Yukari Marufuji, aka "The Technician"

“41… 42… 43… 44…”

The sound of flesh hitting against cable filled the air in the high school gymnasium. As others continue to set up the chairs or help with the lighting, one woman stands alone inside of the night’s ring. She's testing not only the ring ropes, but her own determination, stamina, and fortitude.

“45… 46… 47… 48…”

Clad in her usual white-and-emerald-green trunks, with a t-shirt for the regionally famous ‘LoMonaco Wrestling Academy’ covering up her matching top, Yukari Marufuji bounds from one side of the ring to the other. The 24-year old ‘prodigy’ is currently running rope drills while the ring crew continue with tonight’s setup. A look of pure grit settles itself into her fiery green gaze. With each movement, a subsequent bout of jiggling follows suit, Yukari’s chest bouncing with an undeniable heft to them - one of the few clear signs of Yukari’s femininity, as a whole. That, and her long black hair, kept up in a ponytail for the sake of tidiness, which also sways slightly as she hits the ropes.

“49… 50… 51… 52…”

Yukari grits her teeth, continuing on with her workout. To her, it doesn’t matter that showtime was in less than forty minutes. It doesn’t matter that she was scheduled for the semi-main event - although that did help. It doesn’t matter that there would only be probably sixty to seventy people - maybe eighty if they were extremely lucky - out in attendance for tonight’s event. To her, it only matters that she continues on her rigorous self-improvement. That she pushes herself to the limit, and even further beyond it. That she becomes the absolute best, just like she once promised, a little over six years ago.

“53… 54… 55… 5-”

“Yo, Yukari!” A voice calls out, drawing Yukari out of her self-imposed training drills.

Coming to a gradual stop, Yukari turns towards the source of it, only to find Cedric DeReiss standing just outside the lowboy wrestling ring being used for tonight’s show. Unlike her, he was still in his casual wear, as evident by his black hoodie and the fanny pack wrapped around his waist.

“Ugh, really Cedric? You’re still wearing that?” Yukari groans, only for Cedric to laugh.

“What, the pack? Come on, Yukari!" Cedric groans in faux-exacerbation. "You know how handy this thing is!”

“No, not your stupid pack!” Yukari lashes out, shaking her head. “I mean, you’re still in your streetwear? We’re on in less than an hour!”

“Pfft, no biggie,” Cedric brushes it off, “I’ll go get changed before fans are let in. Boss never seemed to have a problem with it before.”

Yukari sighs. “But it’s so… Unprofessional.”

“Oh, my mistake.” Cedric laughs. “I forgot I was talking to miss ‘no days off, no fun allowed’ Marufuji.”

Yukari’s face goes a light pink. She turns away, grumbling under her breath. Cedric, meanwhile, simply laughs it off, until Yukari turns back to face him.

“You’re damn right you’re talking to me! And don’t forget, I’m the one higher on the card tonight!” She boasts, a proud smirk lining her face.

“Alright, alright, calm down there, 'miss ego'. Any more talk like that and mister booker man might decide to swap our matches around again.” Cedric teases, causing Yukari to sputter.

“Wh- You-” Yukari growls. “You and I both know the only reason our matches got swapped was because a certain someone got lost on their way to the arena last time around!" Yukari folds her arms, turning her head away from Cedric. "If you had been here on time, then things wouldn’t have gotten switched around like they did.”

“Hey, chill. I’m here this time, aren’t I?” Cedric asks, before beginning to walk off. “You have fun with your rope running! I’m gonna change into my ring gear.” He calls out, taunting Yukari even further as he walks off, leaving her unable to get in the last word.

“...Uggghhh!” Yukari growls out, hitting the ropes once more.

“Who the hell does that guy think he is? Trying to act like… Him.” Yukari’s eyes narrow, her pace picking up even further. “Ever since he left, it’s like Cedric’s been trying to take his place. As if it was really that easy to begin with!” A slight burst of nausea pours over her, but she continues on like it was nothing. “The fact that he left me behind so easily, too… Without even giving an explanation, either!” The nausea intensifies, and Yukari’s eyes shut tight. “I swear, if I ever see him again, I’m gonna… Gonna…”

Yukari hits the ropes once more, and stops running. She collapses to her hands and knees, panting heavily. As she tries to pull herself back up to her feet, she grimaces, forcing herself to rise once more. “One more… Just one more rep…” Yukari tells herself, but she finds herself unable to even take a single step forward. “Just… One… More…”

Yukari collapses, before vanishing in a heap. To those around the ring, they looked in shock, before their expressions fade into idle confusion. Out in the locker room, Cedric would finish changing, humming to himself as normal. It sure was nice of the booker to give him the semi-main event two shows in a row…

“...Miss Yukari Marufuji!”

Yukari Marufuji's theme song

With a much more high tempo entrance theme playing, one might expect the person coming out the curtain to be matching that upbeat energy, a certifiable bubbly babyface looking to greet all the fans.

That is not what Yukari Marufuji does. Not at all.

Barely needing the compulsion working to bring her down to the ring, Yukari marches with intent straight down the ramp. She bypasses the steel steps completely, instead pulling herself up onto the apron, where she gets straight into the ring, looking to give the host a piece of her mind.

Instead, her mind goes blank, as her eyes lock onto one specific person currently seated in the ring. Their gazes meet one another, and it feels as though time stops. Yukari's jaw hangs agape, as Serenity stands off to the side, allowing the two this all-important stare down.

“It’s… It’s them.” Yukari quietly gasps, bringing a hand to her mouth, before Serenity steps in front of her.

“Hi! Welcome! How are you doing, Yukari? Feeling amped up for the show?” Serenity bombards her, ignoring the mixture of emotions coursing through her otherwise shocked visage. “I mean, I barely even had to compel you to come down here! That is sooo much better compared to the other contestants. Saves me a lot of trouble, actually. Now then, Yukari-”

“It’s YOU!” Yukari shouts out, cutting through Serenity’s attempt at an introduction. Instead Yukari storms up directly to Christian, his own expression mirroring that of Yukari’s prior shock.

“Y-Yukari? They brought you here, too?” Christian asks, his tone a mixture of disbelief and despair.

“You… You…” Yukari’s fists tremble, as does her expression.

“Yukari?" Christian reluctantly stands up, stepping towards Yukari. "Maybe you should just go sit down? I’m sure that Serenity will-”

“After all these years… You’ve been hiding out HERE?!” Yukari screams in annoyance, startling not only Christian, but the other girls as well. “After all of these years, you’ve been at some resort just… Hiding from me?! How could you do that to me, Chrissy?!”

“Chrissy?” Gail silently mutters, unimpressed by Yukari’s choice in nickname.

“Yukari, y-you don’t understand!” Christian tries to explain.

“Oh, no, I totally understand! You got sick of keeping up your promise! And so you abandoned me! For SIX FREAKING YEARS!” Yukari shouts out once again.

Christian winces at her increase in volume, the others looking on in a mixture of disbelief and slight remembrance.

“Yukari, please, just let me explain-”

“Oh no, you don't! You had six years. SIX. FREAKING. YEARS! You had all of that time, yet you couldn’t even send me a SINGLE message?! ME?! I’m supposed to be your rival! Or, well, I guess, I was, until you decided to leave me for some big stupid resort, and-”

Yukari turns, mid-rant, only for her to freeze up. Her eyes dart around the other contestants, jaw agape once more. She looks to Kehlani first, the smaller girl shyly waving her way, before switching focus to Willow, and then over to Nikkita. Glossing over the others, Yukari turns to face Christian, a stony expression now lining her face.

“...You better start explaining, Christian.” She simply says, eyes blazing with indignation.

“Actually, there’s no need for him to explain!” Serenity cuts in. “Because I will be doing that for him-”

Serenity places a hand on Yukari’s shoulder, looking to try and guide her away. However, despite the calming touch being applied to Yukari, she still remains as indignant as ever, causing Serenity to step back in confusion.

“E-Eh? Why… Why didn’t that work?” Serenity mutters to herself, before trying again, this time increasing the power even further.

Despite her body visibly relaxing upon contact, Yukari’s gaze remains the same, further perplexing Serenity.

“Eh?!” She squeaks, before simply guiding Yukari into her chair, not wanting to mess around too much longer with this… This ‘rival’ of his.

“O-Okay, so, allow me to explain." Serenity clears her throat, removing all signs of fear in the process. "You are now a part of a reality TV show called Harem Hotel, a competition where you and seven other women will all be battling it out over the next…” Serenity trails off, brushing it aside not long after. “Anyways, not important. Point is, you and seven others will be battling to serve the season’s Master-”

“And let me guess, you brought Christian here as a dumb joke. What, going to turn him into a cute girl to serve you?” Yukari accuses, with Gail raising an eyebrow at the description given of Christian’s inclusion as a ‘joke’.

“Well, not exactly.” Serenity responds. “You see, the other girls here are going to serve as your possible competition. But… Chrissy here as you called him is actually the Master on this season of Harem Hotel.”

For a few seconds, all is still. Yukari doesn’t blink. She barely even breathes. However, once she catches up with what’s been spoken by Serenity…

“WHAT?!”

Serenity visibly steps back from Yukari’s outburst, some of the other contestants jolting in their seats - or, in Christian's case, back into his seat.

“I-It’s exactly as I said, Yukari. Christian’s the Master on this season of Harem Hotel. That means you’ll be competing to please him, and looking to earn yourself a spot in his harem.” Yukari glares at Serenity, who immediately backpedals. “A-And also a spot in Christian’s professional wrestling company, which will be televised all across the globe!” She blurts out, surprised at the frightened feelings coursing through her.

As Serenity carefully retreats from Yukari, the hotheaded rival turns her attention towards Christian, eyeing him rather carefully. Thankfully for him, Yukari is still being bound to her seat by Serenity, so as to avoid another possible attack from the fiery ravenette. After a few moments though, she softens her glare.

“Well, I guess… If it’s for a roster spot on a globally televised professional wrestling company…”

Yukari hems and haws for another couple seconds, before finally turning back towards the host.

“Fine, I accept.” She then snaps her head back towards Christian, staring him down. “But remember this, Chrissy. You promised me that we were going to be eternal rivals, from the day we started training to the day one of us retired! So don’t go thinking that just because you got a cushy job as owner and…” Yukari trails off, a shade of light pink briefly flickering onto her features, until it dissipates. “T-That... Other title of yours... That it means I’m giving up on our promise!” She then looks to the rest of her current crop of competitors. “This goes out for all of you! I’m going to WIN this competition, regardless of what it takes! So prepare for the bitter taste of defeat, because the only one making that roster is going to be me!” Yukari proclaims, eyeing up the rest of her newfound competition.

While some like Willow and Penelope seem enthused by Yukari’s verbal throwing down of the gauntlet, others like Linda seem more frightened than intrigued, as she looks over to Kehlani, who just shrugs her shoulders in confusion. And even then, there’s the likes of Nikkita and Gail, who take Yukari’s challenge as less of a declaration and more of an unnecessary boast, Gail even going as far as to mockingly roll her eyes at Yukari’s statement, giggling under her breath as she tries gesturing to Nikkita, who doesn’t seem to catch on until Serenity steps back into center frame.

“Well! Quite the fighting spirit from our fiery Technician here, but there’s still one more person left to introduce. And boy let me tell you, folks, this one’s going to be a doozy!” Serenity calls, bringing the attention back onto herself with a wide smile. “After all, what sort of roster would this be without someone who carries with them the ring expertise needed to carry a match to completion? Whether they are just barely considered as being ‘over the hill’, or is someone who’s looking to start building towards the next generation, oftentimes a performer only truly starts competing at the absolute highest level when they’re at the point of freely putting other stars over to help shape the company around them!”

With a much more wicked gleam in her eyes, Serenity turns towards the entrance ramp one last time, a burst of smoke appearing to cloud the rampway.

“Please allow me to introduce our eighth and final contestant in the starting cast of this season on Harem Hotel… The man who trained our Master himself, Mr. Robert J. LoMonaco!”

Upon hearing that name, the sound of Christian’s heart sinking could be heard for nearly a hundred miles in either direction. As his mood shatters completely, the others look amongst themselves in various stages of confusion. Some take it as a shock that he’s even part of this, while others simply have no earthly idea what it is they are truly going to be in for…