Owning Her Shadow (for SuckerPunch)

[Winter]

Arlise Christiaens' Apartment, ~4:30 PM

Arlise Christiaens nearly started when the phone hanging off the counter frantically vibrated against her hip. Reeling back from where she tilted over the counter to stare at herself in the mirror, the Belgian threw a hand down to calm the phone's tantrum before flipping it over to stare at the screen. The notification reminded her, "Doctor," as if the coming appointment had not been on Lise's mind for the better part of the day... and the day before... and the day before. From the moment one of LAW's staff had urged (she would have claimed forced) her to make this appointment with a resident sports psychologist.

Of course, Arlise was not opposed to meeting a new person - and one whom she understood was a skilled wrestler in addition to a psychologist - but Lise thought that the staff had missed the mark. Her early losing streak had nothing to do with with her lacking the mental clarity, and thus, acuity, she needed. In fact, that they had been so presumptive in saying such a thing had... somewhat annoyed her. She glanced her own frown in the mirror.

Then, she glanced at her clothing. Again. She ensured all was in place as it needed to be for a meeting with a doctor and wrestler both. And that reminded her - she should make sure the living area remained in sharp shape as it had been an hour before. After performing one more mirror inspection of her teeth and hair, Lise whipped from the room and headed down the hall.

A knock on the door greeted her as soon as she set her grey eyes on the furnishings, and Lise clenched her teeth with discomfort. A sense of under-preparedness washed over her, and she fumbled to speak. "Yes, on the way!" she called, hiding hesitation with cheer, as she sped around the room.

Right, the couch did not have clothes hanging all over it, the TV was not smeared, leather armchair's scratches buffed out, and the coffee table had been moved off of the always-present wrestling mat. Normally, if she expected a guest whom she did not expect to wrestle her, it would have been pushed into the corner, but Arlise perhaps thought it might... impress her guest.

All appeared to be in place, and yet - Lise spared another twenty-five seconds looking over it once more, and then again, before she could be comfortable enough to scoot towards the door and start to open it. And even then, her eyes glanced the individual pictures of her parents, her few books, and her iguana habitat before she considered that she didn't know who was on the other side of the door yet.

She blinked with realization. "Is... this is Dr. Takemi?", she asked, as she peeped through the keyhole.

[SuckerPunch]

Dr. Mina Takemi had spent her entire adult life around wrestlers. Her early adolescence had been as one. A rising star whose ascent was tragically cut short after a botched move.

Her college years as a fan and academic. Her thesis had been on the Sexual Liberation of Women Through Professional Wrestling. A study on the growing trend of lesbian sexfighting in the world of combat athletics and spirts entertainment.

Her post grad and doctural work had been done adjacent to her time as the coach of her alma maters Women's Wrestling Club. Hokkaido University.

And now, in the twilight of her athletic prime, she served as one of LAW's middleweights. And on the side, as a consulting Sports Psychologist.

Dr. Takemi stood on the other side of the apartment's door waiting for it to be answered. The voluptous brunette looked stunning in the green dress she favored. She carried a clutch at her side and little else.

She knocked twice as she considered the evenings appointment. Two succinct raps of her knuckles upon the wooden door. This Arlise Christiaens had once been a bright prospect in the world of pro wrestling. However, a series of losses had set the woman down the wrong path and upper management believed that it was due to some kind of mental block. 'Perhaps a fear of winning?' Considered the leggy doctor as she await proper invitation inside.

"It is. I trust that means I have the right place?"

[Winter]

Arlise caught little of the woman on the other side of the door save for the side of her cheek and a well-maintained tuft of her hair, but the answer she received had her releasing the last inch of the latch. ”Yes, this is Arlise.”

But once it loosened, she hesitated again, and uneasy anticipation welled in her chest. She was about to be… analyzed by this stranger. Of course, the thought had occurred to her already and had stoked an anxious nerve, but now, the situation seemed all the more real.

She spent the briefest moment wondering if she could escape the situation, but deciding it would have been childish, Arlise balled the nerves back into her stomach and swung the door open.

Those nerves were forgotten when she got a look at the woman on the other side. Arlise didn’t know what she had been expecting from a versatile doctor and wrestler, but her expectation did not match the woman who greeted her. The intrigued Belgian drank in the full figure before her that filled out a green dress as well if not better than Arlise herself could have managed. After perhaps two seconds of staring beyond the norm, she managed to raise her eyes upward into the face of a woman who could have passed as a slightly older sister, an eyebrow raised.

Her eyes flashed with worry that, in her own blouse, skirt, and heels, she had managed to underdress.

At least two more seconds passed before Lise recovered, remembering - to her dismay - that she was making a horrible first impression to someone paid to read her impressions. She clasped her hands and formed a nonexistent word on her lips to buy a moment before she formed a comment. ”Hello, yes… please come inside, Dr. Takemi,” the redhead offered, gesturing into the room.

[SuckerPunch]

Dr. Takemi was full-bodied. Her dress was slit down either side, exposing the mouth-watering curve of her hips. The garment fell just over the round of her butt, offering a tantalizing preview of what was surely supple-firm flesh. The swell of her breasts fought valiantly against the thin fabric of the tight green gown, threatening to bounce free with every sway of her lovely form. Yet by some act of god (or carefully applied adhesive) they remained in place.

The woman whom opened the door for her took her breath away. The doctor did her best to disguise the thought. But Arlise was lovely in all the ways Mina was. But younger. With beautiful red hair. Just her type. The thought brought a smile to the mature woman's lips. "It is a pleasure to meet you Ms. Arlise. Is that what you like to go by?" She asked as she stepped into the apartment. She turned as she crossed the thresh-hold and looked back towards Arlise. She made sure not to examine the woman's home. She would look only at what she was shown.

Home visits were a curious thing. You could learn a lot from the contents of a persons home. Not just their hobbies. But their lifestyle. Their mental state. What they took pride in and where they hid their shame. It was a lot of intimacy for a first meeting... And so, she kept her attention locked firmly on the woman whom she was here to treat. Her pride and shame would come later, should she wish to make progress.

"Thank you for inviting me into your home. I hope that you'll find my visit fulfilling." She opened her clutch and produced a clipboard. There were a few documents attached to it and a pin slid through it's clip. "When you're ready, let's find somewhere comfortable to sit and fill these out. Then, we can get started." The clipboard had a series of consent forms. A document that asked the signee to describe the purpose of the treatment. And a physical waiver... Huh... That was... Unusual for most therapists.

[Winter]

Arlise wet a drying mouth as Dr. Takemi slipped past her, providing Titania the potential for another, more subtle glance at her guest and a bodily profile that certainly belonged in such a dress. A dozen different points of intrigue jockeyed for her focus, but Lise put a clamp on them, realizing that she should probably… speak. She would be analyzed. No fumbling, no matter how badly she wanted to focus on the doctor rather than herself.

Still she opened her mouth once more before she actually meant to speak, using the excuse of closing the door to stall and avoid meeting the doctor’s eyes directly. ”Arlise or Lise are both fine,” she finally offered. Upon peering back to find that the doctor looked at her rather than the room (and Arlise felt the room was the much more intact of the two of them at the moment), she struggled in a search for warmth. This was far easier when she was inviting someone over for a saucy fight.

”Do you go by Dr. Takemi?” Not the most pertinent question, since she certainly did, but Lise would have to hope that her meaning was not lost - she couldn’t do much better while being gazed upon by someone who probably could read her mind.

Fortunately, Dr. Takemi advanced the conversation, and Lise offered a small nod. ”I am glad you could come.” Not entirely true before, but now, setting eyes on the woman, she managed not to be so bothered as before.

Ahh yes, and… sitting. Realizing they both stood in the entryway with aimless intentions, Lise merely blinked from the forms Dr. Takemi held to the couch and chair, her processing still… lacking. It was difficult not to stare at the legs now more visible in the afternoon light from the window.

”Yes, please, come sit down,” Lise chirped, calling on more good sense and composure as she gestured for the doctor to step ahead of her and took the clipboard. ”Choose any seat you like.”

Lise caught a glimpse of the kitchen on their short trot over, and both a clear recollection of how to treat a guest properly and her own desire to… breathe triggered an idea. ”Would you want anything to drink? I don’t have many drinks besides water and a couple of more exciting things.”

[SuckerPunch]

Arlise's nerves were clear and made her think to smile. She did not. Her instincts told her that treating Arlise's anxiety to a cheshire grin would do them no service. But she did appreciate the way the woman moved and spoke. She was honest and kind it would seem. At least her eyes were. She gave no indication that she'd caught the lovely redhead drinking in her figure, but she had. It was the second time Arlise made her think to smile.

"Dr. Takemi is fine if that makes you more comfortable. But my name is Mina. Since we'll be getting to know each other better, why don't we start with using each other's first names. Would that be okay with you Lise?" She spoke the girls name with a hedonistic pleasure. She rolled the sounds around in her mouth. There was an underlying heat to her tone. Something that would make a cherub blush.

Mina waited for until the two women moved into the apartment further before addressing her again. "I'm glad to hear that. I'm looking forward to the pleasure of working with you, Lise." She finally spoke as she settled onto the couch. She sat with enough space for Lise to join her. "I have my own thanks." She rapped on the clutch in her lap.

"You should grab something for yourself. Perhaps something... Exciting? Was it? Then come and make yourself comfortable with me." She pat the space beside her. "When you are ready, of course."

She could understand Arlise's desire for some liquid courage. The scenario found Dr. Takemi examining the young woman once more. And this was the third time Arlise made her think to smile. The woman was lovely and her demeanor was beyond cute. And under the strain of her patient's bumbling charisma, her mask shifted. Her lips curled into a smile that made her already radiant features glow. It was a smile that was accompanied by genuine happiness in her eyes. There was something intimate, affectionate, and comforting about it.

[Winter]

Arlise found herself drinking in the doctor’s warm, inviting words, perhaps too eagerly. Part of it was certainly bedside manner to ensure that Lise could find ease in their interaction - and the redhead certainly realized she had not appeared too at ease so far. Still, the effort proved endearing and did let Arlise breathe.

Until her breath caught, hopefully subtly, as the doctor spoke Lise’s name with a… hunger? The redhead blinked. Hunger was the best description she could produce, yes, though maybe she should consider the doctor’s tone as satisfied. She well knew she had trouble reading people at times, and if she allowed her obvious appreciation of the doctor’s charms to convince her that there was hunger dripping from her tongue, this psychoanalysis could go even worse than she imagined.

”Yes, that sounds like a good idea,” she agreed, stifling her imagination, though the response proved more mousy than usual.

Desperately she tried to move on, but she counted it a small victory to see Dr. Takemi take residence on the couch rather than the chair. It did leave more of her on display, the redhead noted, eyes grabbing a peek while she waited for the answer about the drinks.

None for the doctor, but Lise was more than happy to use the doctor’s excuse to fetch something for herself. And… reassess herself. She fought temptation to reassess the room the doctor now lounged in before she left. ”Right, I’ll do that.”

Whirling quickly enough that she missed the smile in her direction, Lise slipped to temporary relief. The trip to her small kitchen she kept brief, though she filled it with enough self-doubt that it felt like ten minutes. There was doubt about her own ability to control herself, because surely the doctor had meant nothing by the way she uttered Lise’s name. Doubt about the state of the living room the obviously well-put-together doctor could now inspect intimately. Doubt as to whether she would seem an alcoholic if she did come back with something exciting. After deciding on a few drops of mild Belgian fruit drink and a glass of water, Lise took one glance at herself in the shine of the refrigerator before returning - much more composed on the outside, but internally, still anxious.

”Here we are,” she chimed, avoiding the opportunity to stare by carefully placing the drink and water on the coffee table before she slid into the space beside Dr. Takemi, leaving a few inches between them. Her eyes shifted to the clipboard, regarding the blanks and words there for the first time. ”Now, just fill these out, yes?”

[SuckerPunch]

Dr. Takemi awaited Arlise's return from her spot on the couch. Her legs were crossed daintily. This prevented Arlise's glance from going up her dress. However, the cut of the dress made it so the positioning of her legs left the top one nearly entirely exposed. From the straps of her heels all the way to the ridge of her hip bone. The red head got exactly what it was she was hoping to abscond with. An eyeful. Further, it exposed the strap of what she wore beneath her dress. It was lacey and rode high above her hip. The slim fabric was no thicker than a spaghetti noodle. Somehow sexier than if she had worn nothing at all.

She was left alone for a few moments, with that time she searched Lise's apartment from her perch on her comfortable couch. The wrestling mats were the first thing that drew her eye. It brought a smirk to her face. 'How presumptuous'. Her fingers ran a smooth line unconsciously along her bare leg as her attention lingered upon them for longer than was necessary. The rest of the living room was of no note. The home of a bachelorette it would seem. No pictures of a sweetheart. No indication of anything for anyone's comfort other than her own. It was all she had time to take in before Arlise's return.

"My, that was quick. Good, you must be eager!" She looked up to the woman with a teasing smile. She observed the way the woman moved as she reentered the room. It was careful and inoffensive. She moved like she was in Mina's home, not the other way around. It was clear she was still experiencing her first session jitters. It was adorable.

As Lise sat down beside her she couldn't help but smile. How respectful of her to leave so much space. "Scoot over Ms. Lise. I don't bite." She gestured to the space between them. "We're here to get to know each other after all." She then looked to the clipboard as Arlise drew her attention to it. The first form was the physical waiver. Then a medical questionaire contained the standard medical details. Known allergies. Preexisting conditions. Then a psychological questionaire. The final page was the most interesting and intrusive. It focused on sexual proclivities. Preferred partner. Fetishes. Deviancy.

"Please, do. If you'd like some privacy I can excuse myself till you're done. However, I've already finished mine. I promise not to copy your answers." Her pouty lips pulled into an impish smile.

[Winter]

Arlise hoped her efforts not to see the "eyeful" that Dr. Takemi - no, Mina - so graciously offered from the scanty cut of her dress were not as obvious as they felt. Then again, she supposed keeping her eyes rooted to the papers was a worthy cover, given she was meant to have them prepared and signed before they could even begin their session.

And as she settled in, crossing one thick leg over the other in a method that she didn't realize did wonders for putting her calves on display as the poked from the base of her skirt, the Belgian didn't have it in her to pretend as if she was not eager to be analyzed. A broad, toothy grin parted her coral-painted lips, and she did dare to peer in Mina's direction. "I certainly don't want you to have to wait, since you were nice enough to come here." Then, eyes back to the papers.

There they remained for precisely two seconds before the doctor gestured for Lise to close the distance between them. Lise's mind entertained its wondering about Mina's earlier tone once more. That wondering grew intense when Lise peered at the space, between them, and by extension, Mina's toned leg, carved from marble - and caught a glimpse of a strap.

Heat welled, but Lise, no virgin to her own sensitivities, smoothly nodded and made the few inches between them no more than three. "Fair point." She sidled over, but her legs quickly crossed again and her eyes neatly avoided staring to start reading.

Well, "reading." So acutely aware was Lise of the woman beside her and the situation that she didn't gather that she was even reading a physical waiver. She continued to "skim" as the doctor spoke, though every focus dwelt on Mina's words and how Lise should respond.

Having her guest the room seemed in poor taste for a host, but Lise wondered if she could even write legibly given the circumstances. "I admit, I do focus poorly when people are watching me write, but I wouldn't want to exile you."

[SuckerPunch]

"Of course! How thoughtless of me." She tapped her lips as if considering a solution. "If you'd like, I can wait outside until you are done. Typically I have this handled in the waiting room of the office. I'd not want to create any sort of bias in your answers." She offered, not waiting for an answer as she stood up. The motion brought caused a slow line of contact as Mina's side slid along Arlise's.

The friction of their bodies caused some displacement of Mina's attire. It offered Arlise a tempting look inside. A small, pie-slice peek to the origin of the strap that tightly rode her hip. It was green. A tiny lace triangle that started well past the curve of her smooth, bare inner thigh. The dress slid over, shrouding just how small that triangle in a blink and you'll miss it moment. But it was clear that she wasn't wearing business casual underwear.

"Or if you're more comfortable, I can simply turn my back, hm?" Which she did. "Perhaps that would be the best compromise. I apologize, I don't often meet my clients in their homes. I may have lost myself in the excitement." She apologized, but her voice carried with it a casual mirth. Like a good friend sharing an inside joke with you. There was something comforting about her humility that was both sincere and aware of the odd situation the two women were in.

Beyond her tone, Arlise would notice the fullness of the Therapist's backside. How could she not, it was only a few feet from her at eye level. The dress that hugged her hips offered even less details as to what lay beneath than the tiny glimpse Arlise had received. And in this instance. Less is more. The back of the dress was open to just above her generous backside. Her back was bare, strapless. And there were no pantylines to be found. If she'd caught sight of the tiny triangle up front, then she'd caught sight of the majority of the fabric present...

"Just let me know when you're ready for me to sit back down." She placed a hand on one hip and cocked the other assuming a relaxed position. The motion brought a bounce to the rear-view Arlise had been granted.