Shuffle The Deck

Chapter 23 - A Splendid Dance

Being woken up by furious pounding on her door was not the ideal greeting she expected.

Rubbing her eyes wearily and rolling out of bed, she slumped over to the aperture. She peeked her head out, only to see Killua there.

"Why aren't you ready?! Do you realize that you have to be at the ring in an hour?" He spat, clearly very agitated.

Her heart dropped to her stomach. "Oh fuck."

Before Killua could pester her about her choice of language, she slammed the door in his face. 

She put on her clothes in a rush, tripping over her foot as she attempted to pull on one of her stockings. With a quick comb of her hair and wash of her face, she kept her toothbrush in her mouth as she did up the final button on her white collar shirt.

Pulling her boots higher up her thighs, she flattened her noir skirt the best she could. With a heavy exhale, she looked towards the clock in her room. There were only twenty minutes left for her to get to the Arena.

Her impulse decision to apply a touch of makeup to her already contoured face led to no changes in her appearance, but she did it anyway.

With a final look in the mirror, she swallowed and left for the door immediately.

Sprinting towards the elevator, she managed to catch a ride with a few other people. She impatiently tapped her foot against the marble beneath her, having only ten minutes left before her time was up. She nervously watched the numbers tick and sighed in relief as it finally arrived.

She ran out the doors and reached the waiting room in record time. People's heads turned as she stood there, panting and exhausted. 

"Last chance for her, is Delilah here yet?" Came the voice of an organizer, looking down at her clipboard.

"I'm here," she wheezed out, catching her winded breath.

"Oh, perfect. Hydrate yourself, and then you're up. Someone, please get her something to drink!"

After a refresh, she stepped onto the platform that would raise her to the ring above. Her heart was pounding furiously, the adrenaline finally kicking in, and a huge smile appeared on her face.

"Alright, here we go. Before you enter, here are the procedures. When Cocco calls out your name, you will be raised up on this platform. There'll be some special effects, and I want you to walk through them as she talks, alright? Meet in the ring with your opponent as she's finished, and the rest is yours. Got it?"

"Yeah. Thanks for filling me in."

The woman smiled. "Perfect. Good luck out there."

With a roll of her sleeves to stay pinned under her biceps, she closed her eyes. It was finally time.

"Here we go! Raise the platform!"

She felt the ground beneath her rising, and the staff in the room began to applaud. She grinned at them as she was lifted higher, and the bright lights of the arena shimmering on her glowing complexion.

"Here we go! The match that has had everyone talking for weeks, wondering who's going to come out on top! "

The familiar cheers and whistles of the audience filled her ears, and she exhaled in relief. She cracked her knuckles as she was fully raised, pressing her lips together to spread her gloss.

"And our first competitor arriving in the Arena is Delilah, who has been a fighter here back when she was just ten years old! And she hasn't lost a single one of her seven matches in Heavens Arena since she challenged the floors once more! She's on a roll, but will she keep it up? There's only one way to find out!"