When Ryuko walks into the gym on Wednesday, she sees Sanageyama is sparring with Gamagoori in the ring in the center of the gym. After Sanageyama spots Ryuko by the entrance, he waves, leaving him completely open to Gamagoori's punch to the kidney. Sanageyama staggers back, clutching his side.

Ryuko lets out a laugh before walking up to the ring, looking up at them with her hands in her pockets.

"Hey, guys," Ryuko says with a friendly smile.

"Hey, Ryuko-kun," Sanageyama grins, the slender young man leaping down to greet her.

He scratches his head, ruffling his shaggy dark green hair. He wears a green sleeveless shirt with light grey sweatpants, white sneakers, and a silver chain around his neck. It's not far different from the clothes he usually wears every day. Add a white biker jacket and replace the light grey sweatpants with white jeans; that's what he wears all the time.

His emerald green eyes peer at her in shock when she sets down her duffle bag and says, "Come on, Sanageyama, let's spar."

"Um, sure," he says, turning to Gamagoori with a cocky grin, "I'll finish you off later."

"We'll see about that," Gamagoori scoffs, exiting the ring and sitting down on one of the chairs off to the side to watch.

Sanageyama turns to face Ryuko again, who takes off her street jacket and pulls herself up to the ring.

"Why so eager to fight me? Did something happen?" Sanageyama asks, concerned. He leaps into the ring and stands a few yards away from Ryuko.

"I guess you could say that," Ryuko shrugs, putting her fists up.

"I suppose you'll tell me later," Sanageyama sighs, putting his guard up to mirror Ryuko's.

Ryuko lunges, throwing a punch at Sanageyama's face. Sanageyama ducks and attempts to knee her in the gut, but Ryuko deflects it with her left forearm, countering with a fist to his gut. Sanageyama winces, but quickly recovers, attacking her with a barrage of jabs, all of which Ryuko either deflects or dodges. Sanageyama narrows his eyes. He can tell something is different about the way she's fighting. She never just charges right in at first. He steps in and kicks her in the side. She staggers back, but rebounds with a swift jump kick to the face, one that Sanageyama did not see coming, sending Sanageyama stumbling back until his ass hits the floor.

"Okay, what's up? Did someone piss you off?" Sanageyama asks.

"What? No, nothing like that," Ryuko assures him.

"Then what is it?" he presses, leaping to his feet and spitting out the blood from his mouth. He's known Ryuko for years. He can see through her like glass.

"It's nothing. I… I just want to… impress someone," Ryuko says, mumbling that last part so quietly Sanageyama can barely hear her. Ryuko's cheeks heat up in embarrassment.

Sanageyama gives her a puzzled look. "Who are you trying to impress?"

"Just some girl," Ryuko replies, shrugging it off like it's no big deal to her.

Sanageyama gives her a sly stare. "Oh! I see!"

Ryuko turns as red as her streak of crimson hair.

"What's her name?"

"Blake."

"Huh? Wait. Isn't that a-"

Ryuko cuts him off, knowing what he's about to say. "Yeah, that's what I thought at first, but it works for her. She's beautiful." Ryuko breathes. A few seconds pass before Ryuko covers her mouth, realizing what she just said. She quickly recovers, "I mean, in a non-romantic way. I don't like her or anything like that." She looks away and crosses her arms over her chest, blushing uncontrollably.

Sanageyama laughs. "Riiight."

Ryuko's blush deepens.

On Friday night, Blake is getting ready, putting on her black vest over her white tank top. She looks in the full-length mirror by the door. She wears the exact same outfit she wore the day they met at the Laundromat. She starts to wonder whether she should change her clothes, but omits the thought since this is the best non-formal outfit she has.

"Ohhh, Blaaake~" Yang calls in a singsong voice, bursting into the room with a wide grin. Her eyes dart around her body like a scanner.

"What do you want?" Blake mumbles, her cheeks flushing.

"Damn, you look good," Yang says, quickly changing subjects, "are you ready to go?"

"Yes, just give me a minute, Yang," Blake says, annoyed as she pushes Yang out of her room and closes the door on her. She lets out a sigh and looks into the mirror again, brushing her silky black hair behind her ear.

From the other side of the door, Yang snickers and walks into the living room, sitting down on the couch to wait for her.

Man, I've never seen her like this before. Not for Sun. Not for Velvet. Not even for Adam! This girl must be something special, Yang thinks, kicking her feet up onto the coffee table.

After a few minutes, Blake comes out of her bedroom. "Let's go," she says.

"Alright."

When Yang's motorcycle stops by the door of the brick building, she gives Blake a sly look.

"Have fun~" Yang grins.

Blake blushes as she gets off the bike and walks to the end of the line, which goes down almost to the intersection.

Wow, this is a busy place, Blake thinks to herself.

The line shortens as the minutes pass. When she gets to the front, Blake takes out her ID and gives it to the bouncer.

He looks at her ID, nods and returns it to her before he lets her in.

When she walks in, she's overwhelmed by the huge crowd surrounding a boxing ring, which is on a raised platform so everyone can see. To the side is a bar area where a bunch of guys sit drinking beer and cheering. An announcer in the center of the ring is holding a wireless microphone in his hand, trying to get the crowd pumped for the next match.

Blake searches the throng of people for Ryuko. When she can't see her, she thinks that maybe she'll hear her, so she calls out her name a few times.

Where is she? It's past 9:30 PM. She should be here by now, Blake thinks.

Sanageyama, who came to see her fight this week, watches from near the front of the pit, but then hears a feminine voice calling Ryuko's name, so he turns around and looks for the source of the calls. When he sees Blake, he weaves his way through the crowd.

Did… did I just get stood up? Blake thinks, her heart cracking a bit. And here I thought she was a nice person.

Just as she's about to leave, Sanageyama taps her on the shoulder and asks with a friendly smile, "Hey, are you Blake?"

Blake, not recognizing the man, doesn't let her guard down, even when his disarming smile argues otherwise. "Uh, yeah. Why? Who are you?"

"I'm Sanageyama, Ryuko's mentor and good friend. She was right. You are beautiful," Sanageyama says.

Blake blushes, thinking, she said that?

She snaps out of it and says, "Do you know where Ryuko is? She said to come here, but I don't see her anywhere."

"Oh, don't worry, you'll see her soon. Just be patient," Sanageyama tells her cryptically.

Blake slightly cocks her head to the side, confused, but does what he says and waits, scanning the crowd for her, her eyes locking on the entrance in case she walks in.

"Alright, everybody! Here comes the main event! Are! You! Ready?" The announcer shouts out.

The crowd roars wildly in response, Blake covering her ears to preserve her ability to hear.

"Okay! Let's get this thing started! He's BIG! He's BAD! Give it up, for The Drrrrrrrrraaaaaagooon!" the announcer booms. I Stand Alone by Godsmack blasts through a dozen large speakers that surround the room. The crowd roars as a bright light from the ceiling shines down to the left corner of the room, everyone making way for a young bald guy who looks like he's on steroids. He throws his hands up in the air, letting out a fierce battle cry. He jumps around riotously as he makes his way up to the ring. When he reaches the ring, he stands on the corner ropes and roars with his arms outstretched, almost as if he's trying to breathe fire. When he jumps down and turns around, Blake sees the reason he calls himself "The Dragon." A large black tribal dragon is tattooed into the skin of his back.

"And now! For our challenger! Give it up, for The ONE! The ONLY! The Eeeeeexecutioneeeerrrr!" The crowd roars twice as loud as Down With The Sickness by Disturbed blasts out, replacing the previous song. The room seems to be filled with a totally different energy than before.

When the bright light shines on the brawler, Blake's jaw drops, staring at Ryuko wearing her black street jacket over a black beater and tan cargo shorts that almost reach her knees. Ryuko doesn't put on much of a show, wearing a focused scowl on her face, until she climbs up onto the stage leaping up to the top of the corner with a smirk, balancing effortlessly on her two feet while she throws her hands up, silencing the crowd. If Blake thought the crowd's cheering was loud, she had another thing coming. The silence is deafening.

Ryuko waits for the scream from the singer and then does a triple corkscrew back flip and the moment her feet touch the floor of the ring, both the music and the crowd explode out in a crazed frenzy. Sanageyama, who was watching Blake out of the corner of his eye, waiting for her reaction, tries his hardest to hold back his laughter and ends up failing, nearly losing his ability to stand as he cracks up. Blake ignores him, watching in shock as Ryuko as she casually takes off her jacket and tosses it to a staff member, who holds onto it.

Ryuko scans the crowd for Blake. Sanageyama pulls himself together and waves his arms up and calls her name, catching her attention. He points down at a gawking Blake. Ryuko gives her a thrilled grin before turning and facing her opponent, immediately blocking out everyone's screams and focusing her energy on him. Her opponent is almost as big Gamagoori. Just a few inches away.

The announcer rushes off the stage, an official taking his place. He tells the two to touch fists. They both touch fists and then back up, their eyes never unlocking, a fiery passion in The Dragon's eyes and deep focus in Ryuko's. She takes her stance and prepares to fight. As soon as the official gives the go to begin, the two of them circle each other, staring each other down.

"Just because you're a girl doesn't mean I'm gonna hold anything back. I am going to crush you," The Dragon taunts.

Ryuko lets out a short laugh, taunting him back. "Okay, then let's see what you've got, tough guy."

The Dragon grinds his teeth and charges at her. Ryuko smirks. When his fist flies at her face, she swerves off to the right, casually tripping him. He staggers and falls into the ropes, which bounce him back to his feet again, and just as he's turning around and about to counter, Ryuko lets loose a roundhouse kick to the face, which sends him back against the ropes. Ryuko doesn't allow him to recover, digging her fists into his sides in a barrage of jabs, finishing up with an uppercut to the chin.

The crowd roars as Ryuko steps back. The Dragon glares at her and clenches his fists. He runs at her and winds back his right fist for a right hook. Ryuko dodges by bending back. Before she can try to fight back, he throws another fist at her, aimed at her gut. She swerves to the left, pivoting on her right foot and, dropping to the floor and using her hands to keep her balance, plunges two feet into his side. He winces and steps back, but quickly recovering, throwing a barrage of jabs at her. Ryuko dodges every one with ease. She steps back and then unleashes a hurricane kick, sending The Dragon onto his back.

"Get 'em!" Sanageyama shouts. Ryuko does just that. As he starts to get up, and despite the substantial differences in size, she manages to tackle him and take the fight to the ground. At first, he pins her with a full nelson, but Ryuko gets out of it by using his bulky arms as bars to give her leverage to swing her right leg up and behind her to hit him in the nose. He releases his grip on her and Ryuko turns around to tackle him again. This time, she gets the upper hand, grabbing him in a half-nelson and using her free arm to pull his arm – the same arm to which Ryuko is applying the half nelson – across his face. She then locks her hand to her wrist behind The Dragon's neck, pinning him in a cobra clutch.

"Come on, Ryuko-kun!" Sanageyama cheers as The Dragon struggles against her iron grip. Then, after useless bucking that cause his face to start turning blue, he manages to get into a position where he can kick her in the gut, forcing the air out of Ryuko's lungs as releases her grip and jumps back. After gasping for air, he gets to his feet and he winds back a fist. Ryuko prepares to dodge the attack. As his fist gets close, she swerves to the left, shocked when he feints it and then digs his other fist into the right side of her ribcage, a loud cracking sound ensuing. She yelps in agony as she winces and staggers back, a sharp pain reverberating throughout her body.

Sanageyama's excited grin quickly shifts to a frown.

With Ryuko overcome with pain, he follows it up with a pair of jabs to the gut and a right hook, sending Ryuko onto her side. The Dragon leaps up and aims an elbow at the ground, dragging his weight with him as he dives down. Acting on impulse, she scrambles to her feet and jumps away just in the nick of time. Ryuko then backs away to the opposite corner of the ring to catch her breath.

"That… all you've got? And here I thought this would actually be a challenge," Ryuko sneers in an attempt to protect her pride. She almost never gets hurt like this. She's usually so careful. Lately though, she'd been far more reckless.

She isn't given long to recuperate after that since The Dragon springs to his feet and charges after her like a really, really pissed-off bull.

He's fast for such a huge dude, Ryuko thinks, spitting some blood out before readying her stance. She dodges his first few punches, but then gets kneed in the kidney and socked in the jaw, spinning Ryuko's world into a blur as she collapses onto her back, still conscious but shaken up.

Blake gasps.

The official yells out the count.

1…2…3…4…

"Come on, Ryuko! Get up!" Blake shouts frantically.

Ryuko snaps out of her trance at the sound of Blake's voice. Filled with a new and wild determination, she forces herself onto her knees, ignoring the pain as she slowly but steadily rises to her feet, spitting some blood out to try to get rid of its metallic taste. She takes a deep breath, readying her stance. The Dragon narrows his eyes.

The crowd starts cheering.

Ryuko scowls at The Dragon, staring him down with a fire burning in her deep blue eyes. She double-taps the side of her jaw in a taunt. The crowd gets riled up at this provocative action. The Dragon grits his teeth in anger, mumbling something rather unkind under his breath.

Not willing to risk it, he declines her taunt, crossing his arms over his chest. Ryuko snorts, shrugs her shoulders and lunges at him, hitting him with a barrage of jabs to his mid-section and then following up with a right hook and another punch to mirror it. The Dragon stumbles. Ryuko gives him no time to recover, hitting him with another barrage of powerful jabs, the last one filled with the most force, causing him to bend forward, clutching his gut. To finish him off, Ryuko spins on her left foot, kicking her right leg out in a spinning axe kick, the side of her heel colliding with his right temple, a loud cracking sound echoing through the crowded arena as The Dragon is sent straight down to the floor, out cold.

The entire room falls silent for a split second, but then erupts into loud, chest-rumbling roaring.

The official gives the signal that he is unable to fight, grabbing Ryuko's right wrist and throwing it up. Ryuko catches her breath as she gazes into the audience, peering at Blake and Sanageyama, both of them cheering. Ryuko grins as she pumps her other fist in the air in triumph. When the official releases her wrist, Ryuko walks up to the edge of the ring, calling out to Sanageyama and Blake as she leans her weight against the ropes. They push their way up to the front. Sanageyama reaches up and gives Ryuko a high-five.

"Good job, Ryuko-kun!" Sanageyama smiles, straining his voice to be heard over the bellowing mass of people.

"Thanks!" Ryuko grins. "Meet me outside, guys. I'll be out in a few minutes."

Ryuko acknowledges the audience one last time – earning her another burst of energy from the crowd – before heading into the back with two staff members to clean up and collect her cash reward.

Sanageyama and Blake head outside to wait for Ryuko. As soon as Ryuko turns the corner after exiting through the back door, Sanageyama gets an idea. He suppresses a sly grin as he faces Blake and extends his hand out to shake. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Blake, but I have to get going."

"Alright, bye," Blake says, shaking his hand and then watching as he walks off with his hands in his pockets.

"Aw, is he leaving already?" a disappointed voice sighs.

Blake whips around in surprise and faces Ryuko. She wears her black street jacket over her beater, her duffle bag slung across her back.

"Uh, yeah. He told me he had go, so…" Blake says, trailing off, not knowing how to finish off the sentence.

"Oh well, I guess I'll see him at the gym Sunday," Ryuko says, shrugging her shoulders. She then looks into Blake's eyes, their soft amber glow boring into her own sapphire blue eyes. "Um, would you like to go for a walk with me?" Ryuko asks shyly, slipping her hands into her pockets.

"Sure," Blake says with a small smile.

"That was interesting. So, you're the 'Executioner'?" Blake says as they amble along a stone path in the middle of the park.

"Yeah, I am. Well, it's the nickname the guys who own the place gave me a couple years ago. And it stuck," Ryuko tells her.

"So, how long have you been, um…?" Blake starts hesitantly, not sure how to phrase it.

"Homeless?" Ryuko finishes. Blake nods. Ryuko continues. "Since my Mom kicked me out of the house when I was sixteen."

"Why would a mother do that?" Blake asks in disbelief.

Ryuko snorts. "One could hardly call her a 'mother'. She was a bitch. Abusive. Rude. Drunk more often than sober. I came out to her and she wasn't too happy about it, so she literally kicked me out."

Blake can feel her heart crack inside her chest as she hears her say this. "Wow." She can't think of anything else to say.

"But it's fine. Nowadays, I'm not that bothered by it. One, she got what she had coming to her. It's a long story and I'm not completely comfortable telling you about something that personal," Ryuko starts, feeling her mind drift as she thinks about what happened.

Ryuko's mother was drunk late that Friday night. She was walking home from the casino after blowing all of her money on the slot machines. She was walking home because she bet on her car and lost. She was crossing the intersection, but she was so disoriented that she didn't notice that the crosswalk had its red stop signal on. A driver of a large truck was speeding ten miles above the speed limit. He was in a rush to get home, but that's no excuse. Neither Ryuko's mother nor that driver noticed each other's presence before it was far too late. She was pronounced dead when the ambulance came. Ryuko had just turned 18 a few weeks ago, so she couldn't be placed in a foster home instead of staying on the street. How convenient. All of their family flew in from across the country to go to her funeral, but Ryuko refused to go. To go would be to say that she respected her, and obviously, what she felt towards her mother was nowhere near respect. Ryuko was cast out like a dog, forced to fend for herself in a city that wasn't always a safe place. She hated her. She hated her so much sometimes it would ache. As time passed, these strong feelings lessened, but for a very long time, Ryuko was an awfully bitter human being.

Snapping out of it, she continues. "Two, I honestly don't mind being out here on my own. It's okay. I get to fall asleep under the stars. I get to roam the streets of Vale without a care in the world. And I'm not completely alone," Ryuko says, staring up at the starry night, the moon's light reflecting in her eyes.

Not that I wouldn't trade it for a real home, Ryuko thinks to herself.

"Yeah, that Sa… um, Sana…" Blake stammers, not remembering his long, difficult name.

"Sanageyama? Yeah, he's a good friend of mine," Ryuko says, letting a slight smile cross her face as she looks at Blake.

"So, your friend back there said you called me beautiful," Blake tells her, watching for her reaction.

It's priceless.

Ryuko stumbles, nearly face-planting, her face turning a dark shade of red as she looks away from her. "Did he now? I see, I'll kick his ass later."

Blake snickers. If Ryuko's cheeks could possibly get redder, they would be. "Anyway, how are you holding up?" Blake asks, concerned.

Ryuko regains her composure and says, "Oh, it hurts like hell, but I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I've had ten times worse." Lie. This is the worst she's ever been as far as her mind can recall.

The icy cold breeze blows in their faces, making Blake shudder and hug her arms. Ryuko sees this and takes her duffle bag off her back so that she can slip off her jacket. Blake's eyebrows shoot up when Ryuko gently places the warm cozy jacket over her shoulders.

Blake opens her mouth to protest, but Ryuko puts a hand up to say it's alright.

"Please. You need it more than I do," Ryuko says with a kindhearted smile.

Blake's cheeks redden. "T-Thank you, but really, I think you need it more than me."

Ryuko shakes her head and stops, holding out her hand. "Nope."

Blake stops walking and stares down at her hand with a mixture of puzzlement and uncertainty.

Does she want me to take her hand? Blake wonders, feeling her heart jump. Her arm hesitates before reaching out, her fingers slipping into Ryuko's warm, soft hand. Blake's cheeks flush as she thinks, Wow, she's so warm.

"See?" Ryuko says with a smile.

"Yeah," Blake breathes.

"I've spent so many freezing nights out here, my body has adapted to it, and so I don't need it. I just wear it to look more presentable."

There's a long silence as they gaze into each other's eyes. Ryuko breaks the connection as she glances down at Blake's hand still in hers. She gazes back up at Blake and tries to hold back a smile to no avail. Blake notices this and blushes, snatching her hand away and avoiding her gaze.

After an amused Ryuko picks up her duffle bag, they start walking again. They talk a little more until Ryuko catches sight of the tree she normally sleeps in. She slows to a stop, Blake stopping too, confusion showing on her pale face.

"What's wrong?" Blake asks.

"Oh, nothing. It's just that, it's getting late and this is where I sleep, so…" Ryuko tells her before she hooks her thumb and points at the tree, her voice trailing off as she can't figure out a good way to finish her sentence.

"Oh, okay," Blake says, taking off Ryuko's jacket and handing it to her. "Um, thank you."

"No problem," Ryuko says, gazing deep into her golden eyes.

"Well, I should go." Blake says quickly, flustered. She turns around and starts fast-walking away.

"Blake," Ryuko calls.

Blake stops and looks at her, anticipating her next words.

"Good night," Ryuko tells her softly with a charming smile, causing Blake to blush.

"Good night," Blake says back, grinning as she backs up a few steps before turning her body around and beginning to walk away again, this time slow and relaxed.

Ryuko exhales and puts her jacket on, slinging her duffle bag across her back again, getting ready to run up to her spot.

Blake stops in her tracks, wondering when she'll see her again. She then starts wondering if she'll ever see her again. Not wanting that to happen, and also worried about Ryuko's wounds, she turns around and says, "Wait, since you're hurt, you can crash at my apartment for a while."

Ryuko turns around, the dismay plastered on her face.

"Um, well," Ryuko stammers, not knowing how to react. "Maybe I shouldn't. I mean-"

"No, no, I insist," Blake says before Ryuko can finish.

Ryuko doesn't answer at first, still in disbelief. Finally, she says, "O-Okay, thank you."

"You're welcome."

And so, Blake and Ryuko walk to her apartment. As soon as Blake takes out her key and opens the door, Yang springs up from the couch, rushing up to her.

Ryuko peers blankly at the blond, looking at her lilac purple eyes in wonder.

Purple eyes? No way. Those have to be contacts, Ryuko thinks to herself.

"Blake! I was worried about you! Why didn't you answer your cell phone?" Yang demands worriedly like she's her mother. As a confused Blake checks her cell phone, Yang's lilac eyes train on Ryuko, who looks like she's seen better days because of her wounds. "Jesus Christ, what happened to you? You look like shit."

"Yang!" Blake exclaims.

"It's okay," Ryuko assures Blake before facing Yang and telling her, "I fought at the Arena. Got pretty banged up."

She's about to comment on her injuries, but then pauses, doing a double-take. "Whoa, wait, you fight?" Yang says in awe, her eyes checking her out. Well, that explains her muscles.

"Yeah."

"That's cool."

"My name's Ryuko. Ryuko Matoi. And you?" Ryuko says, holding out her hand.

"Yang Xiao Long," she replies with a firm handshake.

Blake chimes in. "Yang, I offered Ryuko to crash here for a while. Is that okay?"

Yang looks at Ryuko, not understanding the situation. "Don't you have your own place?"

Ryuko shakes her head.

"Aw, man, that sucks," Yang says sympathetically. Suddenly noticing that she hasn't let them in yet, steps aside and says, "Come on in." Blake and Ryuko walk into the apartment.

Ryuko drops her duffle bag on the floor and takes off her shoes before lying down on the couch with a groan, every muscle in her body throbbing in pain until everything suddenly relaxes. It's been years since she's lied down on a couch, or at least one with cushions.

"Do you need anything?" Blake offers, but she's already asleep.

Wow, that was quick, Blake thinks in shock.