Chapter Text
Caitlyn heard the doorbell chime. She shot a glance over at the clock beside her bed, shit, how was it time to go already? She finished pulling a pair of skinny jeans up and buckled them as she hurried to the door. She checked through the peephole before opening the door. The woman who stood in her was a vision of perfection. She wore dark jeans, with ankle boots and a t-shirt that was softly form fitting. The design on the front of her t-shirt was a stylized avatar of a female fighter. It was one of her girlfriend's merch t-shirts. Caitlyn stepped aside and her best friend breezed past her, her black hair bouncing perfectly in her wake.
"Caity, how are you not ready yet?"
Caitlyn sighed and followed to her bedroom.
"Sami you make it look so effortless to dress down."
Asami laughed.
"It's called dressing casual. You're halfway there, you just need some boots and a t-shirt."
Asami stepped over the debris of Caitlyn's clothing debacle and pulled the first pair of black boots off a shelf and handed them to Caitlyn, next she reached past the plain t-shirts and into the back where Caitlyn hid her band and logoed t-shirts and pulled a dark blue t-shirt that had a cupcake animated to look like a punk rocker. Caitlyn rolled her eyes.
"No, please not that one. Who's going to take me seriously wearing that?"
Asami raised an eyebrow and pierced Caitlyn with her big green eyes.
"We're literally going to watch people beat the shit out of each other. No one takes anyone seriously there, unless they're in the ring."
Caitlyn reluctantly took the t-shirts and pulled it on.
Asami's driver stopped at the back entrance to the building and they thanked him, and Assami let him know she'd call him when they were ready to leave. Caitlyn felt giddy about getting out, and seeing a fight. Asami had told her so much about it, but she had never had time to go. The semester was over, she had smashed her finals, so her summer was free for her to do with as she pleased; and according to Asami the first order of business was getting acquainted with MMA, and having a couple drinks after.
Asami swiped her keycard and pulled the door open, Caitlyn followed her in and down the hall.
"Why is it so quiet?"
Asami grinned at Caitlyn.
"Because we're backstage, so to speak, and things haven't really started yet. We're going to hangout with Korra before her fight."
Caitlyn felt the tug of disappointment pull at her chest. She was hoping to see more than just the inside of a locker room on her first visit to an MMA event. She tried to play it off though.
"Ok cool."
Asami must have noticed her disappointment because she nudged at Caitlyn before they got to the locker room.
"We're not going to stay long. I know you always feel like a third wheel, we'll head up to the company box and watch a few of the other matches. Korra likes to meditate before her fights anyway, and says I'm distracting."
Caitlyn laughed at Asami.
"I can't ever imagine why she would consider you distracting?"
The sarcasm dripped dryly from her accent, and Asami ignored it and responded in mock indignation as she flicked her hair over her shoulder.
"I don't either, I feel like she just doesn't try hard enough sometimes."
They both laughed as they rounded the corner to Korra's staging room. A security guard stood outside of the door and eyed them as they walked up, Asami smiled politely as he opened the door for them.
“Thanks Bruce.”
Caitlyn would never get used to how impressive Asami’s girlfriend was. As part of her prep for a fight she was warming up, she was shadow fighting facing a mirror. Her focus was intense and it wasn’t until Asami stepped into her view and she had completed her moves that she stopped and turned to engulf Asami in a hug and give her a kiss. She gave Caitlyn a hug too and reached for her water bottle.
“Hi there, you guys are early for the show.”
Asami casually perched herself on the arm of the couch while Caitlyn stood awkwardly in the middle of the floor, not knowing what to do with herself.
“Babe, I wanted to say good luck before heading up to the box.”
Caitlyn nodded and looked away when Korra closed the distance to Asami and kissed her. It was not that she was uncomfortable with the display of affection, or that she was homophobic. She was honestly a little jealous of what Asami had with Korra. Caitlyn had had a few girlfriends in the time that she had known Asami, but none of the relationships had worked out. Caitlyn liked girls that could take care of themselves, but all of the “self sufficient” girls that she had gone on dates with had been intimidated by Caitlyn’s family. Or by Asami being Caitlyn’s best friend. None of the girls could understand how Caitlyn could just be friends with someone as attractive as Asami. So Caitlyn had ended up being the inevitable third wheel most of the time with Asami and Korra.
“Caitlyn, are you excited for your first fight night?”
Caitlyn grinned and nodded.
“Sami has told me so much about the events that she has come to, and they sound like a lot of fun. My fight training gives me a base of knowledge of what they are doing, but I am sure speed and skill is a big part of winning.”
Korra laughed good heartedly.
“Speed and skill are important in the ring, not getting your face smashed in is a big bonus too.”
They all laughed, it was while they were laughing that there was a firm knock on the door and a guy walked in. Asami gave him a hug and Korra did the same.
“Mako.” Asami said, touching his arm. “Have you met Caitlyn?”
Mako turned as if he had not noticed Caitlyn when he entered the room. He extended a hand to her and tipped his head toward her.
“It’s good to meet you, I have heard quite a lot about you from these 2, but it's good to finally have a face to go with a name.”
Caitlyn shook his hand and was surprised by his warmth. She could understand after meeting him why both Asami and Korra had dated Mako. If Caitlyn had any inclination toward dating men she might be tempted to ask if he was single.
“I have heard a lot about you too. It is a pleasure to finally meet you Mako.”
Mako turned his attention to Korra, his brows drawing together in a serious manner.
“Korra, it is great to have fans boost your ego before your match, but you know how important it is to stick to your routine before a fight.”
Korra dropped her shoulders and rolled her eyes, Asami huffed at Mako.
“Mako, did you seriously just call me a fan?”
Mako rubbed his palm against his forehead, and Asami allowed a giggle to escape which set Korra laughing and Caitlyn couldn’t help but join in.
“Asami, you know exactly what I mean.” He stood at his full height so that the slight heel of Asami’s boot’s didn’t make them appear to be the same height. “We have had this discussion so many times. You agreed that you would not use the “girlfriend card” when it comes to training and matches.”
Asami raised her hands defensively and stepped backward toward the door, collecting Caitlyn’s arm along the way; she blew a kiss to Korra.
“Good luck my love, I’ll see you afterwards. Good-bye Mako, I’ll see you later.”
Caitlyn tried to hide a giggle and waved good-bye.
“Cheers Korra, it was good meeting you Mako.”
In the hallway Asami and Caitlyn laughed as Asami led the way up to the box that belonged to Sato Industries.
The first few fights were over so quickly that they were almost boring and Caitlyn felt a bit disappointed. The men that had entered the ring were too cocky and brash, and each match ended by knockout, with the cockier of the fighters taking a dive on each occasion. Caitlyn sighed heavily as she fidgeted with her drink.
“Sami, are fights usually over this quickly?”
Sami yawned and shook her head.
“No, this is very unusual, there is usually a lot more action at this stage to warm up the crowd. The women’s warm up fights should be coming up now, there is a new fighter who has joined the league, she is apparently pretty good.”
The first 2 of the women’s warm up fights were over as quickly as the men’s fights, and Caitlyn looked over at Asami trying to hide the exasperation from her face.
“It is more exciting sitting at a deer trap to shoot the first animal to wander toward the bait.”
Asami laughed, the slight raspiness to her voice coming through as she replied.
“This reminds me of the first time you invited me hunting and told me that it was the start of the season so it should be easy to get a kill in the first half of the day.”
Caitlyn laughed remembering how bored Asami got, and how her attempts to distract herself had made hunting even more difficult. As they were catching their breath the announcer introduced the next match. Caitlyn was only half paying attention until the second fighter entered the ring. She was tall and lean, and built like a jungle cat. She turned in the ring and her tattooed arms and back stole Caitlyn’s full attention. Caitlyn’s eyes took her in, she wore red shorts that were barely legal, showing off her muscular legs. Her sports bra was black and seemingly merged with her tattoos. The shaved side of her head made the electric pink of the rest of her hair more striking. Caitlyn jumped when she felt a hand on her elbow.
“Nothing.”
She said defensively. Asami rocked back as she laughed at Caitlyn.
“Sorry to pull you out of your trance there. Do you want another drink?” Caitlyn fought her brain to be cohesive. She nodded. “I mean I could probably pull some strings and have it so you could lick the sweat off the tattoos of Violence.”
Caitlyn blushed and swatted her hand toward Asami.
“That’s gross Asami. I was merely admiring her tattoos.” Asami was halfway to the bar and nodded sarcastically as she poured Caitlyn another drink. “Is her name really Violence?”
Asami shrugged.
“That’s what the program says.”
Caitlyn turned her attention back to the ring, ‘Violence’ moved with a lightness that was uncanny from such a tall fighter. Caitlyn wondered what her name really was.
“Hey Sami, can you find out what her name really is?”
Asami giggled and put Caitlyn’s drink down next to her.
“For you sugar, I can do anything.”
Caitlyn nodded thanks but didn’t hear anything else from Asami as the bell rang. The woman fighting Violence was shorter, but she was muscle bound. Her movements were measured and controlled. Violence on the other hand moved around the ring as if she was made of air. She drew her opponent to her, feeling out what her fighting style was. Violence threw a few jabs in her direction, and ducked and swerved everything that her opponent sent her way. 5 minutes flew by and Caitlyn found that she was leaned forward in her seat by the end of it. Violence had landed a few solid punches, but had avoided all except one body shot. Asami pulled Caitlyn’s attention away from the ring by tapping the side of her glass. Caitlyn turned, blinking quickly.
“I see what you mean about it being exciting to watch.”
Asami smiled mischievously.
“I have a feeling you are enjoying it for the same reasons I enjoy watching Korra fight.”
Caitlyn blushed and clawed back with some dark humor.
“I know you have ‘passionate’ tendencies” Caitlyn used air quotes to emphasize what she meant, and raised an eyebrow to make sure Asami understood what she was getting at. “But feeling turned on by someone else wiping your girlfriend is on another level.”
Asami chuckled and shook her head, never one to back down she turned the tables on Caitlyn.
“Guaranteed, if you bedded that tattooed fighter you would change your tune.”
Caitlyn blushed again, and hid it behind her glass as she took a sip. The idea of having that caliber of lover sent Caitlyn’s brain into a spiral.
Vi stepped away from the fence as the bell went for the second round, she waited for the ref to wave for them to begin. Vi faked a left and darted right landing a fist to the soft flesh below her opponents ribs. She howled as she turned and swung a wild back hand toward Vi. Vi ducked and danced backward out of her reach. Vi had the advantage of longer arms, and she kept that advantage as much as she could, her opponent was getting impatient though, and came raging toward Vi, her fists at shoulder height, her jaw set and eyes fixed on Vi. Vi had been fighting for as long as she could remember. She had learned how to read the body language of an opponent early on because it ensured her survival. Her opponent was allowing her rage to control her movements, and that meant that Vi was at the advantage. Vi led her around the ring, jabbing toward her and brushing aside fists as they came toward her. With surprising speed her opponent charged at her, grappling her against the fence. Vi felt the slick warmth of her opponent's sweat grinding into her own. Vi couldn’t land a legal fist strike from that angle, but her opponent shifted and Vi brought her knee up with force, feeling the crunch of her nose against her thigh. Her opponent staggered backward blood started to leak out of her nose, Vi shuffled 2 rapid steps and drove her fist into the woman’s face, Vi never used all her force unless she knew that it would be a finisher, because if used at the wrong time it would set her off balance and put her in trouble. This was not the case in this fight however, as her opponent went limp and collided hard with the mat. The ref swung his arms declaring the fight over, before raising one of Vi’s arms in victory. Vi bowed and without any rallying she left the ring.
Vi didn’t have a trainer with her. She very seldom had anyone with her, she had lost her parents when she was very young, and then had lost her foster father and siblings when she was a teenager. Vi had to wait around to collect the small payout that she had won. She changed into jeans and a hoodie, and locked her stuff in a locker before joining the crowd to watch one of the title matches. It was a different weight class to what Vi fought in, the fighters were a good 2 inches shorter than her and more than a few pounds lighter. Vi leaned against the wall in a shadow and watched the fight. The woman defending her title was built like she had trained in martial arts since she was born. Her muscles were lean and long along her limbs. Vi sized her up and even with the reach advantage Vi didn’t think she would come out on top. The woman jumped over a low kick and spun in the air landing a heel to her opponent's ear. Vi would definitely not be able to beat a fighter like that. Not in a fair fight anyway. She would have to stack the odds in her favor to stand a chance. Fighting with mostly fist Vi was fast enough to come out on top, but a fast opponent using their hands and feet, Vi let out a low whistle and nodded, impressed at the winners skill at knocking out her opponent.
The crowd got very loud and Vi ducked past them against the wall to collect her winnings before the crowd began to filter out. Vi grabbed her bag and slung it across her body before heading to the winners circle to wait her turn to be paid. There was a dull murmur in the room, other fighters milled around waiting for the treasurer to arrive. While Vi waited she clenched and unclenched her fists, checking on the health of her knuckles. She would ice them when she got home, and skip bag training the next 2 days to allow the bruising to heal a bit. If her foster father had taught her anything about fighting it was that your fists are your money makers, and you need to look after them. The door of the room opened behind the barred window. The treasurer had finally arrived. Vi waited quietly for her name to be called. While she was waiting the side door opened and the title bout fighter entered the room with a small entourage. She seemed smaller in a hoodie and sweats. It was deceptive, because dressed like that Vi might have thought she stood a chance to take her on, if they were in the same weight class. Her entourage was boisterous though. 2 dark-haired women who were taller than Vi giggled and chattered to each other. One of them was wearing a black t-shirt with what looked like a cupcake on it. She thought she recognised it as the merch for a bar called “The Last Drop”. Vi looked her up and down but would never have guessed her to be the kind of woman to frequent a place like that. Her friend leaned down and kissed the titled fighter on the cheek. Vi Felt eyes on her and looked back at the woman in the cupcake t-shirt and their eyes met for a split second before they both looked away. Vi looked back at her, and saw her whispering into the ear of the other woman.
Vi looked over to the treasurer, certain that her name would be called soon. Vi heard her name and walked over, she got level with the entourage when the chattering stopped and as she passed them she heard someone with a British accent beg no, and a raspy voice met her ears as a hand touched her arm. Vi was expecting it, so didn’t flinch away from her. She instead turned slowly and with her eyes traced a path from the tips of the fingers up to the face of their owner. She was a fraction taller than Vi, with a mass of shiny black hair and the biggest green eyes Vi had ever seen. Vi neither frowned nor smiled, but simply raised a scared eyebrow at the woman.
“Hi, Violence. I'm Asami Sato. Would you like to join us for a drink after this?”
Vi looked passed Asami at the small group, the cupcake t-shirt woman was looking at the floor, her face flushed. Assumingly she was the owner of the british accent.
“Give me a moment Asami, I’m holding up the queue here.”
Vi stepped out of her reach and up to the kiosk. Her cash was in an envelope. Vi signed for it and opened the envelope to make sure it looked right. The treasurer looked at her suspiciously. Vi said thank you, folded the envelope up and tucked it into the front pocket of her jeans. She felt a weight drop from her shoulders. She would be able to pay rent. Vi ran her fingers through her hair, pushing her hood off as she walked back toward the small group of people that Asami had asked her to join. Vi extended her hand to Asami.
“Hi Asami, name’s Vi. Short for Violence.”
Asami shook her hand and motioned toward the woman she had kissed earlier. Vi shook her hand.
“This is my girlfriend Korra.”
Vi smiled.
“Korra, hi, I saw you fight. You have mad skills. I’m glad we’re not in the same weight class.”
Korra laughed, her face was bright and open. Vi liked her instantly. Asami then motioned to a man a little taller than her, who stood a short distance from them looking sullen.
“Vi, this is Mako. He is Korra’s manager. He doesn’t usually look this grumpy.”
Mako swiveled his head toward them looking insulted, but brushing it off as he shook Vi’s hand.
“Hi, good to meet you.”
Vi nodded and looked curiously at the now very shy last member of the group that had not been introduced as yet. Up this close Vi could see how strikingly beautiful she was. She had sharp features, but she didn’t look harsh, she looked majestic. Under normal circumstances Vi wouldn’t have given her a second look, because she clearly came from money. Vi hadn’t been in town for long but she had seen the name Sato on enough buildings to know vaguely who Asami was, and the cupcake t-shirt looked an awful lot like the Mayor Cassandra Kirammam. Vi stepped toward her with her hand outstretched, before Asami could give her name.
“Hi Cupcake. I’m Vi. I like your t-shirt.”
The color rose to her face and Vi heard a chorus of giggling from Korra and Asami before Asami broke in.
“This is Caitlyn.”
Caitlyn very gingerly took Vi’s hand and shook it. Though for all that she was cautious there was definitely strength in her grip as she held Vi’s hand. Vi looked down at her fingers, they were long like a pianist, but there was an unusual roughness to them that seemed out of place for a mayor's daughter.
“You have beautiful fingers.”
Caitlyn finally found her voice and her accent had a defiant confidence to it.
“Thanks, I like your tattoos.”
Vi grinned at her like a fox looking into a chicken coop.