief set in - a large swell of relief - when Kyo relented and acquiesced. While they had alternate methods to make this work, it was always nice when things went according to Plan A.

”Good on ya, mate. Perfectly acceptable.” Jack stepped back with folded arms and stepped back. ”And don’t worry, I’ll keep a respectable distance from the fight, won’t get in anyone’s way. You know how crazy it can get, been there.”

Lock, for her part, bowed to Makie and Kyo in turn, then took steps back to move with Jack. ”We’ll meet with Ms. Fairchild and work out the details. Soon, but not too soon - enough time for you to heal up, naturally.” She brushed some hairs away from her face, so they could see her full smile. ”Arigato, Kyo-San. I look forward to seeing your skills firsthand.”

Lock and Jack made their way down the hall with only Key hanging back, still staring at the both of them. Wordless, quiet, she stayed that way for a moment with the softest smile. Right before it turned awkward, she took a few steps back and followed after them, blowing a kiss Makie’s way before they parted.

”Be seeing you.”

Kyo watched warily as the three of them walked away, disappearing from view, and finally exhaled the breath that he hadn't realized he had been holding. Next to him, Makie seemed on edge, particularly over that little parting kiss Key had blown her way. Slowly, she too exhaled, before turning to Kyo.

"Did we just make a mistake?"

Kyo glanced at her, unsure of how to answer that question, as he had been wondering the same thing. "I guess we'll find out, one way or the other," he finally said.

Makie frowned at him. "You, as tag team champs," she said, "we do have the luxury of being able to say know. Just thought I'd remind you of that."

He almost whirled around at that point, to shout at her that there was that much more pressure on them to lose face, to ask her what the hell he had been supposed to do, turn them down and start a feud with a bunch of possible heels? Instead, he gave a defeated shrug, and tactfully decided to change the topic.

"So, we still good for Katsugyu?"

Makie sighed and gave a defeated shrug of her own. "I guess. I was also thinking about that new fish and chip shop that opened, but after dealing with those three...I think I'll stick to Katsugyu."

Kyo nodded, and the two of them headed off into the downtown area, no longer speaking about the tag match they had just, for better or worse, agreed to...