Description: Acacia's not one to approach strangers. Not normally. It's not that she's shy, per-se. But she's not the most socially adept of individuals. Granted, there's nothing normal about how she approached Chun-Li. Walking up to her in front of a massive crowd, just after the legendary fighter finished a match...and asking for an audience. But there's advice she needs. Wisdom she needs. And in the fighting world, only a few can give it...
It's noisy here.
There's quite a crowd, moving through the lobby. The atrium of the Masters Arena is a spacious place, a huge circular space ringing the entire perimeter of the building. And right now, it's pretty packed. Fight fans, reporters, general gawkers, hanger-ons ... lots of people. That's what you get when there's a headline fight, the sort of names that draw attention. Like one Chun-Li, reputedly the strongest woman in the world.
Yeap. That draws people, alright.
It's easy for someone to get lost in a crowd like this. Very easy. And so, nobody's paying much attention to the young woman leaning against a railing up on the second storey, looking down onto the lobby floor. Just another anonymous face in the press of humanity. Unremarkable. Dressed in a green military jacket, black t-shirt and jeans, with an unkempt mop of silver hair.
Of course, if people -were- paying more attention, they might notice she's a fighter herself. Not an unknown one, too - the Neo League leader, for quite a while. A name in herself.
But again, in a crowd like this... she's just another face.
Acacia Gillespie leans against the railing, looking down. She checks her watch.
Chun-Li should be heading out...sometime now.
A small, wry grin inches across her face.
Flush from her fairly sound victory of just a few minutes earlier, (but bearing a few new bruises in spite of that,) it is into that very same lobby that Chun-Li steps, her forehead painted with a thin sheen of sweat, and a fluffy white handtowel over her right shoulder. She was still dressed in her favorite dark blue jumpsuit, her little embroidered vest open to help ward against the heat; it was modest anyways, there was just more jumpsuit beneath.
And as soon as she passes the threshhold, and enters the lobby, the gathered crowd explodes into motion, the press persons snapping pictures, fans waving their signs about. Chun-Li, for her part, stops, and lifts a hand in a little wave to the assembly, turning a little bit in place so that her eyes sweep over as much of the crowd as she can glance at.
Her eyes ~do~ sweep over Acacia, but the Neo League Champion does get lost in the sea of faces. Chun-Li certainly did know of her, as it was only prudent for the woman to keep track of all the up and coming fighters, but she had only seen pictures, and a few glimpses of her fighting; not a strong enough memory to pick her out of the crowd as it was.
Acacia, though, certainly notices Chun-Li.
It'd be hard for her /not/ to. After all, the woman's the center of attention. She peers down, looking over the heads of the crowd. From her vantage point, she's got an unobstructed view of the older fighter. Just not a terribly close one. But it's her, of course. Unmistakable.
Acacia gives a small nod.
Then she rests one gloved hand on the railing in front of her, leather sliding over the smooth metal. And in a single fluid motion, she vaults over the side, plunging herself into space.
There's an immediate commotion behind her, from the second storey level she just vacated - and a half-second later, below her, from the crowd. For an instant, Acacia reflects on the fact that /maybe/, just /maybe/, this wasn't the brightest idea she's ever had.
Nope.
Definitely not the brightest.
But she's committed now.
It's not the landing, really. That's easy for a fighter like her. The heavy rubber soles of her combat boots hitting the faux rubber floor, her legs bending at the knees, absorbing the impact. Acacia gets up, just a few feet away from Chun-Li.
No, the problem is all the -attention- this method of introducing herself is gathering. Ah...well.
Acacia blinks, looks directly at Chun-Li, and raises one hand in a vague wave. The other scratches the back of her head. "Um," she says, over the noise of the crowd, now reaching fever pitch, "hi, you have a sec?"
Chun-Li, demeanor relaxed, becomes far less so as the crowd starts to murmur and shout, one overexcitable woman screaming in fear as Acacia vaults over the edge of the railing. Brown eyes widening, the Strongest Woman in the World halts in her waving, and turns her eyes towards the falling Acacia.
Her first reaction was to catch the girl, her body tensing as she twists towards Acacia, her legs bending, and perhaps giving the impression of a spring retracting, gathering power for the next jump... but that reaction is tempered at the fighter 'sense', the impression she could feel off of Acacia, Chun-Li raising up from her bent-leg position to face Acacia more fully. Did her tension decrease at all? Not a chance. Schoolgirls seemed to be a favorite of Vega, particularly as of late.
And so it isn't until Acacia speaks that Chun-Li allows herself to stand down from her state of alert, the tension leaving her visibly with a smile, and a slacking of the very visible muscles through her jumpsuit.
"Of course." she says pleasantly enough, "How is it that I can help you?" Still no sign of recognition. Perhaps her mind was still catching up from the jog that it had.
"Well," Acacia begins.
She looks...slightly embarrassed. Perhaps. It's rather hard to tell. Her face is carefully composed, her features blank. But there's little signs, little clues, like the faint twitching of her cheek muscles, and the tiniest hint of a blush beneath her brown-complexioned skin.
Her voice, though, is reasonably under control.
"got a question. Or asking...advice, maybe."
Right now, the two fighters are surrounded by a definite circle of people. All the fans who came to see the Chinese woman. Reporters with microphones and cameras. And now that Acacia's drawn attention to herself, a lot of them recognize /her/, too.
But Acacia? She pays them no heed. Her eyes are locked on Chun-Li's. While her resolve might not /entirely/ be there, her gaze is level.
Trust her, Chun-Li was becoming more and more aware of the press of people all about her. And it was equally easy to tell that the girl in front of her was becoming more embarrassed by the moment.
There is a significant pause, the Chinese woman's serene gaze softening further as she matches Acacia's eyes with her own. Ignoring the throng of people clamoring for her attention, and jabbing microphones in their faces, Chun-Li brings up a hand, gesturing off to the side. A side that was choked with reporters at the moment, but still. "Would you like to speak someplace a bit quieter, Acacia?" she asks. Oho! Seems that she recognized her after all.
"Uh," Acacia replies, the meaningless syllable tripping off her tongue. She cuts herself off, seemingly determined to /not/ sound like an idiot. Instead, she eyes the little sea of humankind surrounding their little islet - and threatening to overwhelm it. Turning back to the Chinese woman, she nods, once, her lips shifting into a wry grin. Just a small one, but a grin all the same.
"Yeah," Acacia says, walking a few steps, "thanks..."
The grin is matched by a pleasant little smile upon Chun-Li's lips, the woman turning to the side, folding her hands behind her back, and walking towards the door, her attention leaving Acacia to turn towards the crowd itself. Ignoring their pleas for a conversation and questions, they move out of her way regardless, parting before her to provide a path towards the doorway itself.
And so, it is with a steady step that Chun-Li crosses the room, sets her hand on the doorway, and pushes it open for Acacia, revealing the hallway beyond. Speaking pleasantly, and calmly, she then says, "It'll be the room that says Chun-Li." And indeed, down the corridor, there would be a room, with a temporary sign hanging upon it, that reads, Chun-Li. What stopped the reporters from getting that far? Likely the black-suited guys in the hallway.
On Acacia's part, she moves with a fair bit of confidence herself - though it's difficult to tell whether it's entirely genuine, or at least partially feigned. She follows Chun-Li with quick and deliberate strides, nodding gratefully to the woman as she passes through the door into the arena's corridor space. She turns her head, her eyes searching - settling on the expected door with the other fighter's name on it. Set aside for her use, it seems.
"Thanks," Acacia murmurs, as she turns the knob and steps through.
In a quieter voice, laced with light bemusement, she adds, "...they never gave -me- a dressing room."
And Chun-Li brings up a forefinger to her lips as she walks alongside Acacia. "Shhh..." she says in an amused tone of voice. Casting a moment's attention and a smile towards the guards, she settles her hands upon the door, and opens it with a twist of the wrist, to reveal the relatively spartan room beyond. "It's just because I ask for it. I am old, and spoiled." she says, stepping a little past Acacia to enter the room proper, her eyes gazing over the rooms varied furnishings.
Choosing the least comfy looking of all the seats, she steps towards, then settles down atop a wooden stool, turning her eyes towards Acacia, and awaiting her to close the door before she asks, "So, you wanted to speak with me?"
Acacia doesn't reply immediately. She shuts the door, swinging it against the frame. It closes with a solid click. She walks into the room, just a few strides, then stops. She remains standing.
"Right, yeah," Acacia says. She actually looks slightly -more- uncomfortable now that they're in private, free of onlookers. Or maybe it's -because- of that. She's less conscious of her efforts in keeping her game face up. The mask starts to slip.
She carries on, anyway, regardless of that. Acacia isn't one to stop because of a little thing like discomfort. She runs a hand through her hair, pushing a few strands of away from her face. Takes a breath. And speaks again.
"You...no, not old, not spoiled," she states, "just one of the best."
There's no flattery there. It's just, far as Acacia's concerned, a calm statement of fact. She wouldn't -be- here if she didn't think that of Chun-Li. An opinion, coming from anyone less, wouldn't matter.
"But," Acacia says, pointing out the door, indicating the arena and crowds outside, "why? Why fight? Why go through...all of...-that-?"
What might add to Acacia's nervousness is the attentiveness Chun-Li was favoring her with at the moment, her calm gaze focused upon the features of the younger woman. Bringing a foot up to hook it upon one of the little crossbars on the stool, she lets her other leg dangle off of the edge.
She accepts the compliment with an incline of her head, her own features unaffected because of the way that Acacia said it. Still, she feels driven to say, "Perhaps. We all have a long ways to go, somedays, myself included." she says, a smile coming up unto her lips regardless. Glancing towards the door as it is indicated, however, Chun-Li lets a little silence linger in the air before her eyes return towards Acacia.
"Why go through the fighting, the crowds, the fame, you're asking?" Chun-Li asks. "Because of the training... because of the self-improvement that I see in myself from fighting, and the improvement that the experience can give to another because of our fight. Because of the challenge... I get to test myself on a weekly basis, if I would like to. The fact that I can get paid while doing so, is... well, it certainly helps, but it's not a driving motivation. It lets me focus more." The other, unspoken reason, is that she liked the attention. That was not one she was going to say outright, however.
"Fair," Acacia answers, after a moment's silence, a moment's thought. She mulls over the words, turning them back and forth in her mind. Holding them up to scrutiny. Her brow furrows, she bites a lip, thoughtfully.
"Fair," she repeats, nodding her head slowly.
She can't disagree.
"But," Acacia says, looking up, fixing Chun-Li with an intense look, "is it -all- about -yourself-?"
The tone is strong. Almost harsh. Almost accusatory. But if there's any recrimination in the question, it isn't just directed at Chun-Li.
Of course not. Because the reason Acacia's here is to find out something she needs to know - for herself.
Chun-Li certainly seems taken aback by the tone, her body straightening a bit upon the stool. Her other leg comes up, and hooks upon the lower rung of the stool, her head canting to one side as she regards Acacia calmly.
"In some ways, yes. But in training up myself, focusing upon my own strength, I place myself into a position where I can help others if they need it." she says, her lips turning downwards into a more serious look. There is a lingering pause, and she then asks, "Why is it that you ask that question, Acacia?"
Acacia hesitates, breath catching. She blinks several times. She draws back a little. But she regains her composure very fast, establishing a firm grip on her own spine. She squares her shoulders. Inhales. Exhales, letting the tension drain out of her in a sigh.
It's fair that she answer. After all, she's just submitted a perfect stranger to interrogation.
Acacia clasps her fingers together. She walks, slowly, pacing around the floor of Chun-Li's dressing room. She tilts her head. Her lips move, soundlessly, as she assembles the words in her mind. Deciding exactly what to say, and how to say it. This isn't easy for her. She's not exactly good at the emotions thing, or opening up to people.
That said, she was the one who sought out Chun-Li. Thinking, somehow, that the woman might have the answer. Or at least a piece.
"Graduating soon," Acacia says, finally.
She means high school, but she doesn't elaborate on that.
"What now...don't know. Not sure. Pro fighting, yeah. But..."
Acacia shakes her head.
"...not enough. Selfish. Or is it?"
And Chun-Li allows all the time Acacia needs. Bringing up a hand idly as Acacia paces, she undoes one of the ribbons holding her bun into place, and with another flick of the fingers, her hair becomes free from the bun, spilling out over her shoulders and back. On just one side, at least.
When reaching up to her second bun, is when Acacia speaks, her fingers halting in that motion. A pause, and they smoothly reach to her lap, still holding the ribbon and cloth that held the first one. A few moments longer of quiet observation, before she speaks, her words gentle and soft.
"I have heard of you already, Acacia. You are really very talented, really very strong. And it seems, right now, that you are searching for a reason to use your strength. A 'pure' reason, I feel. Is this the case?" she asks.
Acacia stops, coming to a halt, mid-step. She grounds her foot on the dressing room floor, her boot sole grinding into the carpet. She adjusts her footing. Her hands, still linked, fingers interlaced, come up, clasping the back of her neck.
"Not that strong," she answers, in a quiet voice, "outside, maybe. Inside? Don't know."
She closes her eyes, just for a few heartbeats. When she opens them again, they're focused on the other woman.
"Gotta be more. Want to be. Need to be."
Then, Acacia smiles. A sardonic smile.
"Lord knows -why-..."
And Chun-Li listens, strong, calloused fingers holding the ribbon and cloth within a very gentle grip. The attention of her eyes do not leave Acacia's, the woman inclining her head towards hers when she is done. There is a moment's further consideration of the girl, before Chun-Li speaks.
"You aren't talking about the strength of your body." Chun-Li finally says, her hands rising to fiddle with the ribbon surrounding her other bun next. "Acacia, you feel as though you can provide a good 'face' to the world, but the woman, the... heart that the face masks, is weak?" she asks.
"Or selfish," Acacia replies, "or not good. Not really."
She keeps her eyes on the older fighter, remaining where she is. Standing in the middle of the dressing room. She's still got that smile on her face, still a sardonic one - but the grin has a somewhat self-depreciating edge to it now.
"Not trying to be emo..."
Acacia seperates her hands, pulling them from round her neck. She indicates herself, with a wave. If she's anything, it's tomboy paramilitary grunge.
She purses her lips.
"...just...I don't know."
She looks at Chun-Li.
"You know. Yourself. How do you?"
The other bun is freed, that side of her hair spilling downwards over back and shoulders, Chun-Li bunching up the bundle of ribbons and cloth, providing a handy ball to throw to the side, where it rolls and settles upon a desk beneath a mirror.
Gaze returning to Acacia, Chun-Li steps off of the stool, and rises to her none-too-impressive full height, her demeanor relaxed, her smile gentle. "You don't wish to be selfish, or appear as such." Chun-Li says. "You know... not many fighters, especially ones your age care about such things. And to care, to see a problem within yourself, or see something you wish to change in yourself. That is the first step towards actually changing it."
A smallish sigh comes next.
"I'm not quite sure what you mean, however. How do I... care about people? How do I help people?" she asks, canting her head just a touch to the side as she regards Acacia.
Acacia considers the question. Considers her answer.
She's not entirely at ease. She can't be. Acacia holds up a hand, forming her fingers into a fist - the tough material of her motorcycle glove flexing. Her nails dig into her leather-clad palm. But then she opens her hand, fingers splayed. No, she's not entirely calm. But her tension is easing, slowly, steadily. Her spine not nearly as stiff, her muscles not so rigid, her body not quite locked into a solid unbending mass.
"Either," she says, "both."
And Chun-Li can't quite help the glint of amusement that slips into her smile at Acacia's stoicness. Standing up herself, she lets her hand dangle at her side, her other hand rising to scratch at the side of her neck.
"You just... need to simply be aware of your intentions, and /do/. When you strike, ask yourself, 'why am I striking'? But do not linger too long upon questions and answers, unless you wish to." Chun-Li says, smile growing a little bit brighter. "But it should help you discover where your spiritually weak points are. After a while, you can start to simply trust..." Chun-Li begins.
But on her little desk, was a slim black cell phone, one that rings with a melodic little tune. Chun-Li's face grows a bit harder in an instant as she recognizes the ringtone, and she glances towards her desk. "Acacia... I am sorry, but can I be excused? I would like to speak with you further on this, but... I need to take this call."
Acacia's eyes narrow. There's a subtext here. She didn't miss the other woman's reaction. But it's none of her business. Nothing to do with her. So she doesn't comment, doesn't even wonder. She blanks it from her mind and face, instead inclining her head in a simple affirmative gesture.
"Of course - taken enough of your time."
She turns, then, moving towards the door. Then she pauses. And adds a single word:
"Thanks."
Then she opens it, and walks through.
Acacia's not one for excessive words. She says it. She means it. That's enough.
Log created on 12:39:12 08/15/2007 by Acacia, and last modified on 09:54:55 09/03/2007.