Are You #&@%ing Insane?

The eyes suddenly pop back up to focus on Amy. "Yes!," he pipes up in an effort to bat away the notion that he got creamed. "Almost pinned you!"

Once. He thinks. Maybe. He actually can't remember how it went too clearly anymore - other than feeling her punching his face over and over.

"Blaise." Amy's expression didn't change; she wasn't playing around here. Her lips set in a thin line and her eyes stayed steady and steely. "Was it a close fight?"

Blaise blinks at her a couple times in silence.

"Yeah!," he protests, a hint of desperation edging into his voice. "I mean, well, it felt like it to me! I knocked you for a loop on that one hit!"

Amy narrowed her eyes, annoyed. Blaise's boundless optimism fed into an equally abundant energy, and that made him fun to be around most of the time. Right now, though, that quality was just making him sound delusional, and that was testing Amy's patience. Amy opened her mouth to argue, but closed it again. They were dangerously close to veering off topic. "Okay. It wasn't, but we're going to leave that be for now." Amy started to lean forward again.

"I kicked your ass, then, a little while later, I kicked Mako's ass. But here's something I didn't tell you about my fight with Mako: I won by forfeit. She ran away when the cops showed up where we were fighting, and I was handed the win by decision." Amy shook her head. "I punched her. I kicked her. I even bit her. I hit her with everything in that store- there are bitch-shaped dents all over the shelves at that 7-Eleven now- and that wasn't enough to put her down; she still managed to stand up and ride away on her bike after. Do you see what I'm getting at here, Blaise?" Amy's eyes were chips of ice. "Mako is tough- tougher than I am, probably. And she's mean. And she hates you." Amy's hand had extended while she was speaking, and fingers flipped upright to mark her progress down her list. Then she put her hand down and cocked her head- a strange, ill-fitting gesture, considering how aggressive her words and facial expression were. "Do you still think you can take her?"

Blaise's attempt to rally is met with an unmistakably annoyed look from his friend. The small, bubbling amount of pep visibly drains again, his shoulders slouching as she outright refutes his claim.

"I... m-.. maybe...?," chances the teen. Every syllable is coming out more uncertain. He's not stupid. He knows what she's saying. It's crippling. It's heartbreaking. His head lowers again, tucking his nose against his knees. "I... I have to try... I can focus...," he rebuts meekly. Focus is what his trainer keeps insisting he lacks; no follow-through. He did better in his last match against Stone. But Amy is seriously damaging what leg he had to stand on. If her goal was to crush his spirit, she can plainly see the effect it's having on him.

Amy allowed her expression to soften a bit, but, inside, guilt was rearing its ugly head again. She was rapidly approaching a line, and she had no intention of stopping herself from crossing it. "Okay, Blaise, that's fair. Just because Mako's the stronger, meaner version of me doesn't mean you haven't got a shot. Heck, you've been getting better in the ring, anyone can see that. Tell me," Amy stood up and crossed her arms. Her gaze was deliberately unwavering. She felt cruel. "How many girls have you taken to three? How many submissions have you won so far?"

Blaise bobs his head mildly against his knees as she gives some kudos. But at her question, his head lifts more sharply to look at her.

"W-well.. you know.. uh.. n-none of'em..." He can feel his nerves tightening, the stress starting to grip his chest. It's a sickening feeling; he's been nervous before, but not like this. She's highlighting his record of failure, and it feels like she's got a grip on his heart. Every word is an extra ounce of pressure. "But.. but I won.. against Stone... a-and I would'a won that first time, too..."

Amy nodded. She felt sick. “A DQ and an almost. Pretty ballsy to put it all on the line with that kind of record, don’t you think, Blaise?” Amy stepped forward. She took a moment to idly inspect the upper row of lockers to Blaise’s right before turning around and leaning against them, one foot pressed flat against the wall. They weren’t making eye contact anymore, so, when Amy spoke, her voice went out into the empty room.

“But let’s ignore all of that for now, your record, how strong Mako is, everything. Let’s say that, against all odds, you manage to hold your own against her.” Her voice got a little louder. “Didn’t we decide to team up precisely because the Valkyries were cheating sacks of shit?” Amy turned her head to look at Blaise. “You think she challenged you to a fair fight here? You think she doesn’t have some contingency just in case you pull off some sort of miracle?” Amy pressed on, not bothering to wait for any answers. “You got suckered, Blaise. She played you, tricked you into playing with the ultimate stakes, and you can bet your ass that she’s got plans to ensure that she wins tonight.”

The grip tightens a little further. It wrenches a small sound from the back of his throat.

Fortunately for Blaise, she points out something that might run a little contrary to her objective. He shifts in his little huddled position to look up at her. "B-but that's why you're here! Just like you said! You're here to help! To make sure it doesn't fly! To keep things on the level!" The tirade comes across more pleading and desperate than he'd intended; he was hoping more for 'confident', and he had faith in Amy - or did. His world is in the process of being rocked.

"That's why I'm here." She repeated in agreement. There was a pause, then she squared her shoulders to Blaise. "That's why I'm here, now. I got your back, Blaise, and the best thing I can think to do for you right now is to convince you to back out of the match." She held up a hand to deter interruption. "Mako's counting on you bringing in backup. I don't know if you've forgotten, but the last time you had a match with them, I got jumped in the locker room. You guys are playing with live ammo, here, and she's not gonna be taking any chances." The hand came down, and the voice lost its edge, taking on a softer tone. "Blaise, there's no reason why you have to do this tonight. Back out of the fight, and we'll take them down together, peg by peg."