Trying To Take Flight (for Skip Stop)

[Bare]

Well despite an awkward and almost haphazard start it seemed that Alizeh's quest to prove herself to Victoria and Astrid was off to a good start. Not only did she seem to appreciate Alizeh's words and sentiments, but she went a step further and offered Alizeh not only a chance to prove herself, but one that would take place at We Are LAW, which Alizeh just saw as a bonus on top for what she wanted.

However before she could get an answer about who she was facing it would appear that Victoria wanted to discuss things with the silent Lily who... Alizeh almost forgot was there. Clearing her throat and nodding Alizeh would sit back and allow the two to handle business.

Very quickly though it would appear that things between them were not going to go as smoothly as the conversation with Alizeh as very quickly Lily, with her emotionless and tone free words quickly tested Victoria's patience and within moments Alizeh would find herself privy to some... private business that she honestly felt she shouldn't have been here for.

Opening her mouth Alizeh was about to suggest that she could wait outside for their conversation to be done, but Victoria shut her down before she could utterly a syllable and given the icy cold eminence of her voice she immediately did what very few have done and not only shut Alizeh up but even incured some intimidation from the green haired girl, making her feel as if she was a kid getting scolded. "Yes Ma'am." Alizeh said very quickly before sitting back in her chair, ignoring the uncomfortable feeling from the nature of the manager and ward's conversation.

[skip-stop]

"Good..." Victoria said with a short nod at Alizeh's words, then turned back to Lily. "Now, do you have anything else to say?"

The brunette stared into the manager's eyes for a few seconds, as if it were a staring game. She was well aware that Victoria was trying for all of them, but it was difficult for her to accept the fact that she was forced to spend time at home or in the gym, while many others were spending time in the ring. However, she really had nothing more to say, not after Victoria's cold tone, which made even her soul tremble.

"No..." Lily replied, looking away from her manager's eyes.

Victoria didn't look away from her ward's amber eyes in case Lily decided she had a few more questions. It was only after a few seconds of silence that she finally leaned back in her chair, after which she adjusted her glasses. She had to take a deep breath to calm down because she really didn't like anyone criticizing her work. After she blinked slowly, her gaze became a little softer.

The manager glanced briefly at Alizeh, wondering if the green-haired woman knew about Lily's features or if so far she just considered the brunette not the most social person. The manager opened the top drawer of her desk and took out two documents, then put them in front of Lily.

"What is it?" The Englishwoman asked.

"Proof that even you sometimes lack patience," Victoria said somewhat tartly. "Read them."

Smoothly taking the documents in her hands, Lily quickly ran her amber eyes over each of them. She didn't have to read the whole thing, because the most important information was actually in the first lines. Lily looked up at Victoria and blinked slowly. Another person in her place would probably have sighed heavily, but it wasn't about her.

"It wasn't easy, but you will have two high-speed matches in a row," Victoria said, slightly tilting her head forward. "Phoebe Justice and Teuila Masina will not be easy opponents, so if I were you I would prepare because in a high-speed match even your speed may not be enough."

"I apologize for my behavior," Lily said, putting the documents on the table. "And thank you for that."

The manager breathed a sigh of relief. She really didn't expect that such a long wait would make Lily come to her. Now that this matter is closed, she finally has the opportunity to move on to a much more important issue.

"You are talented, otherwise you would not be on my team, yes, sometimes business forces us to take a position of waiting, but we must not let this lead us astray, especially in your case, because you are striving for something much more important than just fame," Victoria put her elbows on the table again, glaring at her ward. "So tell me, clearly, what do you want?"

"I want to fight..." Lily replied without a second thought.

"I'm glad to hear that," Victoria allowed herself a smile. "Those opponents you went through weren't whipping dolls, but so far you haven't had the opportunity to fight a really strong, high-class opponent." Victoria joined her fingers and rested her chin on the bridge that had formed. "Can you handle our green-haired guest?"

There was silence in the office. And while Victoria continued to look at Lily, the brunette slowly turned her head to the side. Her eyes ran over Alizeh from her heels to the top of her head as if Lily's amber eyes were a scanner passing through Alizeh. Remembering everything Lily knows about this woman, she ran through at least a dozen quick scenarios in her head, after which she looked at Victoria again.

"I can handle her," she said in the same even voice, not caring at all that she could have said it more politely.

"The black crow in the emerald storm..." the smile on the manager's lips widened. "Yes, that turned out a really interesting morning." Victoria's black eyes shifted to Alizeh. "Lily is still far from the top of the rankings, but believe me, when she says she can handle you, she is absolutely rational about her chances, so it will be a great match." She tilted her head slightly to the side. "If you agree, of course."

During the time they were chatting, Victoria had time to think about all possible options and it would be fair to say that she did not have a better option for Alizeh. Nerissa has already received a match at the upcoming PPV, Margarita clearly did not catch up to the level of Alizeh, Victoria tried to keep Sintharia away from matches, Lunara decided to take time to train after the last events, Karen after her three defeats in a row was clearly not the best candidate for a PPV match, the Hidesato sisters after their fiasco in solo matches focused on tag team matches, and in Charlotte's case Victoria was sure that defeat would be too hard for her or Alizeh so the manager was not ready to go for it. So in a sense, the circumstances worked out in the best possible way. At least in Victoria's opinion, because now everyone who was in this room had the opportunity to get everything that each of them wanted.

[Bare]

Quickly shutting the hell up at Victoria's instructions Alizeh would sit back and watch the tense conversation between manager and client, waiting to see how it would go. Thankfully it seemed that things would lighten up as Victoria pulled a folder out and passed it to the Dark Raven who, after a moment of reading seemed pleased with Victoria clarifying that they were two matches for the woman to showcase her ability.

'Damn talk about good timing, or just impatience.' Alizeh thought to herself as she looked between Victoria and Lily, still wondering if there was more going on under the surface between them that she was unaware of. But Lily apologized and Victoria seemed to accept it.. while also alluding to something more with the woman, and that's how the conversation looped back around to her as Victoria asked if she thought Lily could handle her.

Snapping to attention and sharpening up Alizeh would look at Lily through the corner of her eyes in a way that almost mirrored Lily... Before the English woman suddenly answered that she could take her. Something that caused Alizeh to smirk slightly, even as Victoria once more spoke to her and asked if she agreed...

"This is what I asked for, I'd look pretty bad if I backed down now." Alizeh said, her gaze now fully locked on Lily as she stood up out of her chair and turned towards Lily before holding her hand out. "But Lily... You're not the first person who said they could handle me and were proven wrong... So I hope you're prepared for your first ppv match to end in a loss." Alizeh promised in a challenging tone while waiting to see if the Black Crow would accept her hand.

[skip-stop]

After receiving a reply from Alizeh, Victoria nodded satisfactorily. It seems that this issue can also be considered closed. However, the green-haired woman hadn't finished yet, instead she got to her feet, threw a cheeky phrase in Lily's direction and held out her hand. The manager raised her left eyebrow slightly, but said nothing. Despite the fact that she did not like such words at all, her wards should be independent. And therefore, if Lily feels the need to protect herself from these words, she must do it herself.

Speaking of which.

Lily raised her amber eyes and looked at Alizeh. The information she knew about this woman could no longer be questioned. A real fighter should never have doubts, but you should not confuse this with overconfidence. The brunette briefly looked at the manager and remembered Victoria's words at the beginning of this conversation. Apart from losing the middleweight title match, Alizeh has not had a setback for a very long time, not to mention that her overall score was more than impressive. Many people believe that a good score is the key to success, that this is what opens the way for you to the top.

But from Lily's point of view, it only leads to overconfidence, which is the first link in a very dangerous chain. Overconfidence leads to recklessness, and recklessness leads to mistakes. It was these mistakes that Lily intended to take advantage of during the upcoming match, because unlike her opponent she was not going to underestimate her. The Englishwoman rose smoothly to her feet and just as smoothly extended her right hand forward, shaking Alizeh's hand.

“No, I'm not prepared, Alizeh,” she said in the same musically appealing, but still empty voice. “After all, unlike you, I need to meet not only my own expectations, but also Victoria's expectations, which she placed on me, giving me the opportunity to participate in this PPV.”

If she hadn't had to keep a straight face, Victoria's lower lip would have trembled. Instead, she only allowed herself a gentle smile. Yes, Lily was the best option for the upcoming PPV, but not the only one. And she was pleased that her ward understands that she did it not out of desperation, but because she really believes in her.

“Am I free to go?” Releasing Alizeh's hand, Lily asked the manager. “If so, thank you again for everything.”

Without saying anything else, Lily turned around and walked smoothly to the door. Victoria stared after her for a few seconds, and then sighed. It wasn't a disapproving sigh or anything like that, it was just that it was still difficult for her to get used to such an unusual nature of this woman.

“Of course,” the manager said, getting up from her chair. “Good luck in the upcoming matches.”

“How many times do I have to tell you that there is no such thing as luck?" Lily asked without turning around. “Everything depends only on the skill of the fighters, only this determines the probability of victory and defeat.”

Without even giving Victoria a chance to answer, Lily left the office and walked slowly to the elevator. The manager allowed herself to smile again. Yes, despite the fact that Lily remained a mystery even to her, she definitely appreciated this woman. However, she couldn't afford to be sentimental right now, so she held out her hand to Alizeh.

“I, like my charges, try to keep my word,” she said. “So I think that regardless of the result of the match, you should expect to meet Astrid at the next big event, which will be dedicated to Halloween.” The Englishwoman adjusted her glasses, but at the same time gave Alizeh a smile. “Your sudden visit was worth an exception to the rule, so I hope for further cooperation.”

[Bare]

This may have been constructed in a pretty negative way. Getting in Lily's face like this and outright saying she was going to lose. But Alizeh didn't care, because as far as she was concerned she was telling the truth and was not intending to be disrespectful, but rather she was trying to draw out some fight and competition from the black haired woman. However just as shown before there was no response from Lily. Not in any major way, rather she just... responded with seemingly no emotional response whatsoever.

Asking Victoria for permission to leaving and doing so Alizeh would blink in surprise before turning towards Victoria as she spoke to her again, basically promising a title match against Astrid at the next major event which would be soon. Eyes widening at this Alizeh would nod slightly before smiling faintly. "Heh, you move fast huh? Well we'll see. I'll say that if I'm wrong and Lily beats me then I won't accept, I won't deserve it then, so if... no when I win, that's when we'll talk. Hopefully with Astrid around too. I've been meaning to introduce myself." She said with a slight chuckle before offering a nod to the woman.

"Either way, thank you for the time and the opportunity, trust me, I'll definitely cooperate as best I can." She said before turning and exiting the room and heading down the hall where her eyes once again came to Lily, standing in front of the elevator doors just as it opened. Breaking into a brief sprint Alizeh would dart in just before the doors closed so she was standing with Lily inside

. Since they were going to the same floor there was no need to adjust the buttons but there was something more pressing on Alizeh's mind. "So Lily... you remind me of a friend of mine, Wyvern, maybe you've heard of her? I know a bit of her story so I'm curious... Why are you... the way you are?" Alizeh asked a bit bluntly if anything but she had a feeling at this point that Lily wouldn't mind.

[skip-stop]

Victoria listened to Alizeh with a slight smile on her lips. This woman really reminded her a lot of one of her charges. The only one who could compare with Astrid and Nerissa also believed that in order to achieve the highest goal, she needed intermediate achievements. However, Victoria was sure that Charlotte would never openly say things to her rival in the face that Alizeh said so freely and calmly. Maybe it was just part of her code, but still.

“Well, then I'll see you at the PPV, I'll be watching your match against Lily,” Victoria's eyes flashed behind her glasses. “And Astrid will be watching too.”

She waited until the last moment for Alizeh to shake her hand, which she offered a few moments ago, but instead the green-haired woman turned around and quickly left the office. Blinking a few times, Victoria looked at her still outstretched hand, and then sighed. Relaxing her legs, she sank back into her chair, then picked up her cup of latte and drained it in three large gulps.

“Inspiring...” she muttered to herself, throwing the cup into the trash. “There are so many amazing women in one place and everyone is striving for their dreams, seeing no obstacles in the way...”

She would have liked to take at least a little more time to think about it, but unfortunately she had a job. Even though this meeting was productive, it took her time and now she needs to catch up. Her responsibilities went far beyond the role of a simple manager and therefore every minute of her day was incredibly valuable. Adjusting her glasses, Victoria approached her laptop, starting to work.

Meanwhile, Lily dutifully waited for the elevator to arrive. There were thought processes in her head and she tried not to miss anything. First of all, she needed a light breakfast, after which she intended to return home and start studying the rivals she would face in the near future. Yes, Alizeh definitely posed the greatest threat to her, but cold logic reminded her that she should not forget about the two high-speed matches.

It was with these thoughts in mind that she entered the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor. Turning around, she found Alizeh running towards her, doing everything possible to make it before the elevator doors closed. Looking at it with a blank face, Lily didn't even try to reach for the stop button to let the green-haired woman make it. However, Alizeh turned out to be very nimble and squeezed into the elevator before the doors were completely closed.

As if nothing had happened, Lily just stared at the small screen notifying her of the current floor. She could hear Alizeh's heavy breathing, but the presence of this woman did not bother her much. The brunette hadn't any desire to start a conversation and thus give rise to another sharp phrase in her direction, the previous ones were more than enough. Alizeh had other plans in this regard, as she did not keep silent, instead asking Lily if she knew who Wyvern was.

“I know who she is, but I don't see any reason why I can remind you of her...” she replied, glancing briefly at Alizeh and then returning her gaze to the screen.

Of course, they didn't know each other personally. Lily didn't know many people at all. But, as in the case of Alizeh, she had the necessary information. At home, she had a separate room that she used as an information bank, where she gathered everything she could gather about her potential rivals. So she knew about who Wyvern was. But Lily and Wyvern had maybe only one, but fundamental difference.

The elevator doors opened, revealing the lobby of LAW headquarters. And it was at this moment that Alizeh asked a question that Lily had not heard often, but which was perhaps the most important. Besides, the answer to this question was the fundamental difference between Lily and Wyvern. The brunette looked at Alizeh once more, her beautiful amber eyes were directed into the green-haired woman's eyes for several seconds before she looked away.

“Because I can't feel anything...” she replied.

Without saying anything else, Lily headed for the exit of the building. Wyvern doesn't want to feel anything. Lily can't feel anything. That was their difference. The Englishwoman did not try to shut herself off from the whole world. She didn't lock her heart. She just doesn't have that heart. Just a soulless doll desperately trying to become human. This was her goal, inextricably linked with the movement to the top. And that's why she has to win.