Going Places (For Deezcastforms)

[CaptainL]

Mizuki's heart was racing. Every instinct she had told her that she needed to let go - that Nikki couldn't breathe; that she was holding on too tight; that she was going to hurt her. But she shook her head. Every one of those thoughts she had to banish from her mind. Nikki wanted one thing from Mizuki, and one thing only - and that was to choke her into unconsciousness. For the brunette, the hardest task wasn't to achieve such a goal, but to will herself to do it in the first place. But her thighs squeezed closer around Nikki's waist, her arms held firm to her throat, and she squeezed her eyelids tightly in focus, hard enough to make her eyes water beneath them. This was what she needed to do!

Mizuki was lost in her own focus, her eyes shut and her teeth clenched. She looked away from Nikki at first; it was only later that she worked up the courage to glance back at her impromptu trainer. But when she did, she saw the thumbs-up she signaled, and the smile on her face. Instantly, Mizuki felt lighter. Her heart fluttered, and her smile broadened across her face. She never thought she would ever feel this way about choking someone to the point of passing out - but here, she knew, it stood as perhaps her greatest accomplishment in some time.

At last, she felt Nikki grow heavy against her body, and her arms and legs went limp. Shaking herself back into reality, Mizuki let the blonde go, dropping back onto the mat. She panted for breath, trying to dull the fatigue she was left with after straining so hard, and she looked back over at Nikki as she rubbed her head. The other girl wasn't moving, lying there flat. One part of Mizuki was proud with her efforts, but another grew afraid. What if she'd really hurt her?

"Nikki-? Hey, Nikki, are you alright?" Mizuki prodded at Nikki's side with her foot, hoping she'd see some response from her.

[deezcastforms]

Looks like she pulled it off. Nice. Was Nikki's last thought before passing out. She couldn't see or hear Mizuki's reaction of course, though if she could, she'd probably laugh at Mizuki trying to get a response out an unconscious person. But luckily, Mizuki would get the response she was looking for.

Now that she could take in air again, Nikki's chest began to rise and fall. Along with her mouth and nostrils expanding and contracting ever so slightly with each breath. She'd be out for a few minutes, probably. But there was no sign that Nikki wasn't perfectly fine.

[CaptainL]

The first thought that ran through Mizuki's mind, at seeing that Nikki had fallen unconscious, was fear, worrying if she'd gone too far. Her eyes went wide and the color drained from her face, her heart racing. She stayed on her knees by Nikki's side, watching her for some sign of life and anxiously twiddling her thumbs as she waited on one. Sure, she knew that Nikki had wanted her to choke her until she passed out, but Mizuki was well aware how dangerous that was. She realized she had gotten lost in the moment, caught up in the intensity of driving Nikki to the brink of unconsciousness, and she had negelected making sure that her sparring partner was safe. She bit her lip nervously as she remembered what she'd just said to the blonde - that she didn't want to be the same sort of person Natsuki was. But had she broken the most important part of her conduct with her opponents?

It came as a relief to Mizuki when she saw Nikki began to take a few breaths, confirming that she'd be fine. The brunette's shoulders slumped as she let out a sigh that let loose the tension in her body, causing her to deflate. Nikki still wouldn't be up for a few minutes, but Mizuki would wait at her side until she . The two of them got a few odd looks from passing gym-goers, but Mizuki didn't care. She cared too much about Nikki to just abandon her - and, knowing the sort of people she was working with, she feared that if she left Nikki defenseless and by herself, she'd be targeted by one of LAW's more unscrupulous types.

[deezcastforms]

When Nikki woke up, the first thing she saw was Mizuki at her side. She didn't know long she was out for, and her throat was a bit sore. But overall she was alright. "Well, not the most comfortable nap I've ever had." Nikki took a second to chuckle at her own joke. "You did good Mizuki, really. That was a strong, tight chokehold."

"Now come on, show me the picture you took, I want to see it." Nikki asked Mizuki excitedly, having not realized due to her being knocked out that she had forgotten to do so. When Nikki realized that Mizuki had not taken the photo, she decided to call upon her acting "skills."
"Oh, oh." Nikki placed her hand on her head, "I still feel faint and..." Nikki trailed off as she fell back dramatically onto the mat, fully splayed in a faux knocked out pose.

[CaptainL]

Mizuki had already felt some relief at seeing Nikki take a few breaths, but when the blonde blinked back awake, she let out another sigh. She brought one hand up to wipe some sweat away from her brow, but she faced Nikki with a smile nonetheless. Everything was alright. And, more importantly, she had succeeded, passing the test Nikki had set for her and winning her favor. Just hearing Nikki's praise made her smile grow wider, and she nodded to her in recognition. "Thanks. I tried my best..."

But when Nikki asked Mizuki for a picture, everything froze. Her eyes went wide as she sat up straighter, realizing that in her concern over Nikki she had let her request slip her mind. She knew it was too good to be true. Even now, when Mizuki thought she had actually succeeded at something for once, of course she would still find a way to mess it up. The hairs stood on the back of her neck, as though she was struck by a burst of cold air. "Oh-! S-Sorry, sorry! I...I forgot to...please don't get upset-!"

Sighing, Mizuki bit her lip, turning her gaze away from her trainer. She didn't want to face the thought that even now, she had failed her. She readied herself to hear Nikki berate her for her lack of initiative, only for Nikki to fall back to the mat, feigning unconsciousness. As she heard the landing, Mizuki looked back up, at first with confusion, but it didn't take her long to realize what was going on. And more to the point, she knew what she had to do!

"R-Right..!" Thinking quickly, Mizuki ran to get her phone from the gym bag she had left just nearby. She planted one foot on the fallen Nikki's chest, pointing the phone up to angle the shot down on her as she looked to the screen, one hand on her hip. She tried to flash her best smug smile, but it looked as awkward as she felt; her lip twitched, and she chuckled nervously. She really wasn't used to this. But Nikki wanted a picture of the moment, and Mizuki wasn't about to let her down!

[deezcastforms]

As quick as Nikki had "passed out," she snapped back up upon hearing the flash of Mizuki's phone camera. "Huh? Huh? What happened?" Nikki asked, clearly messing around at this point as she began laughing. "In all seriousness though, let's see it." As she showed the picture, Nikki smiled as she saw Mizuki's foot placed on her chest as she tried her best to look smug. It was pretty cute.

"Heh, I like it. Maybe you should be a photographer once you're done with wrestling. Now if you'll remember, we planned for a second photo too. Come on, what pose do you want to do? Peace signs, flexing, hug?" Nikki was getting pretty excited over Mizuki's success, and it was definitely showing through. Regardless of what Mizuki wanted to do, Nikki would no doubt go along with it with a big smile on her face.

[CaptainL]

Even Mizuki had to admit it, Nikki was cracking her up with her act. She giggled, a smile on her face as she looked back down at Nikki and stepped off her chest. It was then she realized she was actually laughing and having fun - even here, in LAW, somewhere Mizuki had feared would be a never-ending torment for her. Her smile grew even wider as she considered it - that now, she had someone she could trust and feel safe around in Nikki. The fact that she could smile now was worth a million more, and Nikki had granted her that.

Showing Nikki the photo, Mizuki blushed. "You...really like it?" She didn't think it was that good, though she never really thought anything she did was worthy of praise. At hearing Nikki say that she could pursue a career in photography, Mizuki took a moment to think. If Nikki actually thought her skills might be worth something...then maybe it was worth trying. After all, she believed Nikki's word more than anything else. "You think so? Honestly, I never thought about what I'd be doing after college. But...if you think so, I can look into it!"

Of course, as Nikki soon reminded her, Mizuki wasn't quite finished here - she still had to take one more photo, to commemorate a job well done. And now more than ever, she felt like she deserved one. "Right!" Mizuki said - this time with confidence and conviction rising in her voice, as though Nikki's mere presence encouraged her. "I think I know...you stand there, maybe throw a peace sign at the camera..."

Mizuki had little experience with composing photoshoots, but she figured she'd know what looked good, and she was willing to wing it. She flashed a smile, one that felt more genuine and heartfelt than the one in the previous shot, as she held her camera out in front of her with one hand. The other arm was thrown around Nikki's head and shoulders, pulling the blonde closer against her side as Mizuki flashed a peace sign of her own. It would look like they weren't just a student and her trainer, but two friends having fun. Something Mizuki was fully convinced they were.

[deezcastforms]

Mizuki seemed to light up at Nikki's praise and jokes with a truly happy smile, which in turn only made Nikki smile more herself. Nikki did have to admit that she was surprised that Mizuki hadn't thought about a career after college. She thought Mizuki would've had her future planned out if she was putting herself through this to pat for college.

But that didn't matter. What mattered was think Mizuki had succeeded now, and was happy. It was time for the second photo, and Mizuki wanted to do peace signs, which Nikki was more than happy to oblige. As Mizuki came next to Nikki, she could see the smile on her face. Much more genuinely happy than the attempt at a smug grin she had in the first photo. Nikki happily let Mizuki throw her arms around her, and she had a big smile of her own as the camera flashed.

"Well I think we're done here for today. I know I'm tired, and I'm sure you are. I had a great time, really. It was fun training with you."

[CaptainL]

In those few seconds after the feeling first hit her, Mizuki realized how foreign it really felt. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt this truly happy, when she could smile and mean it and not have to worry about everything going wrong. She'd never really had anyone she would call a genuine friend - even back in high school, most of her classmates picked on her, and those who didn't, she was too afraid of how they'd react to reach out to them. Her college roommate wasn't too bad, but then again, it was her who had gotten her into this whole mess to begin with. But Nikki? Nikki truly believed in her. She wanted her to succeed and thrive. She was someone she could feel safe around. And Mizuki admired that.

Even after they had broken apart from one another, Mizuki looked down at the phone in her hand, the photo of her arm in arm with Nikki still on display. The longer she looked at it, the more the smile grew across her face. She'd have this to look back on, and remember the first real friend she'd made - in LAW, and in her life. Nothing could take this away from her.

Turning her head back to Nikki, she smiled to her with a nod. There was no more fear or doubt left in her. She was just happy to have spent this time with her, and with Nikki's praise, she felt she wasn't quite as hopeless as she had feared. Maybe, just maybe, there was a chance for her.

"Yeah...it really was. Keep in touch, alright? And...thank you. So much. For everything."