Winner's Knot: Ducky Williams vs. Sophia Adachi

[Winter]

Conditions: The winner must force her opponent to utter a declaration of "I Quit." Most rules, short of that against weapons, are lifted.
Special Rules: The match takes place in a smaller ring, 12" by 12", to facilitate the submission aspect of the match.

Sophia Adachi paced back and forth, soaking in calming, focused breath that made her chest rise and fall, in the backstage area of the arena. The time to make her debut had arrived, and a dozen conflicting emotions mixed.

It would not be her first time in front of a crowd, but one of such size, certainly. There were many first times for her this evening, from the outfit she had selected to the smaller ring that had been selected for the match to the "I Quit" stipulation that she could not simulate in her training during her short time at LAW. The first time she would encounter Ducky Williams, after watching some highlights of the woman's submission prowess during the week. She would be a challenge.

But it was also the beginning of a career that could be incredibly meaningful for Sophia should she succeed. The knots in her stomach were wound as much by excitement at the coming opportunity as nervousness, and with another calming breath, Sophia ceased her pacing and peered at herself in the mirror. She gave herself a gentle nod and worked her thinned lips into a confident smile. She would be fine; better than fine.

Given her signal, she rubbed her hands together and departed. The knots wound themselves tighter once she got to the stage, but needing to focus on her rather risky entrance that had been recommended to her due to her quiet nature otherwise and martial background, she quietly ascended a short ladder up onto a platform as smoke poured over the stage.

Situating her feet on the edge of the platform, she crouched, breathed, and took a leap that she thought was fairly symbolic, now that she considered it.

Diving through the smoke, she emerged on the other side, crouched like a ninja, before she swung her legs forward while propped on her palms and made a gentle cartwheel onto the ramp. With a smile, she slowly made her way down the ramp, slapping a few hands extended her way, before she made much of the same flexible, agile show entering the ring, as her lithe body curled over the top rope, toes pointed to the ceiling, and she hung there in the pose before dropping.

The appreciative whistles suddenly struck her...

Almost immediately, she shrank into a corner of the smaller ring, letting the limelight leave her and head towards Ducky. Sophia watched the ramp with the utmost anticipation.

Spoiler

[ADarlingDucky]

Standing backstage, doing a few light stretches as she waited for her cue to go out, Ducky Williams waited in anticipation for the match, clearly eager to begin.

While not at all the malevolent sort, Ducky was quite excited for the prospect of an I quit match, as the blonde felt no greater joy in the ring than managing to lock in an effective submission. And today would be the day where she would put her submission skills to the test once more, this time with a match where she would have to win by forcing her opponent to declare her submission verbally.

While it was quite similar to her match in the summer event she had partaken in, this one would be no gimmicks. No revealing attire, no brutal summer heat. Just a match of pure skill.

And finally, after a few more seconds, Ducky was finally informed that it was time for her to make her way to the ring, her opponent already having made her entrance! Nodding to the assistant, Ducky would quickly make her way to the entrance ramp, bursting through the curtain with a smile and a wave, the crowd cheering loudly!

Making her way to the ring, the fan dubbed, "Darling of LAW" was all smiles, making sure to high five and hug a few children fans on the way to the ring, before finally sliding into the ring, giving the crowd a bit more fanfare before finally turning to face her foe.

And seeing her opponent, Ducky couldn't help but give a slight smile. Beautiful, sleek, and athletic looking, this girl looked like quite the contender without even trying, graceful even while standing still. Figuring that this relative newcomer was as excited as her, Ducky quickly made her way over, getting close enough to extend a hand for a handshake.

"Sophia, correct? My name's Ducky Williams, it's a pleasure! I've been looking forward to this for a while."

[Winter]

There she was.

Watching Ducky's ease and charisma with the fans as she made her way down the ramp threatened Sophia with a momentary feeling of inadequacy for lacking that outgoing nature, but she quickly assigned it to something she should think of for the future. Of much more importance, and why her stomach continued its dull whine of discomfort, was ensuring that her skills in the ring were up to par. She had a confidence that she could defeat ninety-five percent of the women in LAW in a dojo...but dojos didn't organize "I Quit" matches or train wrestlers to use tricks, distractions, or, especially in the case of Sophia's knowledge of Ducky, unique and entwining submission holds.

A brief glimpse at the contours of Ducky's figure as the blonde entered the ring, before Sophia rather sheepishly turned away to attend to adjusting the drawstrings around the midsection of her outfit, informed her of just how effective those holds might be when executed by someone like her opponent.

She continued her adjustment to pass the time and buckle down on her focus, when the soft rattling of the canvas drew her eyes up towards a...smiling Ducky, approaching her with an eager expression that quickly brought Sophia from her nervous inward turn back to the promise of the moment. Wrestlers had their reputations, but Ducky seemed...very genuine, as she extended her hand.

Sophia wasted no time in taking it and offering her own reserved smile and a nod in confirmation. "It's nice to meet you, Ducky. Even if it's a...strange place to first meet." The smile slightly twisted at the observation. Her attention deflected a moment, as the announcer read the rules and caught Sophia's thoughts by mentioning the "I Quit" stipulation again, but she quickly turned back. "And this is...where I want to be, from now on. Let's have a good match."

[ADarlingDucky]

Stepping up to her foe with a smile on her face, it would seem that as Ducky approached Sophia, she had caught the woman slightly off guard, reaching her as she was in the middle of toying with her gear. However, as Ducky extended her hand, Sophia was quick to return the smile and extend her own hand in return, the two of them shaking hands and exchanging a few pleasantries, though Ducky did happen to notice how the girl's face changed as she listened to the ref explain the rules.

While Ducky and this girl were indeed about to try and force one another to submit verbally to the pain of a submission hold, Ducky didn't want there to be any apprehension, offering another smile!

"Well, I'm very happy to hear that Sophia! And I'm more than looking forward to getting to know you a bit more when we finish here! Good lock!" The blonde said with a smile, before turning to return to her corner.

She was eager to start things off, and as she made her way to the corner, she began to do a few light stretches, giving Sophia one last smile before getting a bit more serious, waiting for the bell to sound and the match to begin!

[Winter]

...Getting to know her? Sophia blinked at the pleasant surprise.

She didn't know why, but she expected all wrestlers to have somewhat of a cold, distant competitor's aspect to them. Martial artists tended towards that trend; they would arrive for tournaments, remain with their group, nod to their opponents, and then depart with their group, win or lose. Wrestlers seemed to be...on average, angrier than most martial artists.

Her smile brightened. Ducky was already proving her assumptions wrong. "I would like that," she returned, warmly despite her cool, husky voice, and watched in thought as her blonde opponent turned to step away before they began.

However, they couldn't be fraternizing now. Trudging towards a corner of her own, Sophia warmed her muscles with eyes shut, deep breaths, and her arms in a graceful flowing motion before she reached down to grasp at her toes and kick off the geta she wore to establish the ninja theme she had chosen.

She turned in time, with the faint knot still present, to catch Ducky's smile and returned it with a faint nod. Then the bell rang, and Sophia's expression slowly fell and one more breath for bravery entered her chest.

One more nod and she slipped in closer, quickly given the smaller ring, and with the practiced steps of someone in her discipline, started to slowly circle with her opponent, waiting to react rather than initiate.

[ADarlingDucky]

Giving Sophia one last friendly smile, the brown haired girl would return it with a slight nod, before the two finished their last minute preparations, stepping out to the center of the ring, getting ready to meet up!

Circling one another, Ducky and Sophia seemed to both want to watch the other, with Ducky studying the way that the girl across from her moved, looking for any opportunity that she could to dash in. And finally seeing that her foe wouldn't come to her, Ducky would suddenly dash towards Sophia, looking to grab the girl in collar and elbow tie up, shoving her back as she looked to take control early, trying to force her foe backwards into the opposite corner!

[Winter]

Ducky absolutely looked the part of a wrestler.

While Sophia slid to the side, momentarily loathing the lack of space, to try and make her way to an easier approach to the blonde, Ducky moved with what was clearly a practiced ease around the ring without wasting any motion or turning her body to give Sophia even the slightest opening. The martial artist waited, and waited, perhaps too patiently, for her moment to rush in and try and capture the bombshell's leg...

But she was the second to react. She had the blonde upon her before she knew it, and as Sophia's arms and hands fumbled to match with the lock-up that came as Ducky took her by the neck and pushed an arm into her, she was already losing ground as her bare feet scuffed against the mat for purchase. She groaned and pressed down on her toes, stopping Ducky's momentum before she was pushed all the way back towards a corner...but seeing that she was gaining nothing by a standoff near the corner but a strain of her legs and back, Sophia tried to shift her footing to her right side and shove Ducky past her.

[ADarlingDucky]

Shoving forward quite boldly, Ducky managed to snag Sophia in a lockup, the girl grunting as the blonde crashed into her, immediately finding good enough purchase to drive her back, Sophia's feet sliding along the mat before finally finding a bit of purchase. After a second of struggling, the ninja woman managed to actually catch herself, slowing Ducky's shoving of her, though it was still quite clear that she was losing ground, with the blonde pushing her farther and farther back.

That was, until, Sophia suddenly moved to the side, pushing Ducky past her and letting the blonde nearly crash into the corner! Ducky's own reflexes saved her here, as she managed to put her hands up and stop from hitting the turnbuckle, though she was still worried that Sophia was going to be on top of her in a second.

So looking to catch the graceful woman before she could, Ducky would suddenly spin to face her, before throwing an arm out, looking to floor the woman with a spinning lariat!

[Winter]

As her opponent expected, Sophia did look to immediately dive onto Ducky for a follow-up, after she realized she did have the blonde woman shoved past her and into the corner. With skillful, trained steps, the martial artist whirled and took a step forward to establish balance before she pushed off on her toes with the intent to jump onto Ducky's back and latch legs and arms around her to drag her down...

But as it was, the moment she was meant to take off, she saw Ducky turn and the arm coming for her head.

With no small amount of instinct and grace, Sophia caught herself before she threw herself into the arm and nimbly ducked her head lower to try and avoid the impact altogether. She realized she was a second too late, however, just before the arm swept upside her neck, cheek, and ear and knocked her off balance. She fell down hard onto her rear, but not nearly as hard as she could have, with her legs flying out from under her and leaving her sprawled on her back with the figure of Ducky (much more imposing when looked at from below) above her.

[ADarlingDucky]

With her arm swinging hard at Sophia, Ducky expected to hit her hard and send the graceful woman spinning, throwing the lariat with the intent to take Sophia off her feet! However, just as it seemed like Ducky was about to nail her with the shot, Sophia would quickly arch her back, ducking out of the way of the most dangerous part of the lariat, only catching a slight amount of Ducky's arm against the side of her face, though it was enough to have her falling over backwards, landing on her rear in front of Ducky!

There was a brief moment when Sophia fell as her and Ducky looked at one another, Sophia staring up from the floor while the blonde looked down at her, a bit surprised by her speed.

But it only lasted an instant before Ducky looked to capitalize, dashing towards the downed Sophia and leaping up, tilting backwards in an attempt to come down back first on Sophia and smush her flat with a senton!