3467/Heartache Hotel

Heartache Hotel
Date of Scene:	20 September 2020
Location:	Gramercy Park Hotel
Synopsis:	Katsumi's relocated away from the rest of her team for their sake. She reaches out to Nessa, the one person she considers a friend. They talk about (allegedly real) boys, Disney princesses, superhero costumes, and hope.
Cast of Characters:	Katsumi Oshiro, Nessa Donovan

---

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
It's been a weird experience in America this time around. Blackouts, weakness, fears of something being wrong on the inside, all on top of the pressure to perform at what will probably be the biggest event of her career - it's taking a toll on Katsumi. And she discovered the other day that this very stress might be having some weird effect on her eyes. She had a slight freakout at a cafe in Metropolis. Word got back to the general manager. He did what he thought was smart, and relocated her. You know, so she didn't freak out the others from Team Japan.

And now, Katsumi is well and truly isolated. The hotel she's been placed in is just as nice, if not nicer in an artsy way, but it's just so... lonely. She has nothing but her thoughts here. And her thoughts seem to be making her eyes go weird. Today, she noticed that the green is still exceptionally pale to near-white, but little flecks and motes of purpleish-pink have begun appearing in the sea of washed out jade; like broken pixels on a screen. Her vision still seems fine, though.

She tapped out a message to Nessa, asking her to visit. She hates sounding weak, or needy. But she'll bury that under the auspice of wanting to hear if she got to use the dress yet. That was a good time.

Nessa Donovan has posed:
Thankfully, despite her busy schedule, Nessa had sent the reply that she'd be by. It did take a bit for her to get there, mostly thanks to being on the other side of town, but she's soon enough knocking on the hotel room door, offering a text message as a warning that it's her just in case.

She waits outside, glancing at her phone as she scrolls through it to check for other messages--it was prudent to make sure taking a little time to spend with a friend wasn't cutting to much into the time of something else going on. Ah, priorities. Right now, though, Kat was top of the list.

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"Come in," replies Katsumi's voice from within the room, flat and deflated.

And there, settled amidst the lap of luxury, lies Katsumi across an unmade bed of lavish royal blue blankets. She looks cleaned and showered, and in fairness, she's dressed - hiphugging black shorts and a gray camisole tanktop, those fingerless gloves, that choker, and chunky black boots - but one would be forgiven for assuming she'd just not bothered to get out of bed that day. The phone lies beside her, and the Japanese grappler stares flatly up at the ceiling.

Even the ceiling is kind of nice in here, though.

"The f*** is going on with me, Nessa?," she asks. "Is it like a self-fulfilling prophecy? I'm worried I'm gonna fail, or get sick, so the worry makes me screw up or get sick?"

Nessa Donovan has posed:
Nessa enters the room, letting the door shut behind her as she takes a moment to observe the luxury of the room. "Well, this is nicer than any hotel room I've ever stayed in," she comments. The woman's in her math class usual, only varied in that she's got a green on today and her hair is braided to one side of her head. Gasp, there's neck showing!

She makes her way over, studying her friend seriously. "Well, doctors are pretty good at figuring out basic biological things. But if there's something I've seen, it's that not everything is basic biology. Maybe there's some mutant trying to sabotage your match? Mutants aren't my specialty so it's not like I can just figure that out on my own."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro totally caught that she's showing a little neck. Is that a hint more confidence she detects? That small change tugs the corners of her lips upwards, however. She doesn't draw attention to it, though. Not right now, at least. And that's because what Nessa says causes that smile to instantly vanish.

Katsumi props herself up on her elbows, eyes widened. "Oh my god, do you think a mutie's doing this to me!? Like I'm being poisoned!? But- but why? I just fight! Yeah, I talk s*** and get in scraps, but- really!?" It's such a violating thought, that someone would take so much exception to her presence or participation that they'd actually go out of their way to hurt her.

Nessa Donovan has posed:
There's a small shrug. "I honestly don't know, Kat," Nessa admits. "Your doctor said you were fine. Which means either you're getting so stressed psychologically that you're causing it yourself or there's some other factor we haven't seen." She shakes her head, moving to take a seat nearby.

"Look, we'll figure it out. I don't know that I can track anything mutant but magic's about all I'm good for. So if someone's /cursing/ you, I can help with that. But you said this is a big fight. I don't know how desperate the other teams are."

It's not out of the realm of possibilities.

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro looks at Nessa for a few seconds in silence, then drops down onto the bed with a pained groan. Her palms quickly set over her eyes. "It's... it's not the other teams. It couldn't be. They'd..." She really doesn't want to explain how she knows that, but it's certainly relevant. "...there's no reason for'em to do that."

She slides one hand down along her face, fingers splitting to peek guiltily up at her blonde friend.

Nessa Donovan has posed:
Nessa nods slowly. It's not something she's going to ask about, but Katsumi knows the industry better than she does. "Alright, maybe an obsessed fan, or someone who hates you on a personal level?" She can't hide a grin. "Maybe you insulted the wrong math class at some point?"

It's an attempt to lighten the situation at least with humor, though she does seem a little concerned that it won't work. "In any case, we'll figure it out."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro is mostly relieved Nessa didn't ask her to elaborate. She's in a state of mind where she likely would have. So her hand slides up over her eyes again, modest bust rising and falling in a single, smooth sigh. "S***, that could be /anyone/. I insult people just on my way to the ring."

Despite it, her gloved hand flops to the side, attempting to lightly touch against Nessa's forearm. She's wearing sleeves, right? They're fine. "Thanks for not.. thinking I'm schitzo or something." It's a fairly ugly way of conveying appreciation, but at least she managed to convey it. And the look she offers up to her is a warm one, certainly by Oshiro standards. "Tell me I'm being a dork and doing this to myself. Can you do that?"

Nessa Donovan has posed:
It's one thing for an accidental touch from someone she doesn't know, another for a purposeful touch from someone who knows her circumstances. Nessa doesn't shy away from the touch, skin safely covered by fabric and the knowledge that Kat knows skin contact could be bad. There's a certain comfort in that.

"You're a dork and doing this to yourself, and if you aren't doing it to yourself, I'll go beat up whomever is. But you're still a dork."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro breaks the tension with a sighing giggle. "F***ing lame. The one time I actually wanna hug someone without hurting'em, and they'd end up hurting /me/ if I did." Despite her fussing, Katsumi gives the best hug she thinks she can manage - gently squeezing Nessa's forearm before letting it go. She plays it off in her usual, mirthfully abrasive way, but there is a deep level of appreciation for Nessa's understanding and tolerance. It's kind of like she has a friend.

Those never end well.

"Alright..." The Japanese girl finally pushes herself to sit up beside her. "For starters, look at this." She suddenly leans /quite/ close in towards Nessa, enough so that her warm breath is likely just reaching her skin. Her head turns faintly, offering her left eye for inspection and helpfully widening it. "Have you ever seen an eye look like that?" Her right hand paws her hair back, arm having to wrangle around the top of her head to avoid bumping the blonde. "It's like my eye has glitter or something kind of, right?"

Nessa Donovan has posed:
Nessa laughs at the comment, returning the forearm squeeze. "Hey, eventually I'll get the hang of controlling it. I'm pretty good if I know it's coming, but accidental stuff is... oof. When I'm confident I can handle it, you can have a real hug." She grins, but then her attention is on Kat's eyes.

She shifts so she can get a better look, balancing herself so she doesn't bump into the woman on accident. She's mentally preparing herself /in case/, so if there's a reaction she can circumvent it. If she knows to be focusing on not freezing something, it's easier. She squints a bit, taking a good look at her eye color. "What? When did this happen? That's..." She looks stumped, and so she does the first thing she does instinctually when she's stumped by something weird.

She's sensing for magic, both near Katsumi and nearby.

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Were there any magic to sense, it would be very, very low and distant; like the gentle, ambient hum of a small refrigerator.

Katsumi's delicate eyebrows raise at what she believes is a completely understandable level of confusion. "/Right/!?," she asks, not shying back from Nessa's face. She tries to not focus on the other woman in this proximity, attempting to let her get as clear a look at the irises as she wants. "I don't know when it happened. Two days ago, I was in Metropolis and some girl mentioned my eyes. So I looked, and they were practically white. And now they've got these little specks of color in there."

She exhales a breezy sigh through her nose, lips pursed in a sulky moue. "Think they'll go back to normal when this is finally over?"

After a beat, the gently nudges a fist at Nessa's waist, murmuring, "Say yes."

Nessa Donovan has posed:
"Well, I don't think you're magically cursed," Nessa concludes, peering at Kat cautiously. "That's one of the weirdest things I've ever seen." She's taking her time as she squints and looks, wracking her brain for anything similar that she's run across. The list is already low, and ruling out magic leaves her at a loss. This is her friend, though, and she is very aware that Kat needs the support.

She nods slowly. "Yes. But we have to figure out what it is for it to be over. I can pretty reasonably say that this isn't just your brain getting stressed out from the match. You haven't gotten tested to see if you're a mutant, have you? That's the first thing that pops into my head, normal biology just doesn't do this. So either there's something going on in there on its own... or something outside is having an effect on you." She does smile, though.

"Don't worry, you'll have perfect eyes for those selfies soon enough."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"So I'm just regular-cursed," Katsumi replies, voice dryly humored. It's a joke, but not really. She's always suspected she was.

As Nessa starts poking holes in the narrative, however, Katsumi starts to frown again. She wasn't supposed to go off-script. It's supposed to be stress-related. Mundane. Fixable. "They said they tested that," she notes. "And it came back negative. I'm a normal person."

With the assurance that she'll have perfect eyes again soon, the punkette breathes another gentle sigh. "Hope so. It's freaking me out, and I dunno if I should be showing myself to people like this. If management'll think I'm pulling something on'em."

Nessa Donovan has posed:
"Okay, so we cross mutant off the list," Nessa says, giving a nod. "So unless you've got some weird tech someone installed in you that's undetectable, I'm gonna lean towards some weird environmental influence or some jerk trying to mess with you. In which case, I hope you know I'll go full Elsa on him." She certainly does not like the thought of someone just pulling all of this on Kat for no reason at all.

"Alright, so the plan is, we keep you out of sight in public as much as possible for the duration, or at least we get you some /killer/ sunglasses so no one will even question the eyes."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Those unusual eyes start to widen. Nessa had to go and mention Elsa. Is it possible she never even thought of that before? She's inhaling slowly, deeply. And then she's exhaling an excited, faint squeal. "Oh my god, you're f***ing Elsa!" Immediately, she's noting Nessa's blonde hair, skin complexion, her own eyes. "I'm braiding the S*** out of your hair later," she asserts. She makes it sound so appealing.

"Part of my job is doing promos and PR," Katsumi replies, her tone flattening a little. "We'll have to see. I don't think management's noticed or anything, though. And you think it's maybe in the environment? Like America's so godd*** nasty I can't even?" Beat. "No, I had that blackout in Japan.."

Nessa Donovan has posed:
"Nonono, I am not Elsa," Nessa says, looking extremely annoyed at the comparison. "Do you know how hard it is for me to avoid that comparison? People would expect me to sing and wear glittery dresses or something. Being compared to a fictional character is often because then people think they /know/ you somehow." She rolls her eyes.

"Trust me, I don't think anyone finds me much of a princess, much less a queen." She makes a face. "Did think about calling myself Ice Queen, though. I met 'The Thing' from the Fantastic Four and he's like 'You better pick a name before the media picks it for you'." She cringes. "He got the short end of the stick."

But there's a lot to think about. What else might have caused blackouts and eye-color changes? "Uh, did you try any new products before coming over? This could be an allergy. A weird one, but an allergy. And you're sure no one's following you or something?"

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"KARAOKE!," barks Katsumi at the mentioning of her singing. Nessa is just making it worse, and Katsumi's having a great time with the thought. "Ice Queen! You could wear a totally cool outfit, that's like sexy, but classy, and get a 'let me speak to your manager' haircut..." Even at this close proximity between them, Katsumi is giving the other woman a wide, toothy grin. She's trolling her, right? Maybe.

The grin vanishes. "You think someone's following me? I haven't seen the same people more than like twice, except you..."

Nessa Donovan has posed:
"OH NO, NOPE." Nessa's got a visceral reaction to the suggestion of singing. "The only time I sing is in the shower. It's awful and I don't know how to react when people are just /staring/." She shakes her head vigorously. "No singing, no sexy outfit. Someone tried to get me to be Ice Bunny and you can guess what outfit was in mind there. Marketing opportunities, ugh."

Trolling or not, she's certainly worked the blonde up into a tizzy. "Well, I guess you've found me out. I'm clearly stalking you and trying to destroy your life because I'm bored."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"The bunny leotard!?," gasps Katsumi.

She's surprised to hear about that here. That's practically a Japanese cultural staple. She has no idea why, but any media girl who's attractive gets stuffed in one of those. Well, any non-real media girl. Anime and video game girls, mostly. "You could do that! But I don't think bunny fits you. Leotard, though, Hell yeah. Showin' that thigh, get some tall-ass boots, long gloves, a cape. You'd be so hot your magic wouldn't work!"

She giggles brightly. Forget the problem. She's in her natural habitat, and it makes for a happy Punk Princess.

Nessa Donovan has posed:
At least Nessa's got Kat laughing, but the same seems to be happening for her. She genuinely sounds like she's enjoying herself. "I don't know that I could ever live an outfit like that down, much less be taken seriously. I don't know how people in capes do it." She glances over. "You practically know what it's like, wearing spandex and stuff. You're much closer to being some superhero than I am as it stands."

She shakes her head. "Besides, if I had an outfit like that Luci would /never/ let me live it down. I feel like he's going to make some comment about that dress every time I see him now."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"Luci's a dude?," asks Katsumi, giving her a weird look. "Okay, dumb parents, naming a guy Luci. But whatever. He liked it! And you liked that he liked it! Don't even lie, you /so/ can't lie to me!"

Nessa deserves to feel accomplished. Katsumi has all but forgotten about her predicament now; fully focused is she on Nessa, her wardrobe, and this guy she's positive she has a crush on.

"And for the record, I'd probably be more like a super/villain/. People boo me. It's fine, I'm cool with it. I'm not the prissy sweetheart fluttering around kissing cheeks or whatever. I'm the badass b**** who breaks'em." She paws aside to grab up her cellphone and quickly accesses her photo gallery. A number of the shots are ones she's saved from magazines and articles talking about her. "Here's what I wear," she notes, turning the phone around to show an outdoor arena, herself poised neatly atop a turnbuckle with a subtle smile, silky black hair dramatically to the side in the breeze. Her attire is a blend of blue and gold, athletic and stylish; and also quite revealing.

Nessa Donovan has posed:
"Oh, don't call him Luci to his face. Pretty sure he /barely/ lets me do it. His name's Lucifer." Nessa won't dwell on the odd name too much unless Kat does. "But, he did say I'd found a dress as ravishing as me, but he always lays the charm on pretty thick. But, he's never lied to me, so..." She's not blushing. That slight tinge of color has nothing to do with anything.

"Either way it was weird to wear in front of people but I think it went over well. Besides, pretty sure I'm the villain too. Evil queens and all that. 'Ice Queen' doesn't sound like a hero now, does it?" She peers at the picture a bit. "Yeah, you could rock a superhero costume."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"Lucifer. They named their kid Lucifer. F***ing boomers," sighs Katsumi.

She doesn't begin to suspect even for a second that the name might not be pure irony.

"Ugh, you're not evil. People don't boo you. People don't wanna see you get beat up. Lemme say it again for the back of the house," she sets her phone aside and reaches to gently take Nessa's shoulders. And should she succeed, she'll lightly shake her. "People want to see me /get beat up/! I'm just a girl! Look at this face!"

Her lower lip pouts out, and her exotic eyes round pitifully.

"Can you believe that? Jerks." She's obviously not actually upset by this. She made her peace with it. "But you, it'd be more like 'oh, she's cool, she's got that look going'. You'd be the one they wanna see beat me up."

Nessa Donovan has posed:
Nessa laughs a bit as she's shaken. "Why would anyone want to see you beat up anyway? Because you don't let people give you shit and you talk back and have attitude? That's an awful reason for someone to get beat up." She rolls her eyes. "See, if that's what wrestling fans want, that's weird. You'd be right at home with the superheroes. Even some of the 'good guys' are ones you want to punch in the face."

She offers a smile in Kat's direction. "Besides, how do you know I'm not secretly evil, sucking the souls out of unsuspecting Japanese wrestlers through their eyes?"

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"Cuz sucking a soul sounds like it'd be more fun than what's going on," Katsumi lilts with a playfully coy cant of her head.

She releases Nessa's shoulders and hunches her own, head ducking in a coquettishly guilty demure. "I /might/ be the one to start the s*** with people. That's /maybe/ why they wanna see me get beat."

After a beat, however, she sighs with a soft, genuinely pleasant smile on her face. "Even with'em booing, I love it. I know they wanna see me get beaten up. It's cool. 'Cuz even if they're booing, it's still energy. And if they're booing me, it means they're paying attention to me, you know? And even a gladiator who gets booed is one who people think about and remember. 'Sides, it's.. fun, y'know? Good girl on one side, me on the other. Give'em something to bite their nails over. If it's just... Sweetpea the Friendly Farmer Girl versus Miss All-America, big f***in' deal. You can turn on boxing for that. But if they're cheering one side and booing the other, they're... you know, they're fixated."

Her right hand lifts, scratching at the back of her neck. "It sucks, because it's still /me/. I'm not putting on any airs or anything. But I'm giving the people what they want at the same time. You know?"

Nessa Donovan has posed:
"I mean, I get the idea of things being at stake in a match like that, people like to feel like they have 'their' fighter. It's like when people have the 'home team' in sports. Whatever the other team is, they're the bad ones. But if you're still just being you, that's not always the greatest of things. You think you're worth those boos out of the ring?"

There's the slightest bit of concern in Nessa's tone as she's mulling over the idea. "Is that why you don't feel like you've got friends, because people just view you as the asshole they boo for?"

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
The change in Katsumi's expression is subtle, but Nessa hits a nerve. "I, hey, I dunno," she says, tone turning a little defensive. "..Maybe?"

That's to the first question. As Nessa furthers it, Katsumi withdraws a little on the bed; it's getting a little too real. "It's not that I don't /feel/ like I have friends. It's that I don't. I-," she hedges, cringing. "..except.. you, I guess?" A hand lifts to lightly scratch at her cheek. "I know what I am, and I know what I'm not, okay? Can we just leave it at that..?"

Nessa Donovan has posed:
Nessa's not pushed on rough things so far, and this seems to be another thing she's not pushing on. She glances over in Kat's direction, changing the topic. "So, you think you'd ever want to meet Lucifer? I think you'd like his attitude. He's weirdly charming, hates lying, knows way too much for his own good... and he is exceptionally good at making you feel like he's genuinely interested in anything you're talking about."

She glances up at the ceiling a bit. "I swear that's how he actually is, though. Sounds a bit hard to believe on the tin, but the contents are certainly something else." She pauses. "I wonder if he'd know what could cause eyes to change colors like that. He's usually got magic related information but..."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"Yeah, he sounds super fake," Katsumi replies bluntly. "Like a boyfriend made up in someone's diary. 'He's very charming and he cares about everything I have to say, and he's honest, and attractive...'" She chances a small grin at Nessa. "I'm not saying I wanna meet a dude named Lucifer. I mean, f*** me, know when to say when. But if I /did/ meet him? Okay? I'm just saying? If it turns out to be you in a fake mustache? I might actually hit you."

The Japanese girl uplids her eyes a few degrees. She then tilts a knee to bump Nessa's nearby leg.

"Anyway. I think I'm happier not thinking about it. Maybe I'll start taking sleeping pills or something so I'm not up all night." Her arms wind around her midsection, and she leans forward. "I dunno."

Nessa Donovan has posed:
"... shit, I haven't even got a picture on my phone to prove he exists." Nessa seems to find this hilarious. "I have to tell him this story later." She leg-bumps back at Kat, though she's still grinning. "I'm going to stop telling you all the interesting things about him because you are absolutely going to think I'm making him up if I carry on. He's just a little bit unbelievable, to be honest."

She glances over at Kat. "I mean, I could tell you how he plays the piano and has a vast library and a /penthouse/ full of art..." She's now trying her best to come up with every unbelievable quality she can think of, but she lets it go after a bit. "Well, how about this. You stay here, I'll run out and get us junk food, sleeping pills, and a ridiculous pair of sunglasses. We'll watch shitty movies for a while, then you can take some meds and get some sleep, and you'll have a spare pair of sunglasses so when you get up again you can go out without people commenting on the eyes?"

She's proud of her plan.

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"B****, /I/ play piano. And violin. And drums. And guitar. Where's someone gushing about /me/, huh? I'm charming as Hell! I'm so f***ing interested in whatever lame s*** you're talking about right now, I can't stand it!"

Katsumi starts to grin more widely.

Whether it was a part of Nessa's original plan or not, she's already pulled Katsumi back from the edge of snapping at her. Believe it or not, this isn't snapping. This is playing.

But with the plan laid out, Katsumi looks a little beside herself. She fidgets on the bed, then awkwardly attempts to lace her arms around the blonde's nearest arm in an effort to hug it. As if predicting a weird look from Nessa, Katsumi mutters, "It's all I can manage, shut up."

There's a beat.

Then, "You're nicer to me than I deserve."

Nessa Donovan has posed:
Nessa can't stop laughing. She's aware of the line between snapping and playing, it seems, so it doesn't bother her. It does, however, amuse her to no end. "I swear he exists, I promise," she says, a little breathless from the laughing. She does offer a look at the arm hug, but it's not much of a weird one--it might actually be a type of hug she's more familiar with than she might be willing to admit.

She controls her laughter, letting out a deep breath as she offers a smile over to Kat. "Nah, you just have shit self-esteem. I'm just as nice as you deserve." She gives her a nudge. "So... lots of chocolate then, yeah?"

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro quickly looks back up at Nessa, eyes widened at the remark on her self-esteem - there's a hint of wounding there. But thankfully, it doesn't linger. Katsumi breathes a soft sigh, and she nods. "Yeah. Lots. I have a laptop, we can stream stuff. Assuming America doesn't do the region lock bulls***."

It does. It totally does.

Katsumi releases the arm-hug and leans back. "Are you sure about that, though? I don't wanna take up your whole day being pathetic."

Nessa Donovan has posed:
Nessa gets fully to her feet, giving Katsumi a very firm nod. "Yeah, I'm sure. I've got some stuff I've got to get done but... I'll find a way to work with it. Besides, if I really need more time to read Lucifer's books I can always go /ask/ him." There's a playful look. "Yeah, don't worry about it. Find something absolutely terrible and I'll be back soon with snacks, alright?"

She may not be a superhero, but she's going to be damned sure she's around when she's needed. She's already at the door. "I will find you the most /American/ snacks I can. You'll love it." With that, she's not hearing any more potential protests. She's off.