Before I Forget

A Force of Nature

The new gis Sensei had gotten them looked fricking badass compared to the white ones Sky had already gotten used to wearing.

These were all black, with bright yellow details and a super cool Cobra print on the back. Sky's only concern was that the practically sleeveless cut would leave her scar visible at least part of the time. She didn't like people seeing her mutilated shoulder - she hated the shocked, disgusted looks on their faces when that happened. Besides, it would give an advantage to her opponents if they spotted her injury.

She glanced at Aisha, who was finished getting dressed, and noticed that she had left a black long-sleeved shirt under the gi. Aisha, always observant, seemed to not notice her trail of thoughts.

"You can put a shirt under the gi too if you want to," she said kindly. "But just so you know, I think you look awesome."

"You too," Sky replied. "Seriously, that gi looks amazing on you."

"It is kinda badass, isn't it?" Aisha asked with a grin. "But so are you - scar and all. I think you should just go like that."

"You think?" Sky looked at her reflection in the mirror again.

She had braided her hair in one, thick french braid. The simple, black gi made her look pale but fierce, bringing out the red of her hair and the green of her eyes. She had no make-up - she hated the feeling of foundation getting smudged on her skin and mascara staining her cheeks when she got sweaty - but that didn't make her look any less fierce, kind of contrary. She looked like a badass warrior - a look she could get used to.

You shouldn't be afraid of the world,
The world should be afraid of you.

Sensei Lawrence had said that to her, and at the time it had seemed impossible to believe, but now—

"We're gonna kick ass," she said with a grin, meeting Aisha's dark eyes through the mirror.

"Hell, yes."

"Let's go and show these guys what we're made of."

"Speaking of guys—" Aisha said as they stepped out of the dressing room and started walking down the hallway that was crowded with kids wearing different colored gis. "Did something happen with Hawk?"

That made Sky's smile disappear. She opened the water bottle she had in her hands and took a sip. "He's just being an asshole."

Aisha gave her a quizzical look. "Okay? What is it this time?"

"He got jealous. Again."

"Ah," Aisha sighed. "For a smart guy, he's surprisingly stupid sometimes."

"Tell me about it." Sky rolled her eyes and took another sip of her water. "I fucking hate it when he is like that—"

"Not that it makes it okay, but you were hugging a cute guy." Aisha noted. "Who was he anyway?"

"So you thought he was cute?" Sky glanced at Aisha with a sideways smile.

Aisha might have blushed a little. "Don't you?"

"I'd say he is devilishly handsome, but whatever." Sky shrugged. "He's an old friend," and then, realizing that she didn't have to keep secrets anymore, she added, "His name is Paulo, he is Kat's brother."

"Oh," Aisha replied. "He flew down here just for the tournament?"

"And to catch up. We haven't seen since..." the end of that sentence drifted into silence. Sky really didn't want to think about the last time she had seen him, still in hospital and absolutely miserable. "Anyway, He's gonna stay for a couple of days. You want me to introduce you?"