Because this fic is turning into something somewhat larger than I had originally anticipated (which is a good thing because I find it really exciting to write) I've decided to divide it into parts, probably three of them, between which I will take a break of a few weeks to allow myself a little rest without disrupting the flow of the story too much. So right now we're on Part 1 and I'll let you know when it finishes.

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The Second Fight

Rain lashed the window of Julia's room. Normally the rhythmic beat would have soothed and comforted her, but now it seemed like a drum of war, calling her to be tested. It was the day of her second match, and though Julia felt prepared, she knew it would be a difficult one, and anxiety seemed to play under the surface of her skin like an itch she couldn't quell.

Steadily she rose from her seat and picked up her kit bag; the match was less than an hour away. She had woken early to warm herself up and do some last-minute training, and the hours approaching the fight had been filled with meditation and mental preparation.

The pattering of the rain reverberated round the entire mansion and could be heard even in the most central rooms as a dull rumble. Gradually her nervousness melted, giving way to a stronger sensation – that of the fight. Julia involuntarily flexed her muscles as she thought of the oncoming battle – the brutal physical struggle for dominance. She thrilled at it, and her heartbeat quickened as she moved towards the indoor sumo hall in which her match would take place.

She entered, and was swamped by cheers. Julia searched in the enormous crowd for the faces of her friends, but so huge and tumultuous was it that she could not spot them amongst the jostle of bodies. Looking over to the other side of the arena, she saw Christie at Eddy's side. Christie gave her a small wave and an apologetic slope of the eyebrows, but Julia understood her loyalties and nodded to show this.

Julia was pushed forwards suddenly and turned to see Xiaoyu bursting out of the crowd behind her.

'Xiaoyu, you made it!'

'Yes.' She panted,

'Why is the crowd so big, Xiao? It's only the second round.'

'Don't you know? This is the biggest match of the whole tournament so far.'

'Xiaoyu, will you stay with me for this fight. My mother is usually here, but –' Xioayu interrupted her saying,

'Of course. That's what friends are for.' Though she imagined Xiaoyu had probably learnt this phrase from a cartoon, she gave her a grateful hug.

Julia knew better than to make eye contact with her opponent this early – she would be trapped in a staring contest for the next half an hour; instead, she observed Eddy out of the corner of her eye – he looked fierce and sleek, like a jaguar. He was healthy and alert, and though Julia should have been sorry for this, she felt a rush of excitement at being able to fight someone who was a true match.

Xioayu helped Julia to prepare – giving her advice and support. Julia, who had up until that point been keenly feeling her mother's absence, was now calmed and prepared to fight.

The competitors moved to their positions in the arena, and it was now that Julia fixed Eddy with a stare. He swayed and moved, his small, intelligent eyes, watching her constantly. Neither one allowed themself to be psyched out, and when the call to fight was heard, Julia and Eddy were more confident than ever.

Eddy swayed almost hypnotically, then moved suddenly with catlike swiftness towards her. He was too fast for Julia to properly register what he was doing, but she guessed simply through experience that his first blow would be a low one, and in anticipation of this, had leapt from the ground, leaving Eddy swinging his legs at air. What Julia did not foresee, however, was that Eddy's attack would continue to a double corkscrew on his hands, and as she descended her shins were clipped by the spinning fan of Eddy's lower body. Her legs became entangled with his and she was thrown backwards. Eddy rose fluidly, but was unprepared as Julia curled her legs into herself and sprang with a propelled force, knocking him to the ground as her feet came into contact with his head. The roar of the crowd drowned out the grunt which escaped Eddy as he registered the pain in his skull.

Julia heard it though. She could not see Christie's concerned face, or hear the cheers, or feel the heat of the crowd; she was aware only of herself and her opponent, between those two she missed nothing. Every bead of sweat, every sniff, every twitch of a muscle registered and was entered into the equation which Julia calculated unconsciously towards the elimination of her competitor.

Eddy rose steadily and rushed at Julia, ready to use the mass of his body, a clear advantage held by him, to push her to the floor. Julia knew this move, she often used it herself, and met him with a hefty spin kick which sent him crashing through the border of the sumo ring. A moment of silence and then deafening noise from the crowd; it was not cheers nor boos, but just a collective shout of recognition that an important blow had been landed. The fact that Eddy had thrown himself so fully into Julia worked totally against him and meant that Julia, being small in comparison to most of her opponents, was able to deal a blow with not only her own strength, but that of Eddy also. She saw this fact as if it had been a physical object – her mind was so clear, she felt as if every smell, colour, noise was sharpened and she could see it all.

Eddy began to rise, but his arm shook and he fell back on it once more. Julia decided to take advantage of his position and jumped from the ground in preparation to land a downward punch on Eddy; as she descended though, he suddenly twisted from the floor. A leaf could have been slipped between the gap of the two fighters' bodies as Julia sailed past Eddy, her fist crashing into the floor, sending layers of dust spurting in all directions. Eddy had been perfectly able to stand; he had fooled her. One advantage Julia knew she had over her opponents was intelligence, however, Eddy had fooled her. He swung his back leg out under him in a jab at Julia's shins. As she fell, she relished the nature of the match – this was a battle not only of might, but of wits.

Both fighters had suffered a lot of damage and knew that with only a couple more blows, either one of them would be down for the count. Eddy stared at Julia ferociously; sweat coursing down his face. He wasn't trying to play it cool – he knew and she knew that both would do their utmost to win this fight – being knocked out in the second round was shameful, and beside, there was a lot at stake.

It was for this reason that the next few moments, in which Julia rose and the opponents stood at opposite ends of the ring, were consumed by Eddy and Julia circling, staring, bluffing. They were unwilling to attack, knowing that quick reflexes from the other would spell the loss of the match. The crowd were growing impatient and began to stamp in unison, urging Julia and Eddy to attack. Julia, however, had been doing more than bluffing, she was studying the way in which Eddy moved – Caporeira was dance-fighting, and dance was about pattern and rhythm, she was watching and learning the pattern behind his movements. She noticed that he would swing his arms left, moving his right foot behind him, and then reverse this movement, lowering his head as he did so. After three repetitions, he would falter to the left, then resume the movement, after two more he would falter left and the right and resume the movement once more. If she could catch him in the middle of a bluff, he would be unbalanced and might not have time to attack. The question was, was this exactly what Eddy wanted? Or perhaps he was studying her movements just as she was his and would know of her intention before she even moved to attack, in which case Julia would be knocked out and lose. The crowd were stamping with more urgency now and the call of 'FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!' sounded across the ring. Julia, however, waited patiently for the right moment. Eddy went through the dance once more, and finally, he faltered to the left and, as he was swinging to the right, Julia rushed towards him. The crowd was silent, Eddy moved to recover his fighting stance, but it was too late, Julia rammed her arms into his stomach, knocking him rolling to the floor. She darted to where he lay and, before he could use the last of his strength to rise and possibly trip her, she swung her whole weight into a low spin kick, eliminating the last of his energy, and causing him to finally lie still. There was a moment of quiet and then a roar went up so loud and deep that Julia wanted to cover her ears, but instead she bowed to her unconscious opponent and turned to exit the ring. She wanted to laugh and dance and cheer, but her mother had taught her that in victory one was humble, just as one was in defeat. Xioayu ran to Julia and started babbling excitedly. It might have been Chinese or English, either way Julia couldn't understand a word, and simply nodded beaming; finally she grabbed Xiaoyu in a mighty hug, and the two of them tumbled clinging to one another through the crowd to the door.

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Next instalment, The Meeting: Up the spiral staircase towards a labyrinth of darkness and secrecy, Julia grows closer to discovering a terrible truth hidden in the Mishima Mansion.