It was a cool spring day. Cherry blossoms were falling. Miku Kazama, daughter of pro-wrestler Rio Kazama, was on her way home from a day of training at Berserk after school let out. There she saw him standing at the same stoplight she usually stands at to go to the train station home. He had long black hair put in a ponytail, wore simple glasses, and had on her school's uniform. There was a certain allure to him, despite his pretty average looks. To her, he stood out for some reason. She stood by him, waiting for the light, and glanced at his bag. The tag read "Wolfgang, Takeya"… she knew that surname from somewhere… and then it hit her. She knew that surname from Berserk's veteran member, Sakura Wolfgang who was formerly Sakura Hagiwara before marrying.
His bag's tag also read "2-A", the class next door to hers, "2-B". For the first time, if she talked about wrestling, there was a pretty good chance he'd know what she was talking about. It'd be very awkward though, because their mothers are fierce rivals in the ring. She was actually surprised she hadn't run into him sooner since both of their mothers train and spar at Berserk. The light changed and they crossed, and seemed to be going on the same route. It made her very uncomfortable, which was a first for her since she bears the reputation of being a "dead-expression ice queen" at school and the Berserk gym. He didn't seem to notice her, strangely enough.
When they finally reached her home, he kept walking as she entered the gate. She waited until he turned the corner to move an inch, just to be sure he wasn't stalking her or something. With a sigh of relief, she entered the house to find her mother standing there with a grin on her face.
"So, walked home with a boy… don't tell me you played hooky on training?" Rio teased her.
"No, mother. We happened to be going the same route, nothing more." Miku told her.
"Really? He was wearing your school's uniform if I'm not mistaken…" she chuckled.
"I'm serious, mother, it was just a coincidence." Miku argued.
"I'll believe you for now. Don't neglect your training though. I don't want any chance of any successor Hagiwara has to one-up you when you debut." Rio laughed patting Miku's back.
"Mrs. Wolfgang seems nice enough though…" Miku spoke.
"That nice nature is why she's got so many fans and friends. Of course, if you don't stand out you'll kind of just blend into the norm. That's why I've had you practice being an ice queen. Don't go thawing on me until you've at least established yourself." Rio lectured walking to the living room.
The next day at school, Class 2-A and 2-B were going to have a merged gym class in the morning because the gym coach had to leave for a doctors' appointment during 2-A's usual period after lunch. Miku noticed Takeya across the way tiredly stretching without a partner. He was also being lazy about his stretches too, and actually looked ready to pass out. She stormed over to him a punched him knocking him on his rear end.
"You don't half-ass stretches… otherwise you'll be too slow to dodge simple attacks like that." she scolded him.
"You sound like my aunt…" Takeya groaned.
"You're the son of one of the greatest women wrestlers to be made out of an idol… how can you be so… so lazy?" Miku asked.
"I don't have any intention of being a wrestler…?" he bluntly replied.
"You aren't sure?" she asked.
"I figured it was common knowledge that I'm allergic to pain." he shrugged, and that made her snap.
"Don't be so casual about rejecting your mother's legacy! You have a responsibility to make sure it lives on!" Miku shouted at him breaking her composed look.
"It's cool. I have two younger sisters that are more than happy to become future wrestlers." Takeya bluntly told her making her nerve explode turning her face red as a volcano.
"That does it!" she roared getting him in a Boston Crab.
She continued applying all kinds of submission holds on him making him groan with pain, but never once did he tap or ask her to stop. The event resulted in both having to run ten laps around the track, which Takeya barely completely by the end of the class period. Miku could not believe just how out of shape he was despite his fit build. It led her to become curious about him. Eventually she gave in and asked some of the girls in 2-A.
"Wolfgang-kun? Oh, haha, yeah… he's not a morning person at all. It's like he's a rusty machine or something with how sluggish he is." one girl told Miku.
"He goes through a complete 180 transformation the instant it becomes noon though. He's suddenly full of energy and can perform math that'd make most of our year's heads spin. He once completed a test in just four minutes. Anything before noon takes him at least fifteen to twenty minutes. His grades are solid enough, but he'll never get a girlfriend with the way he functions." another explained.
"Is that all there is to him?" Miku asked.
"Well, in a few weeks his surname is going to change to his mother's maiden name. Apparently things are a bit weird at home for him, so he's been a little more sluggish than normal. Just the other day he had to leave early because he passed out from sleep deprivation." the first girl replied.
"Are his parents divorcing?" Miku asked.
"No one knows the details except for his best friend, Okita Suo. He's in the chess club, so you might be able to catch him if you hurry." the second girl replied.
While Miku didn't want to skip on training, it bothered her. How could the son of a wrestler have zero interest in the sport? He should at least be happy to cheer on his mother and talk highly of her work ethic. Using a picture she got from the girls, she sought out Okita. He had short flat black hair and wore comically large glasses that used swirling lenses. He had slightly buck teeth as well. He happened to be sweeping and nothing else.
"Are you Suo? From 2-A?" Miku asked.
"That's me. Y-You aren't going to make me do your homework too are you…?" he asked in a nervous panic.
"No. I came to talk about Takeya Wolfgang. I'm told if I need to know anything about him you're the guy to talk to." Miku told him.
"Well, I am, like, his only friend, so, what do you wanna know? I've known the lug since elementary school." Okita asked.
"I heard his surname is changing soon. What's with that?" Miku asked.
"That's become a rumor has it? Well, it's true. His surname will change from Wolfgang to Hagiwara soon. He's stayed at my place the past few nights, saying things were a little rocky between his mom and dad. I thought it was just a small lovers' quarrel, maybe she was pent up being a wrestler and all and just wanted some action. One day though I decided to walk him back, since he still had some of my DVD's on loan that he'd been meaning to return. We walked in on an argument and… hoo boy, I don't know who was doing the throwing but furniture was definitely broken from what we heard. We both booked it before we could get dragged in." Okita explained.
"So they're divorcing…" Miku sighed.
"Even I don't know all the details. I've seen through texts that his mom is going to try her best to make sure the rest of his education goes well. I'm really concerned for Takeya too… all his life, his parents were as happy as could be. To see them just break like this is seriously sad. All I can really do for him is be an escape, where he doesn't have to think about what's happening. Sometimes he sneaks his younger sisters out too, which to them is a godsend since they're just middle schoolers." Okita sighed rubbing the back of his head.
"I see. Do you happen to have his cell number?" Miku asked.
"Huh? I do… but it'd be kind of awkward if I just give someone who doesn't know him his number." Okita replied scratching his chin.
"Do it or you're getting power bombed through that table." Miku threatened, and in a flash he had his phone out.
She sent a simple text to Takeya. Who she was and that if he ever needed to talk she was open. That same night, Miku was called downstairs by her mother. Everything seemed normal, until she sat down. Her mother was staring intently at her.
"Miku… you weren't at the gym today." Rio spoke taking another sip of her drink.
"I felt the need to check in on a fellow student, mother. I will spend Sunday at the gym to make up for missing today, I promise." Miku told her.
"You think you'll be off the hook that easy?" Rio asked swirling the ice in her drink around.
"Is that not satisfactory?" Miku asked back.
"Relax. You don't have to make it up." she scoffed cracking a grin.
"What…?" Miku asked in pure confusion.
"You were up front with me. You didn't break eye contact and your pupils didn't dilate, which tells me you were telling the truth. Plus, your left thigh twitches a bit when you lie, and seeing as it didn't I'm inclined to believe you." Rio replied taking a swig of her drink.
"Thank you, mother…" Miku sighed.
"By the way, Hagiwara's going to be a widow soon." Rio told her.
"Widow? She isn't divorcing?" Miku asked.
"Her husband suggested that, but she refused. He was recently diagnosed with an incurable disease that's causing organ failure now and again. He was given about a month or so to live with how frequent the attacks have been. His final wish to her is to change back to her maiden name, and remember him as the man who spent years devoted his loving wrestler wife. She said she won't do it until after he's passed… so that she spends every last second she has left with him in her life as his wife." Rio explained taking another swig.
"That's so sad…" Miku spoke.
"To be honest, Hagiwara hasn't gone drinking with us before now… that or when she did, she never ordered alcohol. It was always juice for her, so that one of us still had a sane mind by the end of the night. We're rivals in the ring, but outside it… it hurts seeing her reduced to someone that cries herself to sleep. Can't be any easier for the kids either. She's got this lazy-ass son, good kid, but you really gotta fish around to find a subject to get him talking with. He's particularly close to his dad. I can't imagine how he's feeling right now." Rio sighed.
The next day, Takeya was absent. The day after that, still absent. Another day, and another… he was still gone. She talked to Okita, and he said that he was unresponsive to texts as well. That left one option… going to his house directly. She made Okita tell her the address with an armbar submission after he refused saying that he needed space. The next day was Sunday, perfect for going to see him. Once at the gate, she became more nervous. Her last encounter with him was a pretty violent once. Even so, she rang the doorbell, and a middle school girl with short brown hair opened the door.
"Yes?" she asked in a shaky tone.
"My name is Miku Kazama. I'm looking for Takeya. Is he home?" Miku asked.
"Big bro? He's been locked up in his room since… I-I'll go let him know you're here… come in." she spoke letting Miku inside.
Just like Okita said, some bits of broken furniture were still visible in the living room. On what remained of the coffee table there were bottle of stomach medicine along with cans of alcohol. Lying on the couch was Sakura… looking like she was recovering from a hangover.
"Oh… hello. That uniform… you must be a friend of Takeya's. Good… I'm glad he's making more friends." she greeted me trying to smile a bit.
"Um, Mrs. Wolfgang, it's me, Miku… we've met at Berserk a few times?" Miku chuckled pointing to her face.
"Kazama-chan? Did Rio-chan send you to check up on me? That's nice of her to do…" she asked.
"I came because Wolfgang-kun hasn't come to class in a few days." Miku told her and she sat up a bit as the middle schooler entered the room again, only her hair was in a ponytail now.
"Momma, big brother's crying again." she told Sakura.
"Can you blame him sweetie? I'd be crying more too if I wasn't so tired…" Sakura sighed.
"I… take it your husband… I'm sorry." Miku spoke bowing to her.
"I'm just happy the girls didn't have to see me when his last flame flickered out… Takeya had to pull me back. I felt his tears on my back as he pulled me away. He was just as close to him as I was… that boy looked forward to doing this model car building contest with him every year. Sometimes they'd get near the top and he'd urge Takeya to keep trying, and eventually he'd win." Sakura spoke trying to refrain from crying.
"Big bro said he doesn't wanna see anyone." the girl who'd let Miku in spoke as she walked in revealing that they were twins.
"Well too bad. Someone has to talk to him." Miku told her, and walked up the stairs.
Takeya's room was clearly marked, along with a "please knock" sign. She did so, and was promptly barked at to go away. Annoyed, Miku kicked open the door seeing Takeya on the floor against his bed with his forehead on his arms. His room was a mess with soda bottles and fast food boxes. It was a wonder he had no stamina. There were some small trophies on his dresser as well.
"I said I didn't want to see anyone…" Takeya growled without looking up.
Miku walked right up to him and grabbed him by the shirt lifting him a bit forcing him to look. His eyes were red from crying, and he looked positively furious. She didn't bother with kind words and flat out punched his jaw.
"What's wrong with you, Wolfgang?! Do you want your dad to see you like this as he looks down from heaven?! Your whole family misses him, and sure they aren't coping in the best ways… but they aren't locking themselves away like someone who's in jail! So get your ass up!" Miku scolded him, and he sat up.
"Everyone mourns in their own way…" Takeya sighed, and she grabbed his shirt again.
"You're acting like a child who's been told 'no' and threw a temper tantrum! Straighten out damn it!" Miku scolded punching him again.
"What do you know…?" Takeya growled.
"I know that losing family is hard, but you can't just shut down because of it. So get up and keep fighting. Don't stop until you win. Life is a wrestling tournament. Death is the champion. You do not give up, not even when you get to that championship bout. So get up. Reach for those ropes when you're knocked down and hurting. If you need help, I'll be in your corner. I'll even interfere when your opponent's playing dirty. So get up! Now!" Miku scolded, and Takeya simply sat up.
"Why do you care…?" Takeya asked with a sigh.
"I'm going to be the strongest in the world someday. With that goal in mind, I need to be the best both in the ring and in the locker room. There's no room for being pretentious and deceitful when it's the top of the top you're aiming for. I'm not being charitable, I'm not being condescending, and I'm not trying to get ahead… I'm caring for my fellow wrestler." Miku replied.
"I'm not a wrestler." Takeya argued.
"You get the point though!" Miku roared yanking him to his feet.
"So I'm going to be your pillar of support, got it? I'm not letting you just sit here and rot while time marches forward. So first thing's first… take a bath!" she barked at him.
She shoved clothes from the dresser into his hands and then with his little sisters' help shoved him into the bathing room. While she waited she went downstairs to find Sakura sitting up looking a little bit better, although she was still a bit pale.
"Heh… you really are Rio's daughter. I don't have it in me to talk to him like that. Simple discipline, sure, but helping him recover when I'm just as bad as him at the moment…? Listening to what you said to him reminded me a lot of when I first became a wrestler. I was whiny, bratty, I gave up easily, and I just overall wanted to quit… but a good friend of mine changed me. Do me a favor and be that friend to Takeya." Sakura told her with a smile.
"Huh?" Miku asked a little confused.
"Well… if you don't mind… give him a chance?" Sakura asked putting her hands together in a begging stance.
It took a minute for what she'd said to register. She'd asked her to go out with Takeya. This was the last thing she'd expected to happen. She didn't know a whole lot about him, and she was being asked to date him? How would her mom react? She'd agreed to be a supporting pillar, but a girlfriend? She had her training schedule to consider too. What if it didn't work out? Thousands of scenarios played out in her head. Some went smoothly others went horribly awry.
"I-I'll have to… consider it." Miku replied with a nervous chuckle.
"Well, at least it wasn't a no…" Sakura sighed with relief.
When Takeya descended the stairs he had the twins hanging from his shoulders. He'd seemed to recover at least a little bit, and didn't look as messy after a bath. It sort of bothered her that he didn't comb his hair even though it's long. Miku made Takeya swear to return to school the next day before she could consider her work done.
The next morning, Okita greeted Takeya at the school gate. He looked very worried, whereas Takeya looked like his usual sluggish self. That made him sigh with relief at the very least.
"Takeya, where have you been man?" Okita asked.
"Sorry. We were sorting things out at home…" he sighed.
"Kazama-chan from 2-B was asking if you showed up earlier." Okita told him.
"Miku Kazama… she's scary…" Takeya commented.
"Scary?" Okita asked confused.
"She's also sweet, if you get past her violent tendencies." he added with a slight smile.
"I'm scared to ask what she did to you…" Okita commented.
After classes, to Miku's shock, Takeya was waiting for her at the lockers. He was staring right at her, making some of the other students look confused. Miku blushed slightly shocking many of them as she quickly got her shoes and dragged Takeya along.
"Do you have to pull so hard?" he asked.
"Did you have to give people ideas by staring at me like that…?" Miku asked.
Before she knew it, she'd accidentally dragged him to the Berserk gym with her. He threw her for a loop by actually having sweats with him so he could exercise. To her shock, he actually had a lifetime membership that he just elected not to use very often. According to the veteran wrestlers it was like a sighting of the Loch Ness Monster to see Takeya in the gym let alone actually working out. With that in mind, Miku got changed and began her own usual workout. Then Miku noticed her mom and Sakura enter the gym… together… at the same time…
"What do you know, getting both here was easier than I thought it'd be." Rio smiled looking at Takeya as he used the pulley machines.
"You're sure about this though?" Sakura asked.
"What's the harm in it?" Rio chuckled as Miku walked over.
"What're you scheming, mother?" Miku asked.
"You and Takeya-kun in the ring. He wins, you go on at least one date with him. You win, you get to decide if you date or not." Rio replied with a smile.
"Why is this on the line?" Miku asked with a less than enthused tone.
"Takeya-kun is lonely and you aren't exactly seeing anyone." Rio replied.
"What about serious training?" Miku asked.
"You're a big girl. You can adjust your schedule on your own, right?" Rio asked patting her head.
Despite very much being against the idea, she still got in the ring. Takeya had to be talked into it by Sakura, but he eventually found his way into the ring. They had one of the recruits put on a ref shirt and get in there to be the official. Once they'd been checked for weapons, the ref gave the signal.
-DING-
They met in the center and Miku expected to take him down easily, since he's Mr. Allergic-to-Pain. What she got was an opponent who moved fast. Before she'd even registered that he moved he'd suplexed her sending a shock through her spine. She charged aiming for a spear and he leap frogged her causing her shoulder to collide with a turnbuckle. How could a guy so lazy be so spry? Again and again he was able to escape her holds, even if she was able to get hits on him so long as they weren't submission oriented. He even found a quick way to escape her pyramid lock, one that'd made all of her sparring partners give up before.
He had no form to follow, which ticked her off. Takeya was more or less playing "dodge the arrow" with her instead of actively coming after her, letting Miku take the offensive. Both Rio and Sakura were urging their competitor on. Takeya managed to make Rio clap by evading a spear by doing a handstand on the top turnbuckle, giving him points for creativity. Miku was really getting sick of his tactics as she tried to recover her bearings. Then, at the five minute mark when she'd just recovered she received a running bulldog from Takeya, followed by more offense moves. He'd completely changed his tactics on her!
He now took advantage of every opening, not giving a second to breathe. Relentlessly he exploited her blind spots and inability to predict where he would come from next. The room was beginning to spin for Miku as she got to her feet. She was seeing four as she held onto the ropes, but managed to pinpoint where Takeya was in the center of the ring. She charged for a make-or-break spear. She managed to hit him… but they weren't on the mat… and an even worse realization came to her… he had a hold of her… with a straight shot to the mat.
"Please don't…" Miku squeaked.
"Not how it works." Takeya told her and then promptly landed a DDT on her making her entire world look like it was split into several hundred as she felt her legs move upward.
One! Two! Three!
-DING, DING, DING-
"The winner, Takeya!" the ref announced raising his arm.
"Heh… didn't think your boy was capable of that." Rio smiled.
"I'm going to be honest, I didn't teach him any of that." Sakura chuckled.
"I actually just imitated Love Dragon from Ultra Dragon Knights. She feigns fear of her foe, and when they've been deceived she strikes with the flames of a thousand suns…" Takeya told them.
"Oh my god, he won by mimicking a kid's TV show…" Rio spoke in disbelief.
"By all practical means, he should have lost horribly…" Sakura added with a sheepish smile.
"Well, a bet's a bet. He gets a date with her." Rio sighed with a grin.
"Date?" Takeya asked.
"Oh right, I didn't tell you… if you won, you got a date with her this Sunday." Sakura told him, and he went bright red.
"Why was that on the line?" Takeya asked.
"You're both young, plus you need someone to help you get out more. Seriously, you're pastier than glue." Rio replied.
"Better not bore me…" Miku growled.
So the next Sunday, the two met at the park near the high school. Takeya was dressed in sneakers, blue jeans, and his uniform shirt. Miku was dressed in white shoes, borrowed from her mom as she only owned wrestling boots and her school shoes, and a black short dress with black spats.
"Where are we headed for this date…?" Miku asked.
"Dead Land." Takeya told her showing two tickets.
"Dead Land…? A horror theme park…? Sooooo romantic…" Miku sighed.
"You have any better ideas?" Takeya asked.
"Shopping at Wrestlers R Us, a workout at Berserk, then maybe a bite to eat somewhere." Miku spoke, and then immediately regretted it… that was her usual Sunday plan.
"Really…?" Takeya asked.
"On second thought, the theme park sounds like an actual date…" Miku sighed.
Once at Dead Land, for some reason it seemed scarier now that she was there. Takeya didn't show any fear it seemed. He actually seemed to enjoy scary stuff. Things did make him jump, but he'd immediately chuckle a bit after. Miku just couldn't keep her composure. Takeya noticed her uneasiness too and held her hand… prompting a slap.
"Ah… sorry… you spooked me." Miku told him.
"Why do I doubt that…?" Takeya asked shedding a tear.
The rollercoasters didn't bother Miku much, and the spinning rides weren't anything compared to a windmill move. It was the haunted house where Miku was seriously losing it. It was all her little irrational fears put into one place. She was terrified of spiders, and there was a hall where they got chased by a large animatronic spider. Takeya audibly heard her squeaking in fear as they ran. She was not having a good time with this one. It was worse when they reached the broken floor room showing a room far below. Miku really sucked with heights, and was latched to his arm the entire careful walk through. When they finally got out, Miku was barely able to stand.
"N-Never again…" Miku spoke.
"It was exhilarating though, right?" Takeya asked.
"Exhilarating? That felt like torture… and a cheap way to make her hold you." she replied.
"Well, the point of a haunted house is to get scared." Takeya chuckled.
"They're abominations…" Miku growled.
"You don't appreciate a good scare, huh? There are comedy horror houses too, just so you know." Takeya told her, and she grabbed his shirt.
"Listen you… so far I've of yet to have real fun…" Miku growled as she glared into his eyes.
"Well, this is just Stop A on our date." Takeya smiled.
"Stop A…?" she asked in confusion.
"We're killing time, is what I'm saying. The real fun begins at noon." Takeya told her looking at the park clock tower as it reads 11:30am.
The two left the park then and began walking. Miku growled as soon as they started approaching the hotel district. She was ready to punch his teeth out as soon as he led her along through them. Once through though, she saw they were at a strange stadium she hadn't seen before. It looked abandoned, with zero cars in the parking lot. He blatantly ignored the "do not enter" tape going into the building.
"Come on, it's almost noon." Takeya urged her, and she sighed following him inside.
Deeper inside there was a bouncer. He was tall and sort of scary. Once Takeya approached him, the bouncer stuck out his fist. Then the two performed a complicated series of fist bumps and handshakes that confused the crap out of Miku. Takeya then took Miku's hand again.
"Show's starting, your seats are in the front row." the bouncer told them with a smile.
Behind the curtain was a wrestling arena. The ring itself was larger than regular, and at the entrance ramp there were banners strung about. They took their seats as the lights began to dim. A man wearing a ridiculous rainbow-colored suit then walked to the ring with a woman in a tight bodysuit bearing a referee pattern.
"Where are we…?" Miku asked.
"Shush, it's starting." Takeya told her without taking his eyes off the ring.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Thank you all for coming out this month! Without you devoted fans, we wouldn't be able to put on this show of athleticism and theatre each and every month, on this day, at this time, for you lovely people!" the man spoke, and the fans including Takeya cheered loudly.
"What the hell's going on…? Why is the ref's outfit so ridiculous…? Who the heck is that guy…?" Miku asked in confusion.
"When the show starts you'll find out. Today's the Origins Show for new potential fans so they aren't totally lost." Takeya told her.
The lights then went out as music began playing. When they came back on, two masculine men were at ringside as two women in black leotards wrestled in the ring with the referee keeping watch. That was easy enough for Miku to follow, an actual match. She didn't know any names though, so she couldn't really cheer either one on since they were in the same attire, although Takeya was cheering for the one named "Scarlet". When the blonde pinned the brunette, flames erupted around the ring startling Miku, but the ring wasn't on fire and the man was in the ring again.
"How…?" Miku asked.
"Dayum, you girls sure know how to go at it." the man spoke.
"Who are you?" both girls asked him.
"I am Lucius V Slam, producer of Slammia's finest wrestling warriors. The Earth is in danger, and I need strong prospective wrestlers like you girls to protect it." the man told them as the two men entered the ring.
"So, you're an alien wrestler producer then?" one of the men asked.
"That's right, kiddo. I can make you all superheroes that wrestle!" Lucius told them with a wide grin.
"What the hell's with this show…?" Miku asked.
"Shush, you'll miss it." Takeya told her.
"How are you going to do that?" the brunette girl asked getting in Lucius's face, and the referee handed him a blood red champion belt of sorts.
"Like this." Lucius replied putting the belt on her, and then bright light flashed the audience.
On the large screens above the ring as the lights in the ring went out it showed the girl going through a transformation sequence. Her attire was replaced with blood red ring boots, a bodysuit that was black on the lower half and scarlet red from the chest up in a dragon-like design with matching red gloves. The last thing to appear on her was a horned dragon mask. The fans went crazy over it, which startled Miku. The lights then came back on in the ring revealing she's changed her outfit the match her transformation.
"Heroic Wrestler, Scarlet Dragon! With the flames of law, I never cheat!" she roared making the fans cheer louder.
"What am I watching?" Miku asked.
"That's cool!" the blonde exclaimed.
"I feel so strong… like I could take anyone on!" Scarlet Dragon exclaimed clenching her fists as she flexed her muscles.
"I'm gonna make you all heroes!" Lucius exclaimed handing them each belts color coded blue, pink, and green.
They also underwent transformations to become Venom Dragon, Ocean Dragon, and Love Dragon. Miku became annoyed as soon as Lucius dubbed them the Ultra Dragon Knights. This was what Takeya referred to when he said he imitated a character to defeat her. She begrudgingly continued to watch it. Almost a half hour into the show, Miku couldn't help but admit that the effects weren't half-bad. She questioned how such effects could be done in the ring though. Like when characters used beam attacks and lock-on moves. How on earth were they visible to the fans? In a twisted way, it started to make her appreciate the work the wrestlers were putting into the production. She really started getting invested when Noire Dragon appeared and pinned all four of the Dragon Knights through very heelish means. Disqualification apparently wasn't a thing, because every time the ref scolded her she'd grab her and threaten to put her through some moves if she didn't count.
When it came to Noire Dragon's villain speech, Miku swore she recognized her voice. It was a bit masked underneath her, well, mask, but she could swear she knew the person behind the mask. That made Miku become deeply invested as she tried to put the voice to a face. She even cheered when it came to the showdown between Noire Dragon and Scarlet Dragon. Her heart beat fast as the referee counted the pin securing Scarlet Dragon's narrow victory over their foe. The crowd went nuts as the referee raised her arm. It wasn't traditional wrestling, but at the same time was pretty entertaining. When the show ended, Takeya had a big grin on his face.
"I'll admit it… that was pretty good…" Miku sighed.
"I saw you eyeballing Noire Dragon the entire time she was in-ring. Wanna meet her?" Takeya asked.
"We can?" Miku asked.
"You could say I'm a VIP." Takeya chuckled, and led her backstage.
To Miku's shock, seemingly everyone behind the scenes knew Takeya. They were on a first-name basis too. Was he really such a VIP? What made him so special? Eventually they arrived at the dressing room for Noire Dragon. He bluntly knocked on the door without hesitation.
"Coming." the voice spoke clearly, and Miku definitely recognized it this time.
It was none other than Jackal Tojo. She still had on all of her costume but the helmet. She looked pleasantly surprised to see Takeya.
"Takeya-kun. It's been a while." she smiled at him.
"I haven't had much of an allowance the past few months. I had to borrow some from my buddy for the sake of my date." Takeya chuckled.
"Date? Oh my, the ice queen is on a date, acting like a normal girl for once? How unexpected." Jackal teased.
"Is it so strange for someone like me to be on a date?" Miku asked.
"You're usually using your spare time working out, taking no time to enjoy school life. So, is this your first date?" Jackal asked.
"Yeah. Our moms had us wrestle… I won, so I got a date with her." Takeya replied.
"I guess even Rio-chan knew you were wasting your youth training every evening. Just so you know, Kazama-chan… if you break Takeya's heart, I'll break your spine. Do we have an understanding?" Jackal asked her with a sincere smile on her face.
"C-Crystal clear…" Miku replied with a scared gulp.
"Well, I'm glad you aren't too apprehensive at taking the pinfall like you were when you first took the role as Noire Dragon." Takeya told Jackal.
"Oh, it's a lot of fun now. Everyone's great, and we love poking fun at each other when we mess up a line. I sure heard it from Saki when I accidentally forgot a line of my 'evil monologue'. It's the same one every time too…" Jackal chuckled.
"The fans don't seem to mind. You don't forget it in the show either." Takeya told her.
"I'm not being watched by a sea of adoring fans during those recordings. When I'm wrestling I don't have a problem performing, but when it comes to actual dialogue I sometimes panic." Jackal laughed.
"So what's next, Wolfgang?" Miku asked.
"Hmm? Next is dinner. It's already 4:50pm." Takeya replied.
"We were here that long?!" Miku exclaimed in shock.
"Yeah. Each show is anywhere from three to five hours long. Imagine the stamina it takes the people putting on the show not to mess up." Takeya told her.
After dinner, it was time to walk her home. Miku had somehow managed to get some enjoyment out of the date. It was obvious that Takeya didn't know much about how a date should flow either. He just took her to something he knew about and was easy to get to. When they got to Miku's home, her mom was in the doorway grinning. Miku opened the gate, and she cleared her throat making her look. She puckered her lips and winked at her making Miku go a bit red. She was NOT kissing him on the lips, but her mother's grin persisted… and she knew very well what it meant. So she pecked his cheek and rushed inside making her mother burst out laughing.
"That girl wasn't crying, so I guess that means it went well. After her pride dies down a bit she might act a little more like a regular girl outside the ring." Rio sighed happily.
"Why raise her to be an ice queen though?" Takeya asked.
"I didn't mean to make her into one both inside and out of the ring. I just wanted her to have a gimmick of her own. Some of us have a crazy theme, some of us have a costume… so I figured I'd make her an ice queen, to stand out a little. She took it a little too close to heart." Rio replied.
"So you're okay if she thaws?" Takeya asked.
"If she remains frozen inside the ring, that's fine. She shouldn't neglect a social life though. Who knows, maybe you're the best thing for her." Rio replied entering the house.
When Takeya returned home the twins leapt on him affectionately. He carried them on his back to the living room. The remaining fragments of furniture had been cleaned up, and there were no beer cans in sight. Sakura was in the kitchen icing a cake.
"Big bro, where'd you take her?" one twin asked.
"Tell us, tell us." the other demanded.
"Come on, I just got home you two…" Takeya chuckled.
"So you took her to a live Ultra Dragon Knights show then." Sakura smiled.
"I don't know the first thing about girls, what'd you expect me to do?" Takeya complained.
"He didn't try to get her in a hotel…" one twin sighed.
"I win the bet." the other giggled.
"You seriously bet on if I was going to try and do it on the first date…?" Takeya asked with a very unimpressed face.
"They're in middle school, blossoming and curious. Don't blame them for being like that when you had moments too." Sakura chuckled.
"What kind of things did big bro do?" the twins asked in unison.
"Well… once he proposed to Misaki-chan because he was told that he's got no game by Rio-chan. He was twelve at the time, and she thought it was so cute she told him if he can beat her in a match she'd say yes." Sakura replied thinking fondly on it.
"Wow, big bro, that's bold…" the twins giggled.
"Shut it." Takeya growled and they fled to Sakura still giggling their little heads off.
Miku was lying on her bed thinking about the date she'd had. Takeya wasn't a sluggish idiot before noon. Did that mean he just likes to sleep during the week? Or does he just not get enough sleep? What made it worse, is that because of Takeya's date the theme song to Ultra Dragon Knights was stuck in her head. She'd caught herself humming it in the bath earlier and almost flipped her shit. That also made her think about Takeya's smile. While he didn't particularly like participating in it, he seemed to actually like women's wrestling. He didn't really know how either, if he just emulated a character. Strangely though, she felt a sort of want from him for it. Could a guy who tried hard to make sure both had a good time really be so bad…? Maybe… just maybe… she'd allow him to take her on one more date.
End Chapter 1-POST CHAPTER FUN-
Twins: Takeya's got a girlfriend, Takeya's got a girlfriend!
Takeya: Shut up, both of you!
Miku: We aren't together!
Sakura: You went on a date didn't you?
Miku: It's testing the water, nothing more!
Rio: Really? You're blushing. That's a rare sight.
Miku: M-Mother, not helping!
Sakura: She's so cute when she's flustered.
Miku: Shut up! I hate all of you!
Takeya: That was a little mean, mom.
Sakura: Why am I the only one being scolded?
Twins: Next time, "You'll fall in love, damn it"!