05-06-2023, 06:01 AM
05-06-2023, 06:08 AM
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May 1st, 2023
Miami, Florida
Off Camera
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Playing the Wildcard was certainly eventful for Supreme Championship Wrestling as well as Glory Braddock herself. On a more personal note, Glory Braddock finally put an end to her rivalry with Polly Playtime. In a brutal strap match, The British Bombshell got revenge for Polly and her Playgrils putting her in that crate during the hours long Trios Cash In Match that ultimately cost her the Television Championship. More important than revenge, this victory also means that Braddock is finished with Polly Playtime and her girls. She can now once again refocus on the main task at hand; and that is to become Supreme Champion by winning the SCW World Tag Team Championship.
Unfortunately that goal still has several obstacles in her way that Glory must overcome. Chief among those obstacles is the obvious problem of finding a tag team partner willing to work with her. During her recent stay in England, she did find one person willing to make an in-ring return specifically to tag team with The British Bombshell; that individual is none other than her childhood best friend Matthew Taylor. Taylor once wrestled under the ring name “The Show Stealer” Matthew Bowden and he even tag teamed with Glory for a brief period. It would appear that having Matthew team with her yet again would be a no brainer solution to her quest for a tag team partner and a big first step towards getting into the tag team title hunt. The problem is that she and Matthew once had an affair, an affair that Glory’s husband, Kurt Logan found out about. Kurt and Glory reconciled and saved their marriage, but would Kurt really be ok with Glory and Matthew working together as a tag team in SCW? Would he really be ok with Glory and Matthew traveling together on SCW tours to cities all over the nation and the world? And that isn’t the only problem Glory has to deal with regarding her tag team title aspirations. Owen Cruze defeated Josh Hudson at Playing The Wildcard to win both the SCW World and United States Championships and then promptly retired. With his retirement both championships were relinquished and now tournaments have been scheduled to crown new champions. Glory Braddock is in the United States Title Tournament. So at the very least Braddock’s Supreme Championship aspirations will be delayed a little longer while the tournament is going on.
The last time there was a tournament to crown a new United States Champion it was contested in one single night and Glory Braddock made it to the finals before losing to Josh Hudson. Braddock would eventually win the championship in a rematch with Hudson several months later and despite that championship victory putting her one step closer towards the Supreme Status she has been seeking, Glory now looks back at that reign as United States Champion as a blemish on what is overall a sparkling record. She is ashamed of how she conducted herself, disparaging and disrespecting the title and the nation it represents. Perhaps this is an opportunity even greater than the Supreme Championship aspirations that she has? She can win the United States Title and finally hold it with dignity and honor. She can have a do-over of her formerly shameful US Title run.
Glory’s first round tournament match against Deanna Frost won’t be for at least a week and a half. There’s plenty of time to prepare for the young up and coming member of the House of Frost. For now Braddock has to readjust to life back in the United States as she, her husband Kurt, and their daughter Dawn are returning to their home in Miami after a stay in London. The stay was multi-purposed; one, Glory wanted Dawn to know what it felt like to live in London, the home of her Braddock heritage. Two, Glory wanted to rediscover what that ‘Braddock heritage’ was all about herself. Both goals were accomplished. Spending time in her native home where she was born and raised helped The British Bombshell reconnect with her legacy, heritage, and served as a reminder of who she was meant to be. The arrogant tyrant who was only out for herself is long gone. She remembers now that wrestling, at its core, is about the spirit of competition, and also entertaining the many fans who come to watch her perform each and every week on Breakdown. She will not let her fans down as she pursues her quest to become United States Champion and then later, hopefully, a World Tag Team Champion.
Braddock finds herself arm in arm with her husband Kurt Logan. Walking alongside them is their daughter Dawn Logan. Braddock is wearing a pink knee length flowy skirt, sandals, and a royal purple silk blouse. Dawn is wearing a simple floral print yellow sundress and sandals. Kurt is dressed in simple khaki shorts, sneakers, and a white t-shirt. They are all smiles as they approach the front door of their Miami, Florida home, seemingly happy to be returning from their stay in England. Yet all is not what it appears, at least when it comes to Glory Braddock. Deep down inside she is still nervous about the future, and not just her busy schedule coming up in SCW. She also has to deal with her cousins, Angelica and Kayla, as she seeks their help to learn more about her mother’s family, and learn the truth about rumors she heard while in England. Braddock also has the more imminent problem of telling her husband Kurt about her encounter with Matthew Taylor. She knows she could just ignore it, not tell Kurt, and just refuse to team with Matthew. Kurt would be none the wiser. But after the affair, Glory feels that honestly is truly the best policy in this case. She should be totally honest with Kurt and tell him what happened when Matthew approached her about wanting to team with her again. She is certain Kurt will not agree with his idea, she just hopes that he won’t get too angry.
“It is nice to see that the place is still standing.” Kurt says jokingly.
“Did you expect our oldest daughter to trash the place?”
“You never know with kids these days.” Kurt answers with a shrug of his shoulders. “They’re wild. Out of control.”
“I’m not wild!” Dawn chimes in. Kurt chuckles quietly and ruffles her hair.
“Not yet but you will be soon enough, I’m sure.”
They are seemingly the ideal family right now. A picture perfect family in a picture perfect setting returning home. But Glory knows that the ideal may be shattered sooner rather than later. She tries to enjoy it while she can as they approach the front door. Kurt tries to open the door but finds it locked.
“Melinda locked the door.”
“Smart girl. I taught her well.” Glory says grinning. Just then they hear footsteps approaching from inside. The trio stand back and wait as they hear the door unlocking. Then they see the door opening. Standing there in the doorway wearing torn denim jeans, black boots, and a black crop top is Melinda Braddock, the oldest of Glory’s children. Melinda, who is still wrestling on an independent circuit in the United States, opted not to travel with the rest of the family back to England. Melinda stayed behind to watch over the house while they were gone. Melinda puts her hands on her hips and smirks.
“You’re on private property. Do I need to call the cops?”
“No, smartass.” Glory says laughing. “Just step aside and let us in.”
“Sure thing, mom.”
Melinda steps to the side. Glory enters first and embraces Melinda with a tight hug. Kurt then joins in and hugs his step-daughter as well. After that hug has ended Mel turns towards her younger sister and smiles from ear to ear.
“And how’s my Dawnie?”
“Great!” Dawn rushes over and hugs her sister. After breaking the embrace Melinda points her sister towards the staircase down the hall. “Go upstairs, kid. You’ll find your room is in working order.”
“Yay!” Dawn rushes off. Kurt and Glory can’t help but laugh a little at their youngest daughter’s enthusiasm. Once Dawn is out of sight, the three remaining family members make their way into the living room. It looks a little messy, messier than the immaculate way Glory and Kurt typically keep it. Braddock scans the room and turns towards Melinda, winking at her.
“Definitely looks like your place.”
“Sorry about that, mom.” Melinda says. “I’ll clean up before I leave.”
“No need.” Glory insists. She approaches the sofa and sits down. Melinda sits down next to her in the center of the sofa and then Kurt sits on the other side of Melinda on that same sofa. Glory kisses Melinda on her cheek.
“Thanks for watching over things while we were gone, love.”
“Don’t mention it. I’m happy to help. But what about you, mom? Did you find what you were looking for?”
“I think I did.” Glory says with a grin on her face. “It really was great to be back at the old family home, it was great to see the old sites in London, Birmingham, and all over England…”
“Did you see the school?”
“Of course she did.” Kurt says with a nod of his head. “Your mother spent most of her time at your grandfather’s wrestling school.”
“That I did. Between dad’s school and the old pub he used to frequent, that’s where I spent most of my time. And let me tell you, Mel, I should have done this a lot sooner.”
“What do you mean?” She asks curiously.
“Well, I have been to the school a few times since dad passed away. But it was always on business. It was either for a graduation or to sign paperwork or something else where I was needed in an official capacity as an owner. Other than those few times I haven’t really set foot in England at all since my dad, your grandfather, passed away. And you know what I realized? I came to realize that I had lost sight of what my father stood for. I lost sight of what he taught me, of who he raised me to be.” Braddock sighs deeply as she fights back tears, as she becomes emotional. “They say that if you don’t learn from history then you are doomed to repeat it. I had forgot my own history, I forgot my past and my heritage. And that led me to make so many mistakes.” Glory looks deep into her daughter’s eyes. “Do NOT make the mistakes I made, Mel. Never forget your past. Never forget where you came from.”
“You don’t have to worry about me.” Melinda shakes her head. “That’s one thing I will never forget. Quite frankly, I miss my time at the school.”
“Oh yeah?” Glory asks. Melinda nods her head. “What do you miss about it?”
“Oh nothing.” Melinda shakes her head. Then she stands up and starts to walk away.
“Where are you running off to?” Kurt asks curiously.
“I’m just gonna go upstairs and tell Dawn goodbye.”
“Are you leaving already?” Glory seems genuinely surprised. “You can stay for dinner. This is still your house.”
“I know but I’m going to be very busy in the next few days. I have a date with Clyde, Fiona and I have match in the next few days in St. Louis, then even more stuff with Clyde.”
“Oh come on, love.” Glory insists. “Dinner won’t take long. I have been in England for so long, you and I need to catch up.”
“We can catch up another time, ok mom?”
“I suppose so.” Glory says nodding her head. She stands up and approaches Melinda. They embrace in a tight hug. “I love you, Mel.”
“Back at you, mom.” With that, Melinda turns and exits the living room. Glory can hear her daughter running up the stairs. Glory sighs as she makes her way back to the sofa and sits back down next to Kurt. She looks over at her husband curiously.
“Do you think Mel was acting a little strange just now?”
“What do you mean?” Kurt asks. “I mean, honestly, she hasn’t been acting any stranger than usual. She’s been different ever since hooking up with Clyde Sutter again.”
“Don’t remind me about that.” Glory rolls her eyes. “I am still not exactly thrilled with our daughter dating him.”
“I thought you had promised to try and accept him into the family?”
“I did and I genuinely am trying.” Glory answers sharply. “But it isn’t easy for me considering our past with him and his family. Sutter was bad enough to accept on his own but when I learned that he was actually related to the Van Stanton family, the same people who ended my father’s career, and this boy, their son, once got my daughter involved with drugs…” her voice trails off. Kurt chimes in quickly while he has a chance.
“But he said he has changed. And quite frankly, I believe him.”
“You’re a better person than I am, Kurt.” Glory says quietly. “I still find it difficult to accept him.”
“Maybe this is a discussion you need to have with Melinda?” Kurt suggests. Glory nods her head.
“I agree, I do need to talk to Mel. It feels as if she and I are growing further and further apart and I hate it. I hate not being able to repair our relationship. It’s just that I have so much going on right now…”
“Yes, you want to become SCW Supreme Champion. You also have an opportunity to become SCW United States Champion in this tournament. But don’t you think your family is more important than your career? I thought that was one of the lessons you learned while we were overseas?”
“You’re right. One of the many mistakes I have made was putting my career ahead of my family and that is a mistake I will not make again. But I wasn’t talking about my championship aspirations when I said I have so much going on in my life right now.”
“Oh?”
“I need to talk to my cousin.” Glory answers. “I need to talk to Angelica.”
“What’s wrong between you and Angelica?” Kurt asks curiously.
“Nothing is wrong between us. It’s something I found out in England. Something I haven’t even told you yet, or the children. Honestly, I haven’t even come to terms with it myself.” Glory shakes her head as the emotions once again return swiftly. Kurt holds her tightly in a hug.
“It’s ok, babe. I’m here for you.” He says lovingly. “What did you find out in England?”
“You know how I am afraid of me and Mel growing apart? My own mother and I grew apart. After mom and dad divorced, I started to grow more and more distant from mother, and a large part of that was due to the resentment I held towards her. I resented her for not trying to fight for custody of myself and my sister. Not that I hated dad and wanted to live with her. I loved dad just as much as I loved my mother. But the fact that mom didn’t even care enough to try made me think she didn’t love us. So I resented her. And we grew apart. We didn’t even really begin to mend our relationship until near the end of her life.” Glory reaches up and wipes a tear from her eye. “I am forever haunted by that.”
“It’s not your fault.” Kurt insists.
“I know. But that’s not the problem. I recently came to learn that mom may have had a good reason behind running away, running to the United States and not fighting for custody of me and my sister. She was being stalked, Kurt. And I have reason to believe that her stalker is the same creep who murdered my aunt Kelly, Angelica’s mother.”
“So you think your mom ran away to lead the stalker away from you and your sister and your father?” Kurt asks. Glory nods her head.
“Yeah.” Braddock shakes her head. “Maybe its silly, but it’s been eating me alive with guilt, the fact that I have held such a grudge against her, my own mother, for so long and now to think that there was no reason for it, for any of it. That I should have been grateful for her, because she was protecting me.”
“You had no way of knowing, babe. No possible way of knowing any of it. Your reactions were entirely rational. Understandable. You have absolutely nothing to feel guilty about.”
“Maybe you’re right but still, I owe it to myself and to my conscience to dig deeper. And maybe I owe it to Angelica? That whole situation set the stage for her becoming who she is today. The death of her mother, my aunt Kelly, it changed Angelica forever. She deserves to know and maybe she can help me through whatever problems I still have with my own mother?”
“If that’s what you need to do then you have my full support.” Kurt says with a smile. Then he kisses her on the lips. “So maybe what you did in England isn’t really finished? It’s just getting started?”
“More than likely.” Glory sighs deeply. “Speaking of which, there is one other thing that you and I need to talk about.”
“What is it?” Kurt asks as Glory stands up and then gently pulls on Kurt’s hands to get him to stand up as well. Glory looks deep in his eyes, they are loving eyes right now but she is unsure of how loving they will be in a few moments.
“We should go into the kitchen and get some drinks.”
“Uh oh…drinks? This can’t be good.”
“It isn’t.” Glory takes him by the hand and leads him out of the living room and into the next room, the kitchen. Kurt sits down in a nearby chair while Glory retrieves two wine glasses and then a bottle of wine. She pours Kurt a glass of wine and then pours herself some wine as well. Kurt takes a sip.
“The good stuff…this really is bad, huh?”
“Yeah.” Glory nods her head. “Look, I won’t beat around the bush. Sometimes its best just to rip the band-aid off so here it goes. Near the end of our stay in England, I was approached by Matthew.”
“Matthew as in Taylor?” Kurt asks, remembering full well of the affair between Matthew and Glory. Glory nods her head. “What did he want?”
“Apparently he had heard that I have plans to eventually make a move into the SCW tag team division in order to complete my Supreme Championship. Matthew wants to make a comeback himself, have one last run before calling it a career. And he wanted to know if he could be my tag team partner.”
“Oh he did, did he?” Kurt is eerily calm at this point, which makes Glory a little nervous. “What did you tell him?”
“At first I told him absolutely not, because our…past…would make things extremely awkward with you. He was persistent though. To shut him up I promised I would at least ask you if you would be ok with it.”
“Thanks for the consideration I suppose.” Kurt says as he takes a sip.
“So is that a yes or a no?”
“Oh if I actually have a say then absolutely fucking not.” Kurt says, his voice growing slightly louder. “There is no way in hell I want you anywhere near him.” He sighs deeply. “Then again, knowing you, you will probably do whatever you want anyway. That’s just who you are. That’s how you were built and raised.”
“Kurt, please, I’m being serious. If you don’t want me to then…”
“And I’m being serious too.” Kurt finishes the rest of his wine in one big gulp. It is clear that he is not happy. “Do I want you to do this? Hell no. But you are an adult, Glory. You are a grown woman. I cannot control what you do when you travel around with SCW. Hell, you could have been having affairs with other men before Matthew and I didn’t know about it.”
“Are you implying that I would cheat on you?”
“You did once.”
Glory sighs and shakes her head. The tears return to her face. “Kurt I…”
“Look, if you want my blessing then you have it.” He shakes his head. “But I don’t have to like it or approve of it.” With that said, Kurt stands up and storms out of the room. Glory sits down and buries her face in her hands and begins to cry. Has she just made a terrible mistake? Is this a can of worms that she should not have opened?
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May 1st, 2023
Miami, Florida
Off Camera
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Playing the Wildcard was certainly eventful for Supreme Championship Wrestling as well as Glory Braddock herself. On a more personal note, Glory Braddock finally put an end to her rivalry with Polly Playtime. In a brutal strap match, The British Bombshell got revenge for Polly and her Playgrils putting her in that crate during the hours long Trios Cash In Match that ultimately cost her the Television Championship. More important than revenge, this victory also means that Braddock is finished with Polly Playtime and her girls. She can now once again refocus on the main task at hand; and that is to become Supreme Champion by winning the SCW World Tag Team Championship.
Unfortunately that goal still has several obstacles in her way that Glory must overcome. Chief among those obstacles is the obvious problem of finding a tag team partner willing to work with her. During her recent stay in England, she did find one person willing to make an in-ring return specifically to tag team with The British Bombshell; that individual is none other than her childhood best friend Matthew Taylor. Taylor once wrestled under the ring name “The Show Stealer” Matthew Bowden and he even tag teamed with Glory for a brief period. It would appear that having Matthew team with her yet again would be a no brainer solution to her quest for a tag team partner and a big first step towards getting into the tag team title hunt. The problem is that she and Matthew once had an affair, an affair that Glory’s husband, Kurt Logan found out about. Kurt and Glory reconciled and saved their marriage, but would Kurt really be ok with Glory and Matthew working together as a tag team in SCW? Would he really be ok with Glory and Matthew traveling together on SCW tours to cities all over the nation and the world? And that isn’t the only problem Glory has to deal with regarding her tag team title aspirations. Owen Cruze defeated Josh Hudson at Playing The Wildcard to win both the SCW World and United States Championships and then promptly retired. With his retirement both championships were relinquished and now tournaments have been scheduled to crown new champions. Glory Braddock is in the United States Title Tournament. So at the very least Braddock’s Supreme Championship aspirations will be delayed a little longer while the tournament is going on.
The last time there was a tournament to crown a new United States Champion it was contested in one single night and Glory Braddock made it to the finals before losing to Josh Hudson. Braddock would eventually win the championship in a rematch with Hudson several months later and despite that championship victory putting her one step closer towards the Supreme Status she has been seeking, Glory now looks back at that reign as United States Champion as a blemish on what is overall a sparkling record. She is ashamed of how she conducted herself, disparaging and disrespecting the title and the nation it represents. Perhaps this is an opportunity even greater than the Supreme Championship aspirations that she has? She can win the United States Title and finally hold it with dignity and honor. She can have a do-over of her formerly shameful US Title run.
Glory’s first round tournament match against Deanna Frost won’t be for at least a week and a half. There’s plenty of time to prepare for the young up and coming member of the House of Frost. For now Braddock has to readjust to life back in the United States as she, her husband Kurt, and their daughter Dawn are returning to their home in Miami after a stay in London. The stay was multi-purposed; one, Glory wanted Dawn to know what it felt like to live in London, the home of her Braddock heritage. Two, Glory wanted to rediscover what that ‘Braddock heritage’ was all about herself. Both goals were accomplished. Spending time in her native home where she was born and raised helped The British Bombshell reconnect with her legacy, heritage, and served as a reminder of who she was meant to be. The arrogant tyrant who was only out for herself is long gone. She remembers now that wrestling, at its core, is about the spirit of competition, and also entertaining the many fans who come to watch her perform each and every week on Breakdown. She will not let her fans down as she pursues her quest to become United States Champion and then later, hopefully, a World Tag Team Champion.
Braddock finds herself arm in arm with her husband Kurt Logan. Walking alongside them is their daughter Dawn Logan. Braddock is wearing a pink knee length flowy skirt, sandals, and a royal purple silk blouse. Dawn is wearing a simple floral print yellow sundress and sandals. Kurt is dressed in simple khaki shorts, sneakers, and a white t-shirt. They are all smiles as they approach the front door of their Miami, Florida home, seemingly happy to be returning from their stay in England. Yet all is not what it appears, at least when it comes to Glory Braddock. Deep down inside she is still nervous about the future, and not just her busy schedule coming up in SCW. She also has to deal with her cousins, Angelica and Kayla, as she seeks their help to learn more about her mother’s family, and learn the truth about rumors she heard while in England. Braddock also has the more imminent problem of telling her husband Kurt about her encounter with Matthew Taylor. She knows she could just ignore it, not tell Kurt, and just refuse to team with Matthew. Kurt would be none the wiser. But after the affair, Glory feels that honestly is truly the best policy in this case. She should be totally honest with Kurt and tell him what happened when Matthew approached her about wanting to team with her again. She is certain Kurt will not agree with his idea, she just hopes that he won’t get too angry.
“It is nice to see that the place is still standing.” Kurt says jokingly.
“Did you expect our oldest daughter to trash the place?”
“You never know with kids these days.” Kurt answers with a shrug of his shoulders. “They’re wild. Out of control.”
“I’m not wild!” Dawn chimes in. Kurt chuckles quietly and ruffles her hair.
“Not yet but you will be soon enough, I’m sure.”
They are seemingly the ideal family right now. A picture perfect family in a picture perfect setting returning home. But Glory knows that the ideal may be shattered sooner rather than later. She tries to enjoy it while she can as they approach the front door. Kurt tries to open the door but finds it locked.
“Melinda locked the door.”
“Smart girl. I taught her well.” Glory says grinning. Just then they hear footsteps approaching from inside. The trio stand back and wait as they hear the door unlocking. Then they see the door opening. Standing there in the doorway wearing torn denim jeans, black boots, and a black crop top is Melinda Braddock, the oldest of Glory’s children. Melinda, who is still wrestling on an independent circuit in the United States, opted not to travel with the rest of the family back to England. Melinda stayed behind to watch over the house while they were gone. Melinda puts her hands on her hips and smirks.
“You’re on private property. Do I need to call the cops?”
“No, smartass.” Glory says laughing. “Just step aside and let us in.”
“Sure thing, mom.”
Melinda steps to the side. Glory enters first and embraces Melinda with a tight hug. Kurt then joins in and hugs his step-daughter as well. After that hug has ended Mel turns towards her younger sister and smiles from ear to ear.
“And how’s my Dawnie?”
“Great!” Dawn rushes over and hugs her sister. After breaking the embrace Melinda points her sister towards the staircase down the hall. “Go upstairs, kid. You’ll find your room is in working order.”
“Yay!” Dawn rushes off. Kurt and Glory can’t help but laugh a little at their youngest daughter’s enthusiasm. Once Dawn is out of sight, the three remaining family members make their way into the living room. It looks a little messy, messier than the immaculate way Glory and Kurt typically keep it. Braddock scans the room and turns towards Melinda, winking at her.
“Definitely looks like your place.”
“Sorry about that, mom.” Melinda says. “I’ll clean up before I leave.”
“No need.” Glory insists. She approaches the sofa and sits down. Melinda sits down next to her in the center of the sofa and then Kurt sits on the other side of Melinda on that same sofa. Glory kisses Melinda on her cheek.
“Thanks for watching over things while we were gone, love.”
“Don’t mention it. I’m happy to help. But what about you, mom? Did you find what you were looking for?”
“I think I did.” Glory says with a grin on her face. “It really was great to be back at the old family home, it was great to see the old sites in London, Birmingham, and all over England…”
“Did you see the school?”
“Of course she did.” Kurt says with a nod of his head. “Your mother spent most of her time at your grandfather’s wrestling school.”
“That I did. Between dad’s school and the old pub he used to frequent, that’s where I spent most of my time. And let me tell you, Mel, I should have done this a lot sooner.”
“What do you mean?” She asks curiously.
“Well, I have been to the school a few times since dad passed away. But it was always on business. It was either for a graduation or to sign paperwork or something else where I was needed in an official capacity as an owner. Other than those few times I haven’t really set foot in England at all since my dad, your grandfather, passed away. And you know what I realized? I came to realize that I had lost sight of what my father stood for. I lost sight of what he taught me, of who he raised me to be.” Braddock sighs deeply as she fights back tears, as she becomes emotional. “They say that if you don’t learn from history then you are doomed to repeat it. I had forgot my own history, I forgot my past and my heritage. And that led me to make so many mistakes.” Glory looks deep into her daughter’s eyes. “Do NOT make the mistakes I made, Mel. Never forget your past. Never forget where you came from.”
“You don’t have to worry about me.” Melinda shakes her head. “That’s one thing I will never forget. Quite frankly, I miss my time at the school.”
“Oh yeah?” Glory asks. Melinda nods her head. “What do you miss about it?”
“Oh nothing.” Melinda shakes her head. Then she stands up and starts to walk away.
“Where are you running off to?” Kurt asks curiously.
“I’m just gonna go upstairs and tell Dawn goodbye.”
“Are you leaving already?” Glory seems genuinely surprised. “You can stay for dinner. This is still your house.”
“I know but I’m going to be very busy in the next few days. I have a date with Clyde, Fiona and I have match in the next few days in St. Louis, then even more stuff with Clyde.”
“Oh come on, love.” Glory insists. “Dinner won’t take long. I have been in England for so long, you and I need to catch up.”
“We can catch up another time, ok mom?”
“I suppose so.” Glory says nodding her head. She stands up and approaches Melinda. They embrace in a tight hug. “I love you, Mel.”
“Back at you, mom.” With that, Melinda turns and exits the living room. Glory can hear her daughter running up the stairs. Glory sighs as she makes her way back to the sofa and sits back down next to Kurt. She looks over at her husband curiously.
“Do you think Mel was acting a little strange just now?”
“What do you mean?” Kurt asks. “I mean, honestly, she hasn’t been acting any stranger than usual. She’s been different ever since hooking up with Clyde Sutter again.”
“Don’t remind me about that.” Glory rolls her eyes. “I am still not exactly thrilled with our daughter dating him.”
“I thought you had promised to try and accept him into the family?”
“I did and I genuinely am trying.” Glory answers sharply. “But it isn’t easy for me considering our past with him and his family. Sutter was bad enough to accept on his own but when I learned that he was actually related to the Van Stanton family, the same people who ended my father’s career, and this boy, their son, once got my daughter involved with drugs…” her voice trails off. Kurt chimes in quickly while he has a chance.
“But he said he has changed. And quite frankly, I believe him.”
“You’re a better person than I am, Kurt.” Glory says quietly. “I still find it difficult to accept him.”
“Maybe this is a discussion you need to have with Melinda?” Kurt suggests. Glory nods her head.
“I agree, I do need to talk to Mel. It feels as if she and I are growing further and further apart and I hate it. I hate not being able to repair our relationship. It’s just that I have so much going on right now…”
“Yes, you want to become SCW Supreme Champion. You also have an opportunity to become SCW United States Champion in this tournament. But don’t you think your family is more important than your career? I thought that was one of the lessons you learned while we were overseas?”
“You’re right. One of the many mistakes I have made was putting my career ahead of my family and that is a mistake I will not make again. But I wasn’t talking about my championship aspirations when I said I have so much going on in my life right now.”
“Oh?”
“I need to talk to my cousin.” Glory answers. “I need to talk to Angelica.”
“What’s wrong between you and Angelica?” Kurt asks curiously.
“Nothing is wrong between us. It’s something I found out in England. Something I haven’t even told you yet, or the children. Honestly, I haven’t even come to terms with it myself.” Glory shakes her head as the emotions once again return swiftly. Kurt holds her tightly in a hug.
“It’s ok, babe. I’m here for you.” He says lovingly. “What did you find out in England?”
“You know how I am afraid of me and Mel growing apart? My own mother and I grew apart. After mom and dad divorced, I started to grow more and more distant from mother, and a large part of that was due to the resentment I held towards her. I resented her for not trying to fight for custody of myself and my sister. Not that I hated dad and wanted to live with her. I loved dad just as much as I loved my mother. But the fact that mom didn’t even care enough to try made me think she didn’t love us. So I resented her. And we grew apart. We didn’t even really begin to mend our relationship until near the end of her life.” Glory reaches up and wipes a tear from her eye. “I am forever haunted by that.”
“It’s not your fault.” Kurt insists.
“I know. But that’s not the problem. I recently came to learn that mom may have had a good reason behind running away, running to the United States and not fighting for custody of me and my sister. She was being stalked, Kurt. And I have reason to believe that her stalker is the same creep who murdered my aunt Kelly, Angelica’s mother.”
“So you think your mom ran away to lead the stalker away from you and your sister and your father?” Kurt asks. Glory nods her head.
“Yeah.” Braddock shakes her head. “Maybe its silly, but it’s been eating me alive with guilt, the fact that I have held such a grudge against her, my own mother, for so long and now to think that there was no reason for it, for any of it. That I should have been grateful for her, because she was protecting me.”
“You had no way of knowing, babe. No possible way of knowing any of it. Your reactions were entirely rational. Understandable. You have absolutely nothing to feel guilty about.”
“Maybe you’re right but still, I owe it to myself and to my conscience to dig deeper. And maybe I owe it to Angelica? That whole situation set the stage for her becoming who she is today. The death of her mother, my aunt Kelly, it changed Angelica forever. She deserves to know and maybe she can help me through whatever problems I still have with my own mother?”
“If that’s what you need to do then you have my full support.” Kurt says with a smile. Then he kisses her on the lips. “So maybe what you did in England isn’t really finished? It’s just getting started?”
“More than likely.” Glory sighs deeply. “Speaking of which, there is one other thing that you and I need to talk about.”
“What is it?” Kurt asks as Glory stands up and then gently pulls on Kurt’s hands to get him to stand up as well. Glory looks deep in his eyes, they are loving eyes right now but she is unsure of how loving they will be in a few moments.
“We should go into the kitchen and get some drinks.”
“Uh oh…drinks? This can’t be good.”
“It isn’t.” Glory takes him by the hand and leads him out of the living room and into the next room, the kitchen. Kurt sits down in a nearby chair while Glory retrieves two wine glasses and then a bottle of wine. She pours Kurt a glass of wine and then pours herself some wine as well. Kurt takes a sip.
“The good stuff…this really is bad, huh?”
“Yeah.” Glory nods her head. “Look, I won’t beat around the bush. Sometimes its best just to rip the band-aid off so here it goes. Near the end of our stay in England, I was approached by Matthew.”
“Matthew as in Taylor?” Kurt asks, remembering full well of the affair between Matthew and Glory. Glory nods her head. “What did he want?”
“Apparently he had heard that I have plans to eventually make a move into the SCW tag team division in order to complete my Supreme Championship. Matthew wants to make a comeback himself, have one last run before calling it a career. And he wanted to know if he could be my tag team partner.”
“Oh he did, did he?” Kurt is eerily calm at this point, which makes Glory a little nervous. “What did you tell him?”
“At first I told him absolutely not, because our…past…would make things extremely awkward with you. He was persistent though. To shut him up I promised I would at least ask you if you would be ok with it.”
“Thanks for the consideration I suppose.” Kurt says as he takes a sip.
“So is that a yes or a no?”
“Oh if I actually have a say then absolutely fucking not.” Kurt says, his voice growing slightly louder. “There is no way in hell I want you anywhere near him.” He sighs deeply. “Then again, knowing you, you will probably do whatever you want anyway. That’s just who you are. That’s how you were built and raised.”
“Kurt, please, I’m being serious. If you don’t want me to then…”
“And I’m being serious too.” Kurt finishes the rest of his wine in one big gulp. It is clear that he is not happy. “Do I want you to do this? Hell no. But you are an adult, Glory. You are a grown woman. I cannot control what you do when you travel around with SCW. Hell, you could have been having affairs with other men before Matthew and I didn’t know about it.”
“Are you implying that I would cheat on you?”
“You did once.”
Glory sighs and shakes her head. The tears return to her face. “Kurt I…”
“Look, if you want my blessing then you have it.” He shakes his head. “But I don’t have to like it or approve of it.” With that said, Kurt stands up and storms out of the room. Glory sits down and buries her face in her hands and begins to cry. Has she just made a terrible mistake? Is this a can of worms that she should not have opened?
05-09-2023, 04:16 PM
OOC: Plays off of Selena’s Breakdown events as well as a bit from the PPV.
DISCLAIMER: The following is a work of fiction and not to be confused as complete or accurate representation of any beliefs, religions, etc. Please refer to research/articles by experts for that.
Forest Hills Neighbourhood
Queens, New York
April 29th, 2023
1:43pm
“And in the response of a female deity… we refer to these as ‘Goddess’ or ‘Goddesses’…”
Deanna Frost barely heard the voice as she fidgeted in her seat, surrounded by a mix of ages. There were some students that were just reaching adulthood while others were in their 20s like she was.
For a few more years anyway… she thought, working her lower lip. She was 26 now, which meant she would be 30 in about four years, which would make Elsianna 15, David 11, Amiliah 9 and Selena 38-
Immediately, the redhead slammed her thoughts shut when the image of the platinum-blonde flashed before her mind, her eyes closing just as swiftly. She quickly gave her head a shake before lifting it, taking in the front of the large room and the rollable whiteboard that the much older woman speaking was writing on. Quickly, though sloppily, the former tag-team champion scribbled down the definition of the latest words into her notes, ignoring the ‘clicking’ sounds of keyboards.
Wow…why didn’t I even think about getting a laptop? She chastised herself. She was the only person that was even using paper and pens, every other student with a laptop in front of them. Quietly releasing a sigh, Deanna looked around the room, trying to keep her eyes from fluttering shut again like they had a few times already since the lesson had begun. She used to be so keen in learning back in her home in Kentucky, sitting at the front of the class, answering questions, and doing her homework and all that. But that had been when she was learning things that interested her. Math, science, the way the world ‘worked’… not witchcraft.
She bit her lower lip to keep from speaking out loud, shuffling a little further into her seat to not be noticeable. She was, obviously, the oldest person in the classroom and she certainly hadn’t missed the snickers and glances that had fallen her way when the teacher hadn’t been looking. The students were all part of the ‘Alden family tree’ of some kind, here to begin their lessons in the various ideals and methods of… witchery? Pagan? Wiccan? Deanna refused to say any of them of fear of getting it wrong and pissing someone off.
She had travelled to Queens to the Forest Hills Neighbourhood, coming to this house which stood in the back of a forest, beautiful and secluded like her ‘Forever Home’. She was determined to keep her word to the Alden family. She and her wife were to be trained as witches to ‘pay back’ the debt Alejandra had with the infamous ‘scandal’ of her youth. It was a rather dumb situation, but it had been the least destructive way to solve this entire problem.
There was just one issue… no one had wanted to teach the Frosts.
At least, none had volunteered to teach them. All the available teachers that had been approached had refused to be associated with the family that was associated with the ‘scandalous Aldens’. It had taken weeks of refusal before the Alden elders had been forced to approach one last teacher: retired from the Academy of Wiccan and Pagan studies that the other teachers were part of. In fact, the woman had taught a lot of them – that’s how old she was!. The good news was the woman had not hesitated to say ‘yes’ in teaching the Frost wives. The bad news? They had been put in the only class the woman still taught (more as a hobby in her retirement).
That class had been the “Young adult” class, which explained the near decade age difference between Deanna and the other students.
Again, the redhead heard the snicker of someone in front of her, her emerald eyes flashing up to see a pair of young girls giggling a little at her before jerking their heads back to the front, though Deanna could still hear them whispering in their little ‘chit-chat’.
She was a pariah and she knew it, the infamy of her wife’s family probably on the tongues of all these parents’ students, possibly with orders of ‘Stay away!’ and ‘Don’t associate!’.
Least they can’t really bully me this time around. she thought glumly. Still, she would rather have had some friendliness in this endeavor. Was that too much to ask for?
The piece of paper landed in front of her, causing a slight jerk as her thoughts were lost. Immediately, she looked around to see a boy stare at her with a smirk before turning his head. He sat one seat up and to the left of her. Still, she unfolded the paper with a roll of her emerald eyes.
Witch panties… the paper read in its scribbles. did the dyke wear when riding her broom? despite herself, Deanna’s eyes moved down a few lines to the ‘answer’. Trick question! Dykes don’t like riding wood!
She felt her jaw clench but, otherwise, gave no visible reaction. Gods, this was like high-school in Kentucky all over again. When she had chosen to come out, her fellow classmates had all rallied against her. The emotional and physical abuse had been what had prompted her sister, Amy, to take her out of school and establish private tutors during the final year of Deanna’s high-school, which concluded shortly before she had met, fallen in love, and, eventually, married Selena.
Despite herself, Deanna’s eyes fluttered over to the empty chair beside her. The one with the name tag still perfectly placed in the middle with Selena’s name on it-
Again, Deanna forced herself to focus, immediately grabbing her pen and scribbling a simple sentence on the note: “Which is spelt with an ‘H’.” Before folding up the paper and tossing it back to the boy. He was somewhat startled but quickly unfolded it, expecting some kind of reaction, but, as his expression soured, he clearly did not like that Deanna had not been so easily affected. Nor did he seem to like when the teacher suddenly marched towards him, eyeing Deanna and him before plucking the piece of paper out of his hand.
Oh geez… Deanna thought in embarrassment. I’m 26 and I’m about to get detention… Before her, the wrinkled woman in her black gown eyed unfolded the paper. Giving it a quick read, she slowly refolded the paper before grabbing the boy by the arm and pulling him out of his seat, revealing a strength surprising for a woman of her apparent age.
“Mr. Harcourt.” She spoke sharply, pulling the boy to the front of the class. “Since you enjoy writing notes so much…” stopping at the front of her whiteboard, she quickly, using the dry eraser, cleared everything before handing the boy the black sharpie marker. “You can stand there and write what I dictate for the rest of the class.”
A chorus of snickers came from the class as the boy looked at the woman in disbelief. “Do you know who my dad is?”.
“Yes.” The teacher narrowed her eyes. “I taught him as well. He liked to pass notes during my class too. I hope your writing is neater than his was.” she leaned forward a little further. “And for the record.” Her voice dropped to a slight whisper, though it was still audible. “Which in that context IS spelt with an ‘h’. Remember that when you’re writing.”
Despite herself, Deanna felt a slight snicker come from her at the woman’s mocking, earning a slight glance by the teacher.
“Students. Young adults.” The woman spoke again. “I understand many of you have ‘reservations’ on some of your fellow students. Allow me to be clear: I will not tolerate ANY discrimination or misconduct in MY classroom. You are to treat every classmate with the utmost respect and integrity. Failure to do so will result in disciplinary action. I trust you understand that, since you being here to be taught by me, a retired teacher, leaves your options rather bleak. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, Mrs. Winthrop.”
“Good.” She nodded her head curtly. “Now, then to continue with our lesson – Kurt, write this down. The Greeks used a practice known as Hellenismos…”
Feeling a bit relieved, Deanna relaxed a little in her chair. Still, her emerald eyes, again, settled on the empty seat before her, this time unable to stop the thoughts that rushed through her.
Selena wasn’t there…
The redhead sighed. Where was her wife? Well, at least Deanna knew that. After the absolute madness that had seen the last of the House of Frost as tag-team champions at Playing the Wildcard, Selena had been… it hurt Deanna to say it, but she had never seen her wife so angry. Not only was there that business with Mr. D., but interference after interference, assault after assault – gods she had never seen the Snow Queen lose her cool like that in the ring. And when it was all said and done and Selena was titleless like she was, the older Frost had, a few days later, told Deanna that she needed to get away for a few days.
Now, she’s in Nome again… Deanna sighed, resting her head in her hand as her eyes continued to gaze at the empty seat. She didn’t want to begrudge her wife that. As stated, she had never seen her wife so lost and hurt and angry when it came to SCW itself. Others in SCW? Sure! Their private lives with the Scythes and Frostmeres? Absolutely! But SCW itself? No… she had always loved it and spoke fondly of it…
Now? Gods, the social media was alight with rumors. “Selena’s teasing a heel turn!”, “Selena’s going bad!”, “Just wait! It’s gonna happen! Snow Queen’s gonna snap!” and so many more statements across the various platforms. So, Deanna understood her wife’s need to get away from it all and go back to the colds of the north that had been her inspiration and shelter for so many years… But did it have to be now?!
They were both in tournaments! Selena in a tournament to crown a new World Champion and Deanna, herself, in a different tournament to crown a new United States Champion!
And it was easy for Selena! She had been in…like… four or five or – including God of Wrestling, World Series of Wrestling, and the Trios over the years- SEVERAL, okay? Several tournaments! Deanna had only been in one tournament in her whole ‘career’… and she had lost in the first round! Hell, she had been the one pinned!
She hadn’t even gotten to a semi-final or finals round in her life! And on top of it all… this tournament was for the United States title!
Nervously, Deanna’s eyes shut at the thought. Crab-cakes, she was nervous! For months, she had wanted a chance to fight for higher-tier titles like the Adrenaline or the United States title! She had beaten numerous people that had sprung ahead of her like The One and Cassie Wolfe to get their contendership shots… and yes, that part had made her a little bitter and envious but now that her chance was here? And now that she was facing a former World champion in the first round?
No! Not a former world champion! she mentally corrected. A former former former former former former former – gasp – hey wait a minute… why is my brain gasping? It doesn’t need to breathe like that… I mean it needs air but – FOCUS – FORMER world champion!
She felt the nail of her thumb in her teeth. Had she just been unlucky in drawing Glory Braddock? The woman had been good enough to beat Syren! Good enough to almost beat Selena for the WORLD title! Hell, the woman had already BEEN the United States Champion!
She is not ready to face the true upper echelon in this sport!
The words, spoken by Ravyn Taylor, echoed in Deanna’s brain, mocking her and the situation. There was no doubt that Glory Braddock, for all her accomplishments in SCW and her victories over such superstars as Ravyn and Syren, was part of that ‘upper echelon’… Deanna had tried so hard over the previous pay-per-view to disprove the vile woman’s words.
She wanted to be ready! She wanted so badly for the world to recognize it, even if D. and the roster didn’t.
But she had failed. She had proven Ravyn right – and it stung. It had stung so much, but she had buried it best she could and put on a brave face to try and support Selena. Afterall, it was only Deanna’s ego that was hurt. Her wife… she didn’t want to think about how much her mate was suffering.
Still… she thought glumly. I wish she was here…
Her heart ached at the truth of such a statement. She needed her wife. She wanted to comfort her and support her, but also… she needed to be comforted and supported.
She was scared. So scared. Not of this class or even the people sending her foul notes. She was scared of failing again. She was scared of being eliminated in the first round. She was scared of coming up short once more and hearing the same lines from everyone backstage, even from Mr. D..
You’re not ready…
You’re not ready…
You’re not ready…
You’re not ready…
She almost yelled a defiant ‘SHUT UP!’ to the voice of her head; the only thing stopping her was Mrs. Winthrop clearing her throat. “That will be it for today. I will see you next Saturday. Chapters 3, 4 and 6 must be read. Chapter 5 is there for more information if you require.”
The large, modified family-room-turned-classroom was a ruckus of noise as the students all packed their laptops away, Kurt Harcourt, the boy that had bothered Deanna, even shaking his now sore wrist to try and dispel some of the discomfort as he slinked out of the room, throwing a dirty look Deanna’s way as he did.
Quickly, the redhead’s eyes flew to the clock on the wall, her eyes wide as she spied that nearly an hour had passed in her musings and Winthrop’s intervention. Her eyes dropping down to her page, the emerald orbs went even wider as she spied the doodles on her note paper – drawings she hadn’t even realized she had made while her mind was off on its tangent of missing her wife and the upcoming tournament. She spied the artistic words, some in bold, some in cursive, some shaded, some just a mess, but she could read it all.
SCW…
United States title…
Glory…
Not ready…
Not ready…
Not ready… That message was filling most of her page, but not as much as the last one.
Selena…
The redhead could barely make out the class-notes she had written about witchcraft during the lesson, her ‘paper-graffiti’ covering even parts of those.
“A lot on your mind, I see.”
The voice caused Deanna to jump a little, a yelp escaping her as she jerked her head up to stare into the patient, gray eyes of Mrs. Winthrop.
“Ahh…” Deanna breathed, guilt filling her. “I…” her eyes fell down to her paper, a mess of ink and messages. “I mean…”
Winthrop smiled without judgment. “I’ve seen it all before.” She gave an understanding nod. “Especially from students that are being forced to learn here.” She turned around to make her way back to the front of the class where her desk was – a rich, dark-red cedar that reminded Deanna of her own hair.
“I wasn’t forced.” She spoke quickly, pushing herself out of her desk-chair and grabbing her ringed-booklet. She walked after Winthrop, watching the woman settle in her chair behind the desk. ”I chose to come here.”
“For your wife.” Winthrop nodded. “I was informed.” Adjusting her round glasses, the woman began pulling out papers, placing them on the desk in front of her.
“Yeah…about that.” Deanna sighed. “First, please understand that Selena will be here.”
“I hope so.” Winthrop smiled in humor. “I can’t quite pass her as a witch if she doesn’t show up to take the lessons.”
“No, I mean. Yeah… that makes sense.” Deanna scratched the back of her head with her free hand. “But I mean… she’s a great student. You’ll see! She’ll work hard and learn. She’s…” she sighed, the loneliness in her pushing more thoughts of her wife into her mind. “She’s perfect.”
“I doubt that.” Winthrop gave a tilt of her head, but her eyes shifted over to a framed picture that Deanna could not see on her side. “I find people who are ‘flawed’ to be far more intriguing. Far more capable of creating emotion in others like that.” She gestured the pen she now held towards Deanna’s face, causing the redhead to reach up quickly, feeling the slight heat in her cheeks.
“Sorry.” Deanna whispered. “But, Mrs. Winthrop… I also wanted to thank you. For what you said and did regarding that kid. I mean…”
“I have a standard.” The teacher answered. “I never broke in the forty years I taught at the Academy and I have no intention of breaking it now even in retirement.”
“Is…” Deanna bit her lower lip. “Is that why you agreed to teach Selena and I?”
“Yes.” Winthrop nodded.
“Even with the stigma of Selena’s mother?” Deanna tested. “Or that Selena and I are lesbians? Or the fact that neither of us really believe in this stuff?”
From her seat, the teacher looked up, a raised eyebrow pointed at Deanna. “Whether you believe in it or not, child.” She folded her hands over the table. “You believe in something.”
“I mean… well, yeah.” Deanna shrugged. “Everyone does.”
“You’d be surprised.” The teacher countered. “Still, you are here for a reason.”
“Yeah.” Deanna nodded. “I didn’t want Selena to go through this alone. It wasn’t fair. None of this is. Don’t… don’t you think? That she and Alejandra and the others are punished for something that happened forty years ago?”
“It is not my place to judge the decision of the elders.” Winthrop answered. “However… I believe, regardless of religion or education or stance of philosophy, that everything happens for a reason.” She eyed the redhead. “You are here for a reason. Your wife is not here today… for a reason.”
“She’s…” Deanna tried, unable to keep completely quiet of the matter. “She’s troubled. Everything she believes in… it’s crumbling around her and I…”
“You are trying to hold it up with your own bare hands.” Winthrop nodded her head knowingly. “Quite the burden for someone so young.”
“Did you ever?”
Slowly, a sad smile graced the older woman’s lips before she reached over to turn the framed picture over, revealing a black and white photo of two young women holding hands and standing in front of a tree.
“My sister and I.” Winthrop stated. “She was very sick… and I needed to look after her while teaching.”
“I’m sorry.” Deanna replied automatically, eyeing the portrait. The two girls were very pretty and the redhead could see some of the features of the young girl in Winthrop, albeit aged and withered from the decades.
“The hardest part…” Winthrop smiled, turning the frame back over to herself. “Was burying my own pain and exhaustion to put on a smile and be positive around her. I wanted so badly to be the one who was crying in her arms. To be the one who had her hair stroked and told ‘everything would be okay’. But I couldn’t.” she eyed Deanna. “She needed me to be there for her far more than I needed her to be there for me…”
Slowly, Deanna nodded her head. “I… I think I understand.”
“Good.” Winthrop nodded before reaching into her desk drawer and pulling out a card. “Here.”
“What is this?” Deanna asked, taking the black card and reading it. “Dresdin Flynn?”
“An old friend.” Winthrop smiled. “He helped me through my struggles with my sister. Perhaps he can help you with your troubles with your wife.”
Lifting an eyebrow, Deanna read the card slowly. “Says he’s a tarot-card reader, a fortune-teller, a psychic – Really?!” she asked in disbelief. “I already told you that I don’t believe in this stuff.”
Patiently, Winthrop merely shrugged her shoulders. “Have it your way, dear. But he is also a qualified counselor – if you read the other side of the card.”
Flipping it over, Deanna felt rather sheepish as she read the bolder, large print of ‘Family Therapist’.
“Ahh…” she remarked, abashed as she held the card up a little. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Winthrop replied, gazing back down at her notes. “I expect Selena to attend all my classes from now on, barring any emergencies, and keep up with the homework I assign.”
“U…Understood.” Deanna nodded, excusing herself as she marched out of the classroom and the house, doing all she could to keep her pride intact over her slip. She had just made it out the front door when she felt the cold breeze of the wind swirl around her – chilling her arms and making her wish she was wearing her favorite dark-green sweater as opposed to the jeans and t-shirt she had chosen.
Selena… her mind whispered to the cold around her, wishing her words could be heard as far as Nome. Please come home soon… I… I need you.
DISCLAIMER: The following is a work of fiction and not to be confused as complete or accurate representation of any beliefs, religions, etc. Please refer to research/articles by experts for that.
The Witches of Alden
”Lonely”
Forest Hills Neighbourhood
Queens, New York
April 29th, 2023
1:43pm
“And in the response of a female deity… we refer to these as ‘Goddess’ or ‘Goddesses’…”
Deanna Frost barely heard the voice as she fidgeted in her seat, surrounded by a mix of ages. There were some students that were just reaching adulthood while others were in their 20s like she was.
For a few more years anyway… she thought, working her lower lip. She was 26 now, which meant she would be 30 in about four years, which would make Elsianna 15, David 11, Amiliah 9 and Selena 38-
Immediately, the redhead slammed her thoughts shut when the image of the platinum-blonde flashed before her mind, her eyes closing just as swiftly. She quickly gave her head a shake before lifting it, taking in the front of the large room and the rollable whiteboard that the much older woman speaking was writing on. Quickly, though sloppily, the former tag-team champion scribbled down the definition of the latest words into her notes, ignoring the ‘clicking’ sounds of keyboards.
Wow…why didn’t I even think about getting a laptop? She chastised herself. She was the only person that was even using paper and pens, every other student with a laptop in front of them. Quietly releasing a sigh, Deanna looked around the room, trying to keep her eyes from fluttering shut again like they had a few times already since the lesson had begun. She used to be so keen in learning back in her home in Kentucky, sitting at the front of the class, answering questions, and doing her homework and all that. But that had been when she was learning things that interested her. Math, science, the way the world ‘worked’… not witchcraft.
She bit her lower lip to keep from speaking out loud, shuffling a little further into her seat to not be noticeable. She was, obviously, the oldest person in the classroom and she certainly hadn’t missed the snickers and glances that had fallen her way when the teacher hadn’t been looking. The students were all part of the ‘Alden family tree’ of some kind, here to begin their lessons in the various ideals and methods of… witchery? Pagan? Wiccan? Deanna refused to say any of them of fear of getting it wrong and pissing someone off.
She had travelled to Queens to the Forest Hills Neighbourhood, coming to this house which stood in the back of a forest, beautiful and secluded like her ‘Forever Home’. She was determined to keep her word to the Alden family. She and her wife were to be trained as witches to ‘pay back’ the debt Alejandra had with the infamous ‘scandal’ of her youth. It was a rather dumb situation, but it had been the least destructive way to solve this entire problem.
There was just one issue… no one had wanted to teach the Frosts.
At least, none had volunteered to teach them. All the available teachers that had been approached had refused to be associated with the family that was associated with the ‘scandalous Aldens’. It had taken weeks of refusal before the Alden elders had been forced to approach one last teacher: retired from the Academy of Wiccan and Pagan studies that the other teachers were part of. In fact, the woman had taught a lot of them – that’s how old she was!. The good news was the woman had not hesitated to say ‘yes’ in teaching the Frost wives. The bad news? They had been put in the only class the woman still taught (more as a hobby in her retirement).
That class had been the “Young adult” class, which explained the near decade age difference between Deanna and the other students.
Again, the redhead heard the snicker of someone in front of her, her emerald eyes flashing up to see a pair of young girls giggling a little at her before jerking their heads back to the front, though Deanna could still hear them whispering in their little ‘chit-chat’.
She was a pariah and she knew it, the infamy of her wife’s family probably on the tongues of all these parents’ students, possibly with orders of ‘Stay away!’ and ‘Don’t associate!’.
Least they can’t really bully me this time around. she thought glumly. Still, she would rather have had some friendliness in this endeavor. Was that too much to ask for?
The piece of paper landed in front of her, causing a slight jerk as her thoughts were lost. Immediately, she looked around to see a boy stare at her with a smirk before turning his head. He sat one seat up and to the left of her. Still, she unfolded the paper with a roll of her emerald eyes.
Witch panties… the paper read in its scribbles. did the dyke wear when riding her broom? despite herself, Deanna’s eyes moved down a few lines to the ‘answer’. Trick question! Dykes don’t like riding wood!
She felt her jaw clench but, otherwise, gave no visible reaction. Gods, this was like high-school in Kentucky all over again. When she had chosen to come out, her fellow classmates had all rallied against her. The emotional and physical abuse had been what had prompted her sister, Amy, to take her out of school and establish private tutors during the final year of Deanna’s high-school, which concluded shortly before she had met, fallen in love, and, eventually, married Selena.
Despite herself, Deanna’s eyes fluttered over to the empty chair beside her. The one with the name tag still perfectly placed in the middle with Selena’s name on it-
Again, Deanna forced herself to focus, immediately grabbing her pen and scribbling a simple sentence on the note: “Which is spelt with an ‘H’.” Before folding up the paper and tossing it back to the boy. He was somewhat startled but quickly unfolded it, expecting some kind of reaction, but, as his expression soured, he clearly did not like that Deanna had not been so easily affected. Nor did he seem to like when the teacher suddenly marched towards him, eyeing Deanna and him before plucking the piece of paper out of his hand.
Oh geez… Deanna thought in embarrassment. I’m 26 and I’m about to get detention… Before her, the wrinkled woman in her black gown eyed unfolded the paper. Giving it a quick read, she slowly refolded the paper before grabbing the boy by the arm and pulling him out of his seat, revealing a strength surprising for a woman of her apparent age.
“Mr. Harcourt.” She spoke sharply, pulling the boy to the front of the class. “Since you enjoy writing notes so much…” stopping at the front of her whiteboard, she quickly, using the dry eraser, cleared everything before handing the boy the black sharpie marker. “You can stand there and write what I dictate for the rest of the class.”
A chorus of snickers came from the class as the boy looked at the woman in disbelief. “Do you know who my dad is?”.
“Yes.” The teacher narrowed her eyes. “I taught him as well. He liked to pass notes during my class too. I hope your writing is neater than his was.” she leaned forward a little further. “And for the record.” Her voice dropped to a slight whisper, though it was still audible. “Which in that context IS spelt with an ‘h’. Remember that when you’re writing.”
Despite herself, Deanna felt a slight snicker come from her at the woman’s mocking, earning a slight glance by the teacher.
“Students. Young adults.” The woman spoke again. “I understand many of you have ‘reservations’ on some of your fellow students. Allow me to be clear: I will not tolerate ANY discrimination or misconduct in MY classroom. You are to treat every classmate with the utmost respect and integrity. Failure to do so will result in disciplinary action. I trust you understand that, since you being here to be taught by me, a retired teacher, leaves your options rather bleak. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, Mrs. Winthrop.”
“Good.” She nodded her head curtly. “Now, then to continue with our lesson – Kurt, write this down. The Greeks used a practice known as Hellenismos…”
Feeling a bit relieved, Deanna relaxed a little in her chair. Still, her emerald eyes, again, settled on the empty seat before her, this time unable to stop the thoughts that rushed through her.
Selena wasn’t there…
The redhead sighed. Where was her wife? Well, at least Deanna knew that. After the absolute madness that had seen the last of the House of Frost as tag-team champions at Playing the Wildcard, Selena had been… it hurt Deanna to say it, but she had never seen her wife so angry. Not only was there that business with Mr. D., but interference after interference, assault after assault – gods she had never seen the Snow Queen lose her cool like that in the ring. And when it was all said and done and Selena was titleless like she was, the older Frost had, a few days later, told Deanna that she needed to get away for a few days.
Now, she’s in Nome again… Deanna sighed, resting her head in her hand as her eyes continued to gaze at the empty seat. She didn’t want to begrudge her wife that. As stated, she had never seen her wife so lost and hurt and angry when it came to SCW itself. Others in SCW? Sure! Their private lives with the Scythes and Frostmeres? Absolutely! But SCW itself? No… she had always loved it and spoke fondly of it…
Now? Gods, the social media was alight with rumors. “Selena’s teasing a heel turn!”, “Selena’s going bad!”, “Just wait! It’s gonna happen! Snow Queen’s gonna snap!” and so many more statements across the various platforms. So, Deanna understood her wife’s need to get away from it all and go back to the colds of the north that had been her inspiration and shelter for so many years… But did it have to be now?!
They were both in tournaments! Selena in a tournament to crown a new World Champion and Deanna, herself, in a different tournament to crown a new United States Champion!
And it was easy for Selena! She had been in…like… four or five or – including God of Wrestling, World Series of Wrestling, and the Trios over the years- SEVERAL, okay? Several tournaments! Deanna had only been in one tournament in her whole ‘career’… and she had lost in the first round! Hell, she had been the one pinned!
She hadn’t even gotten to a semi-final or finals round in her life! And on top of it all… this tournament was for the United States title!
Nervously, Deanna’s eyes shut at the thought. Crab-cakes, she was nervous! For months, she had wanted a chance to fight for higher-tier titles like the Adrenaline or the United States title! She had beaten numerous people that had sprung ahead of her like The One and Cassie Wolfe to get their contendership shots… and yes, that part had made her a little bitter and envious but now that her chance was here? And now that she was facing a former World champion in the first round?
No! Not a former world champion! she mentally corrected. A former former former former former former former – gasp – hey wait a minute… why is my brain gasping? It doesn’t need to breathe like that… I mean it needs air but – FOCUS – FORMER world champion!
She felt the nail of her thumb in her teeth. Had she just been unlucky in drawing Glory Braddock? The woman had been good enough to beat Syren! Good enough to almost beat Selena for the WORLD title! Hell, the woman had already BEEN the United States Champion!
She is not ready to face the true upper echelon in this sport!
The words, spoken by Ravyn Taylor, echoed in Deanna’s brain, mocking her and the situation. There was no doubt that Glory Braddock, for all her accomplishments in SCW and her victories over such superstars as Ravyn and Syren, was part of that ‘upper echelon’… Deanna had tried so hard over the previous pay-per-view to disprove the vile woman’s words.
She wanted to be ready! She wanted so badly for the world to recognize it, even if D. and the roster didn’t.
But she had failed. She had proven Ravyn right – and it stung. It had stung so much, but she had buried it best she could and put on a brave face to try and support Selena. Afterall, it was only Deanna’s ego that was hurt. Her wife… she didn’t want to think about how much her mate was suffering.
Still… she thought glumly. I wish she was here…
Her heart ached at the truth of such a statement. She needed her wife. She wanted to comfort her and support her, but also… she needed to be comforted and supported.
She was scared. So scared. Not of this class or even the people sending her foul notes. She was scared of failing again. She was scared of being eliminated in the first round. She was scared of coming up short once more and hearing the same lines from everyone backstage, even from Mr. D..
You’re not ready…
You’re not ready…
You’re not ready…
You’re not ready…
She almost yelled a defiant ‘SHUT UP!’ to the voice of her head; the only thing stopping her was Mrs. Winthrop clearing her throat. “That will be it for today. I will see you next Saturday. Chapters 3, 4 and 6 must be read. Chapter 5 is there for more information if you require.”
The large, modified family-room-turned-classroom was a ruckus of noise as the students all packed their laptops away, Kurt Harcourt, the boy that had bothered Deanna, even shaking his now sore wrist to try and dispel some of the discomfort as he slinked out of the room, throwing a dirty look Deanna’s way as he did.
Quickly, the redhead’s eyes flew to the clock on the wall, her eyes wide as she spied that nearly an hour had passed in her musings and Winthrop’s intervention. Her eyes dropping down to her page, the emerald orbs went even wider as she spied the doodles on her note paper – drawings she hadn’t even realized she had made while her mind was off on its tangent of missing her wife and the upcoming tournament. She spied the artistic words, some in bold, some in cursive, some shaded, some just a mess, but she could read it all.
SCW…
United States title…
Glory…
Not ready…
Not ready…
Not ready… That message was filling most of her page, but not as much as the last one.
Selena…
The redhead could barely make out the class-notes she had written about witchcraft during the lesson, her ‘paper-graffiti’ covering even parts of those.
“A lot on your mind, I see.”
The voice caused Deanna to jump a little, a yelp escaping her as she jerked her head up to stare into the patient, gray eyes of Mrs. Winthrop.
“Ahh…” Deanna breathed, guilt filling her. “I…” her eyes fell down to her paper, a mess of ink and messages. “I mean…”
Winthrop smiled without judgment. “I’ve seen it all before.” She gave an understanding nod. “Especially from students that are being forced to learn here.” She turned around to make her way back to the front of the class where her desk was – a rich, dark-red cedar that reminded Deanna of her own hair.
“I wasn’t forced.” She spoke quickly, pushing herself out of her desk-chair and grabbing her ringed-booklet. She walked after Winthrop, watching the woman settle in her chair behind the desk. ”I chose to come here.”
“For your wife.” Winthrop nodded. “I was informed.” Adjusting her round glasses, the woman began pulling out papers, placing them on the desk in front of her.
“Yeah…about that.” Deanna sighed. “First, please understand that Selena will be here.”
“I hope so.” Winthrop smiled in humor. “I can’t quite pass her as a witch if she doesn’t show up to take the lessons.”
“No, I mean. Yeah… that makes sense.” Deanna scratched the back of her head with her free hand. “But I mean… she’s a great student. You’ll see! She’ll work hard and learn. She’s…” she sighed, the loneliness in her pushing more thoughts of her wife into her mind. “She’s perfect.”
“I doubt that.” Winthrop gave a tilt of her head, but her eyes shifted over to a framed picture that Deanna could not see on her side. “I find people who are ‘flawed’ to be far more intriguing. Far more capable of creating emotion in others like that.” She gestured the pen she now held towards Deanna’s face, causing the redhead to reach up quickly, feeling the slight heat in her cheeks.
“Sorry.” Deanna whispered. “But, Mrs. Winthrop… I also wanted to thank you. For what you said and did regarding that kid. I mean…”
“I have a standard.” The teacher answered. “I never broke in the forty years I taught at the Academy and I have no intention of breaking it now even in retirement.”
“Is…” Deanna bit her lower lip. “Is that why you agreed to teach Selena and I?”
“Yes.” Winthrop nodded.
“Even with the stigma of Selena’s mother?” Deanna tested. “Or that Selena and I are lesbians? Or the fact that neither of us really believe in this stuff?”
From her seat, the teacher looked up, a raised eyebrow pointed at Deanna. “Whether you believe in it or not, child.” She folded her hands over the table. “You believe in something.”
“I mean… well, yeah.” Deanna shrugged. “Everyone does.”
“You’d be surprised.” The teacher countered. “Still, you are here for a reason.”
“Yeah.” Deanna nodded. “I didn’t want Selena to go through this alone. It wasn’t fair. None of this is. Don’t… don’t you think? That she and Alejandra and the others are punished for something that happened forty years ago?”
“It is not my place to judge the decision of the elders.” Winthrop answered. “However… I believe, regardless of religion or education or stance of philosophy, that everything happens for a reason.” She eyed the redhead. “You are here for a reason. Your wife is not here today… for a reason.”
“She’s…” Deanna tried, unable to keep completely quiet of the matter. “She’s troubled. Everything she believes in… it’s crumbling around her and I…”
“You are trying to hold it up with your own bare hands.” Winthrop nodded her head knowingly. “Quite the burden for someone so young.”
“Did you ever?”
Slowly, a sad smile graced the older woman’s lips before she reached over to turn the framed picture over, revealing a black and white photo of two young women holding hands and standing in front of a tree.
“My sister and I.” Winthrop stated. “She was very sick… and I needed to look after her while teaching.”
“I’m sorry.” Deanna replied automatically, eyeing the portrait. The two girls were very pretty and the redhead could see some of the features of the young girl in Winthrop, albeit aged and withered from the decades.
“The hardest part…” Winthrop smiled, turning the frame back over to herself. “Was burying my own pain and exhaustion to put on a smile and be positive around her. I wanted so badly to be the one who was crying in her arms. To be the one who had her hair stroked and told ‘everything would be okay’. But I couldn’t.” she eyed Deanna. “She needed me to be there for her far more than I needed her to be there for me…”
Slowly, Deanna nodded her head. “I… I think I understand.”
“Good.” Winthrop nodded before reaching into her desk drawer and pulling out a card. “Here.”
“What is this?” Deanna asked, taking the black card and reading it. “Dresdin Flynn?”
“An old friend.” Winthrop smiled. “He helped me through my struggles with my sister. Perhaps he can help you with your troubles with your wife.”
Lifting an eyebrow, Deanna read the card slowly. “Says he’s a tarot-card reader, a fortune-teller, a psychic – Really?!” she asked in disbelief. “I already told you that I don’t believe in this stuff.”
Patiently, Winthrop merely shrugged her shoulders. “Have it your way, dear. But he is also a qualified counselor – if you read the other side of the card.”
Flipping it over, Deanna felt rather sheepish as she read the bolder, large print of ‘Family Therapist’.
“Ahh…” she remarked, abashed as she held the card up a little. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Winthrop replied, gazing back down at her notes. “I expect Selena to attend all my classes from now on, barring any emergencies, and keep up with the homework I assign.”
“U…Understood.” Deanna nodded, excusing herself as she marched out of the classroom and the house, doing all she could to keep her pride intact over her slip. She had just made it out the front door when she felt the cold breeze of the wind swirl around her – chilling her arms and making her wish she was wearing her favorite dark-green sweater as opposed to the jeans and t-shirt she had chosen.
Selena… her mind whispered to the cold around her, wishing her words could be heard as far as Nome. Please come home soon… I… I need you.
05-09-2023, 05:29 PM
2 of 2
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May 8th, 2023
Boston, Massachusetts
Off Camera
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Breakdown will be live from Salt Lake City, Utah and that is when Glory Braddock will begin her quest to regain the SCW United States Championship. No, it is not the primary target she is after. Braddock wants to become World Tag Team Champion in SCW in order to complete the Supreme Championship Status. However she is not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, this is an opportunity most would kill for and she will not turn it away. Besides, the last time she held the United States Title she disrespected it and drug it through the mud by carrying around a fake United Kingdom Title belt with her. She burned a lot of bridges during that reign as champion and to this day many do not believe that she has changed, there are still those who doubt how genuine she truly is when she says that she is a changed person, that she has turned over a new leaf. Among those who question her happens to be her first round opponent, Deanna Frost. Deanna and Selena both question Braddock and justifiably so. This presents a unique opportunity for The British Bombshell to rewrite history. She can defeat Deanna, prove that she has turned over a new leaf, and then go on to become United States Champion. Winning the US Title for a second time would give her the chance to have a legitimate, honest run as champion. She can give it the proper respect it deserves. Being Supreme Champion is important for Glory Braddock, and she is one title victory away from achieving that goal. But she is not proud of all of her championship wins. Her victory and subsequent reign as US Champion is just one example. She cannot rewrite her entire SCW history but this is one rare opportunity to rewrite history and leave a positive mark on the United States Title.
Before she makes the trip across the nation to Salt Late City, Utah, The British Bombshell is going make a quick trip up north to visit with her cousin, Angelica Jones. Braddock and Angelica work for SCW, but Angelica is a manager now, manager and advocate of Kimberly Williams. So Glory would more than likely have seen Angelica at Breakdown anyway, but what she needs to speak to her cousin about is very important, for too important to put off until Breakdown. This is a topic that Glory would rather speak about in private, not backstage at Breakdown where evesdroppers are everywhere. After all, this has to do with their shared family history, a history that Angelica is all too familiar with while Glory is seeking those answers; answers that Angelica may have.
The British Bombshell is making her approach towards the front door of her cousin’s home in Boston, Massachusetts. Braddock is wearing tight form fitting denim jeans, black boots, and a forest green crop top. Her long blonde hair is pulled into a ponytail in the back. She is carrying her bags with her, bags that contained extra changes of clothes as well as her wrestling gear. She intends to make the trip to Utah with Angelica. Glory and Angelica have never traveled the road with each other, despite wrestling for the same promotion on more than on occasion. So this will be a unique experience for both of them. More importantly, it will give the cousins plenty of time to talk. Braddock makes it up to the front door and rings the bell. She waits patiently for an answer. A few seconds later she hears the door unlocking. The door opens and she spots her cousin, Angelica Jones, standing there ready to greet her. Jones is dressed in a floral print maxi dress, sandals, and a black leather jacket. Her long hair, typically red, has been dyed a platinum blonde color. Braddock immediately furrows her brow in confusion.
“Glory!” Angelica exclaims as she embraces her cousin in a hug. “You told me you were coming but I’ll be honest, I didn’t believe you until I saw you just now.”
“That makes us even.” Glory points to Angelica’s hair. “I can’t believe you dyed your hair.”
“You don’t like it?”
“Oh I like it just fine. It’s just different.”
“I happen to like it.” Angelica smirks. “But don’t worry, I’ll be ginger again in a few weeks. I just wanted to try something different.”
“Speaking of different, me and you traveling together will be different, won’t it?” Glory says with a knowing grin. Angelica nods her head.
“That it will. Quite honestly, I’m surprised we’ve never done this before.” Angelica steps aside and motions for Glory to step inside. Glory crosses the threshold and into her cousin’s home. “Just leave those here for now. Let’s go and relax.” Glory drops her bags and follows Angelica into her living room. Glory sits down on the sofa and Angelica sits down next to her. “So what is the motivation behind you wanting to travel with me to Breakdown this week? Is it because you’re facing Deanna Frost? Because if you’re looking for advice you’re barking up the wrong Jones. I have plenty of experience fighting Selena but I’ve never fought Denna. Kim has fought them both and beaten them both but never by pin or submission.”
“Thanks for the offer, mate, and I may pick your brain sometime during the trip, but honestly, advice on how to proceed against Frost is not the reason I wanted to spend some time with you the next few days.”
“Oh?”
“I’m not sure if I told you but I spent the last few months in my home…and by my home I mean England.”
“Excited about the Coronation I take it?”
“Me? No.” Glory chuckles softly. “I’m not all into the pomp and circumstance. In fact, I returned to Miami before the festivities began. I was there in England to rediscover myself. After spending so much time in Miami I began to realize I had become a hot and sunny Florida girl, but I forgot my roots as a cold, muggy English girl. I needed to find myself.”
“Did you find yourself?” Angelica asks. Glory nods her head.
“I’d like to think so.”
“Well I, for one, can tell. You have been acting like the Glory Braddock I remember. The good hearted, good person, that I always knew you were deep down inside. The arrogant, condescending person you had become…” Angelica shakes her head “...that’s just not you. I am glad you found yourself.”
“I didn’t just find myself on that trip, mate.” Glory states. “I did some digging around while I was there and I learned some things about my mother.” Glory lets that sit for awhile. Angelica tilts her head to one side and studies Glory carefully.
“You mean Aphrodite or…” Angelica asks, knowing that Glory has a unique relationship with one Aphrodite Noel, a woman Glory actually calls ‘mother’. Glory shakes her head to confirm that this is not the case.
“No, I mean my biological mother. Your aunt Maria.” Glory states. Angelica is immediately interested at this point.
“What did you learn?”
“Do you remember why I was so angry with my mother?”
“You were ticked off that she left England after breaking up with your dad.” Angelica answers. Glory nods her head.
“I thought that she had just abandoned us. I thought that she just didn’t want to be a parent, she didn’t want to be a mother, and so she just left as soon as she could, as soon as the divorce was finalized she left the country and left me and my sister behind. Yes, I held that grudge close to my heart for a very long time. But while I was in England I learned that she had actually left England in order to protect me.”
“How do you figure that?”
“There was a man who had been stalking her in the months leading up to and the months following the break up and break down of my mom and dad’s marriage. I don’t know much about this man except that he was a Russian national.” Glory stares quietly at her cousin, waiting to see her response. The response is one of great emotion. Tears begin to flow down Angelica’s cheek. Angelica immediately knows where Glory’s train of thought is going with this.
“My mom…Aunt Maria’s sister…she was murdered by a Russian national…”
“Yes, I know.” Glory is getting emotional as well. The cousins embrace in a tight hug to comfort one another. After breaking the embrace they wipe the tears from their eyes and struggle to regain their composure. “I believe my mom knew that she was in danger, that this man wanted to harm her, so he left the country and fled to America to protect me.” Glory sighs deeply. “But she unwittingly led him to her sister…your mother, my aunt Kelly.”
“I think you could be right.” Angelica says, nodding her head. She rises up off of the sofa. “Stay there, Glory. I’ll be right back.”
Glory watches as Angelica exits the living room. She begins to question whether or not this was a wise decision to confront her cousin with this news. Angelica has always been a very emotional person. The death of her mother, Kelly Kurinsky Jones, scarred her for life. Glory believed that she had a right to know about this, considering the connection, but will this just bring back more painful memories? Will it scar Angelica even further? Braddock ponders these questions for a few more moments until she sees Angelica returning to the room. She has a blue book in her hand and she gives it to Glory.
“What’s this?” Glory asks curiously.
“It’s your mother’s diary.” Angelica sighs. “I kept it from you, mainly because I knew you had harbored ill feelings toward your mother for so long and I didn’t think you’d want it. But now I think maybe you need this. It might provide the answers you need.”
“Thank you.” Glory hugs Angelica one more time. After breaking the embrace she looks lovingly at the diary. This will provide great insight into her mother, insight that she never had before. Still, there is one more question Glory needs answered, a question that might lead her to the answers she seeks. “Angel, this may be hard but…the man who murdered your mother. What was his name?”
“Dmitri.” Angelica says with some difficulty.
“Dmitri what?”
“Dmitri.” Angelica shrugs her shoulders. “That’s all I know.”
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May 10th, 2023
Utah
On Camera
==========
We open out in the middle of a deserted road that appears to be in great disrepair. There are many potholes in the road, many bumps and other cracks that would make this particular road a nightmare for drivers. Just then Glory Braddock enters the scene from the right. The British Bombshell is decked out in a simple yet elegant pink floral print spaghetti strap midi dress. She is perched atop pink high heeled sandals. Her long blonde hair flows down to just past the shoulders.
“Author Maya Banks once said that ‘bad things happen to good people all the time. It sucks. It's not fair but then much of life isn't fair. It's how you live that matters. It's how you deal with the bumps in the road.” Braddock turns and takes a quick glance at the road that is in great need of repair. She chuckles lightly and then turns back to face the camera. “This road definitely needs some help. Anyone who travels on this road will definitely have some trouble. Professional wrestling is like that. There are many goals you can seek out in this business, and there are many avenues and many roads that lead towards those goals. Some people like to take shortcuts along the road to success. Sometimes those shortcuts work out well for them and they get exactly what they want out of this business. Other times those shortcuts just don’t work out. Just ask the Donner Party. They took a shortcut and I think everyone can remember what happened to them. If not, google it. Just don’t google it before dinner.” Braddock winks at the camera. “Point is, those who take shortcuts sometimes get what they want. That’s not fair. The same can be said for those who go along the right path, who stick to the straight and narrow. Sometimes those make it to their destination, they achieve their goals, and they are celebrated. Sometimes they do not reach their goals, sometimes these bumps in the roads, these potholes, will just ruin their travel plans altogether. And is that fair to those who play by the rules?” Glory shakes her head.
“No, it isn’t fair. Deanna, you and Selena’s run recently has been fraught with nothing but potholes and bumps in the road that have ruined your plans. My misunderstood, demented, eccentric cousin Kimberly ruined your tag title ruin. Then Ace Marshall put the final nail in the coffin.” Glory points to one particularly nasty looking pothole and then to a real nasty looking bump in the road. “Let’s call that pothole Kim and that bump in the road Ace. All you wanted to do was make the SCW World Tag Team Championship mean something. You wanted to restore honor and pride to those belts, some honor and pride that some would argue had been lost since the reign of a Penguin and a Bear at the top of the tag team division. And I’m sure you’re thinking that thanks to Kim’s Cash In followed by Ace and Ravyn at Playing the Wildcard that all of your hard work has been for nothing.” Braddock shakes her head.
“You’re wrong. It wasn’t for nothing because you have inspired people. Look at the tag team division as it stands. Light In The Darkness is ready to take up the fight integrity in the tag team division. And of course I’m going to be stepping foot into the tag team division very soon myself and yes, you two inspired me to a degree. You may believe me, you may not, and you’re justified in not believing me, but I have changed. Your continued effort to fight for what is RIGHT about this business and what is GOOD about this business helped remind me just who the hell I am. And when the time comes, I will carry on the same fight in the tag team division to complete my journey, to finish going down this long treacherous road towards becoming Supreme Champion.” Braddock points to another pothole.
“Now this pothole affects me and my journey. It affects yours too, Deanna. I’m sure you would love nothing more than to get back in the saddle and try to wrestle those belts away from Ace and Ravyn. I would love nothing more than to finish the job and become Supreme Champion. But this pothole is the one created by Owen Cruze when he defeated Josh Hudson to become SCW World Champion and retain the US Title only to retire after Playing the Wildcard. I’m not criticizing him. After all he’s been through he’s certainly earned the right to retire on top. But this now creates the necessity to hold these tournaments to crown a new United States Champion and a new World Champion.” Braddock motions to herself.
“You and I have the distinct privilege of getting an opportunity to participate in the United States Championship Tournament. Now I know what the talk will be where I’m concerned. People are going to say that Glory Braddock is just in this to win championships, to rack up more accolades for herself. Yeah, as if I control who books these matches and who gets invited to these tournaments. But what other people say about me no longer bothers me. They can talk all they want and it won’t bother me. At the end of the day I know who I am and I know that this business and maintaining the spirit of this business, the spirit of competition, is the most important thing to me. Hell, maintaining the spirit of competition is more important to me than even becoming Supreme Champion. And you do not get much closer to the spirit of competition that professional wrestling was built upon than a good old fashioned tournament.” Braddock pats herself on the chest.
“Just in case you forgot, Deanna, I am really good at these tournaments. In my professional debut in January of 2008 I was a late replacement in a one night single elimination tournament to crown a new GDW International Champion. And I won! Fast forward to my years in SCW, I won back to back Trios Tournaments! And the last time a tournament was held to crown a new United States Champion, I made it all the way to the finals. I have a proven track record of being really good at these tournaments. Tournaments are my specialty.” Glory shakes her head. “But I’m not looking past you. I am not looking past you even for one second. You have a history of beating people at their own game, Deanna. All people have to do is ask my cousin Kimberly about that.” Braddock smirks knowingly. “That’s why there are those people out there who believe that you are in Selena’s shadow. That’s why people like Ace accuse you of being just a glorified Selena Frost cheerleader. They say that because they know you are capable of being great on your own and not just as a member of the House of Frost. I won’t bore you with those same accusations or ridiculous insults. But trust me when I say that I am not looking past you just because you are best known for being a tag team champion with Selena Frost. Anyone who can push Kim Williams to her limits in the Underground and even beat her is someone who should be taken seriously. So you can BELIEVE THIS, Deanna…I will bring the absolute best I have to the table on Breakdown. I will throw everything I have in my arsenal. I won’t be a one dimensional submission only wrestler. I will use any and every potential strategic attack plan in order to win this match and advance in the tournament. That’s how much respect I have for what you bring to the table.”
“Yet still one question remains; what is in it for Glory Braddock? What do I get out of it?” Braddock shrugs her shoulders. “I mean, I already won the US Title. This pothole is just delaying my real goal, right? At least, that’s the narrative certain people are going to want to tell. That’s the portrait certain artists are going to want to paint. The problem is that its all based on fiction, the fiction that I am only in this business for championships and glory…” Braddock chuckles softly “...pardon the pun.” The British Bombshell shakes her head. A look of fierce intensity washes across her face. “I am not in this for mere accolades. I am not in this for trinkets of gold. I am in this because of my passion for professional wrestling. I love what I do. I love this business. I love the thrill of competition. Have I done everything to perfection? Has my career been immaculate?” Glory shakes her head.
“No, it hasn’t. I wish I could say I never once made a mistake but damn it, I cannot say it. I have made many mistakes and one of the biggest mistakes, one of the biggest black marks in my career was running around claiming to be the United Kingdom Champion during my first reign as United States Champion.” Glory sighs. “It was a disgrace to the title and a disgrace to my own legacy because I know that I am better than that. I know that I can be better than that. And I get the rare opportunity to fix that mistake.” She chuckles softly. “Only in science fiction do you get to go back and rewrite history. Back To The Future, Star Trek First Contact, Doctor Who, there’s plenty of example in film and television of people going back in time to rewrite the past. Reality is that you can’t rewrite the past.” She pats herself on the chest. “Except me! I get this rare opportunity to rewrite my own history! If I can win this tournament and become United States Champion, then I get to rewrite my own past. I can erase that black mark off of my record and finally have a US Title reign that I am proud of.” She points a finger at the camera. “But first I have to get through you, Deanna.” Braddock points at another pothole in the road. “You are my first pothole on this road to redemption, this road to rewrite my history and regain the United States Title.”
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May 8th, 2023
Boston, Massachusetts
Off Camera
==========
Breakdown will be live from Salt Lake City, Utah and that is when Glory Braddock will begin her quest to regain the SCW United States Championship. No, it is not the primary target she is after. Braddock wants to become World Tag Team Champion in SCW in order to complete the Supreme Championship Status. However she is not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, this is an opportunity most would kill for and she will not turn it away. Besides, the last time she held the United States Title she disrespected it and drug it through the mud by carrying around a fake United Kingdom Title belt with her. She burned a lot of bridges during that reign as champion and to this day many do not believe that she has changed, there are still those who doubt how genuine she truly is when she says that she is a changed person, that she has turned over a new leaf. Among those who question her happens to be her first round opponent, Deanna Frost. Deanna and Selena both question Braddock and justifiably so. This presents a unique opportunity for The British Bombshell to rewrite history. She can defeat Deanna, prove that she has turned over a new leaf, and then go on to become United States Champion. Winning the US Title for a second time would give her the chance to have a legitimate, honest run as champion. She can give it the proper respect it deserves. Being Supreme Champion is important for Glory Braddock, and she is one title victory away from achieving that goal. But she is not proud of all of her championship wins. Her victory and subsequent reign as US Champion is just one example. She cannot rewrite her entire SCW history but this is one rare opportunity to rewrite history and leave a positive mark on the United States Title.
Before she makes the trip across the nation to Salt Late City, Utah, The British Bombshell is going make a quick trip up north to visit with her cousin, Angelica Jones. Braddock and Angelica work for SCW, but Angelica is a manager now, manager and advocate of Kimberly Williams. So Glory would more than likely have seen Angelica at Breakdown anyway, but what she needs to speak to her cousin about is very important, for too important to put off until Breakdown. This is a topic that Glory would rather speak about in private, not backstage at Breakdown where evesdroppers are everywhere. After all, this has to do with their shared family history, a history that Angelica is all too familiar with while Glory is seeking those answers; answers that Angelica may have.
The British Bombshell is making her approach towards the front door of her cousin’s home in Boston, Massachusetts. Braddock is wearing tight form fitting denim jeans, black boots, and a forest green crop top. Her long blonde hair is pulled into a ponytail in the back. She is carrying her bags with her, bags that contained extra changes of clothes as well as her wrestling gear. She intends to make the trip to Utah with Angelica. Glory and Angelica have never traveled the road with each other, despite wrestling for the same promotion on more than on occasion. So this will be a unique experience for both of them. More importantly, it will give the cousins plenty of time to talk. Braddock makes it up to the front door and rings the bell. She waits patiently for an answer. A few seconds later she hears the door unlocking. The door opens and she spots her cousin, Angelica Jones, standing there ready to greet her. Jones is dressed in a floral print maxi dress, sandals, and a black leather jacket. Her long hair, typically red, has been dyed a platinum blonde color. Braddock immediately furrows her brow in confusion.
“Glory!” Angelica exclaims as she embraces her cousin in a hug. “You told me you were coming but I’ll be honest, I didn’t believe you until I saw you just now.”
“That makes us even.” Glory points to Angelica’s hair. “I can’t believe you dyed your hair.”
“You don’t like it?”
“Oh I like it just fine. It’s just different.”
“I happen to like it.” Angelica smirks. “But don’t worry, I’ll be ginger again in a few weeks. I just wanted to try something different.”
“Speaking of different, me and you traveling together will be different, won’t it?” Glory says with a knowing grin. Angelica nods her head.
“That it will. Quite honestly, I’m surprised we’ve never done this before.” Angelica steps aside and motions for Glory to step inside. Glory crosses the threshold and into her cousin’s home. “Just leave those here for now. Let’s go and relax.” Glory drops her bags and follows Angelica into her living room. Glory sits down on the sofa and Angelica sits down next to her. “So what is the motivation behind you wanting to travel with me to Breakdown this week? Is it because you’re facing Deanna Frost? Because if you’re looking for advice you’re barking up the wrong Jones. I have plenty of experience fighting Selena but I’ve never fought Denna. Kim has fought them both and beaten them both but never by pin or submission.”
“Thanks for the offer, mate, and I may pick your brain sometime during the trip, but honestly, advice on how to proceed against Frost is not the reason I wanted to spend some time with you the next few days.”
“Oh?”
“I’m not sure if I told you but I spent the last few months in my home…and by my home I mean England.”
“Excited about the Coronation I take it?”
“Me? No.” Glory chuckles softly. “I’m not all into the pomp and circumstance. In fact, I returned to Miami before the festivities began. I was there in England to rediscover myself. After spending so much time in Miami I began to realize I had become a hot and sunny Florida girl, but I forgot my roots as a cold, muggy English girl. I needed to find myself.”
“Did you find yourself?” Angelica asks. Glory nods her head.
“I’d like to think so.”
“Well I, for one, can tell. You have been acting like the Glory Braddock I remember. The good hearted, good person, that I always knew you were deep down inside. The arrogant, condescending person you had become…” Angelica shakes her head “...that’s just not you. I am glad you found yourself.”
“I didn’t just find myself on that trip, mate.” Glory states. “I did some digging around while I was there and I learned some things about my mother.” Glory lets that sit for awhile. Angelica tilts her head to one side and studies Glory carefully.
“You mean Aphrodite or…” Angelica asks, knowing that Glory has a unique relationship with one Aphrodite Noel, a woman Glory actually calls ‘mother’. Glory shakes her head to confirm that this is not the case.
“No, I mean my biological mother. Your aunt Maria.” Glory states. Angelica is immediately interested at this point.
“What did you learn?”
“Do you remember why I was so angry with my mother?”
“You were ticked off that she left England after breaking up with your dad.” Angelica answers. Glory nods her head.
“I thought that she had just abandoned us. I thought that she just didn’t want to be a parent, she didn’t want to be a mother, and so she just left as soon as she could, as soon as the divorce was finalized she left the country and left me and my sister behind. Yes, I held that grudge close to my heart for a very long time. But while I was in England I learned that she had actually left England in order to protect me.”
“How do you figure that?”
“There was a man who had been stalking her in the months leading up to and the months following the break up and break down of my mom and dad’s marriage. I don’t know much about this man except that he was a Russian national.” Glory stares quietly at her cousin, waiting to see her response. The response is one of great emotion. Tears begin to flow down Angelica’s cheek. Angelica immediately knows where Glory’s train of thought is going with this.
“My mom…Aunt Maria’s sister…she was murdered by a Russian national…”
“Yes, I know.” Glory is getting emotional as well. The cousins embrace in a tight hug to comfort one another. After breaking the embrace they wipe the tears from their eyes and struggle to regain their composure. “I believe my mom knew that she was in danger, that this man wanted to harm her, so he left the country and fled to America to protect me.” Glory sighs deeply. “But she unwittingly led him to her sister…your mother, my aunt Kelly.”
“I think you could be right.” Angelica says, nodding her head. She rises up off of the sofa. “Stay there, Glory. I’ll be right back.”
Glory watches as Angelica exits the living room. She begins to question whether or not this was a wise decision to confront her cousin with this news. Angelica has always been a very emotional person. The death of her mother, Kelly Kurinsky Jones, scarred her for life. Glory believed that she had a right to know about this, considering the connection, but will this just bring back more painful memories? Will it scar Angelica even further? Braddock ponders these questions for a few more moments until she sees Angelica returning to the room. She has a blue book in her hand and she gives it to Glory.
“What’s this?” Glory asks curiously.
“It’s your mother’s diary.” Angelica sighs. “I kept it from you, mainly because I knew you had harbored ill feelings toward your mother for so long and I didn’t think you’d want it. But now I think maybe you need this. It might provide the answers you need.”
“Thank you.” Glory hugs Angelica one more time. After breaking the embrace she looks lovingly at the diary. This will provide great insight into her mother, insight that she never had before. Still, there is one more question Glory needs answered, a question that might lead her to the answers she seeks. “Angel, this may be hard but…the man who murdered your mother. What was his name?”
“Dmitri.” Angelica says with some difficulty.
“Dmitri what?”
“Dmitri.” Angelica shrugs her shoulders. “That’s all I know.”
==========
May 10th, 2023
Utah
On Camera
==========
We open out in the middle of a deserted road that appears to be in great disrepair. There are many potholes in the road, many bumps and other cracks that would make this particular road a nightmare for drivers. Just then Glory Braddock enters the scene from the right. The British Bombshell is decked out in a simple yet elegant pink floral print spaghetti strap midi dress. She is perched atop pink high heeled sandals. Her long blonde hair flows down to just past the shoulders.
“Author Maya Banks once said that ‘bad things happen to good people all the time. It sucks. It's not fair but then much of life isn't fair. It's how you live that matters. It's how you deal with the bumps in the road.” Braddock turns and takes a quick glance at the road that is in great need of repair. She chuckles lightly and then turns back to face the camera. “This road definitely needs some help. Anyone who travels on this road will definitely have some trouble. Professional wrestling is like that. There are many goals you can seek out in this business, and there are many avenues and many roads that lead towards those goals. Some people like to take shortcuts along the road to success. Sometimes those shortcuts work out well for them and they get exactly what they want out of this business. Other times those shortcuts just don’t work out. Just ask the Donner Party. They took a shortcut and I think everyone can remember what happened to them. If not, google it. Just don’t google it before dinner.” Braddock winks at the camera. “Point is, those who take shortcuts sometimes get what they want. That’s not fair. The same can be said for those who go along the right path, who stick to the straight and narrow. Sometimes those make it to their destination, they achieve their goals, and they are celebrated. Sometimes they do not reach their goals, sometimes these bumps in the roads, these potholes, will just ruin their travel plans altogether. And is that fair to those who play by the rules?” Glory shakes her head.
“No, it isn’t fair. Deanna, you and Selena’s run recently has been fraught with nothing but potholes and bumps in the road that have ruined your plans. My misunderstood, demented, eccentric cousin Kimberly ruined your tag title ruin. Then Ace Marshall put the final nail in the coffin.” Glory points to one particularly nasty looking pothole and then to a real nasty looking bump in the road. “Let’s call that pothole Kim and that bump in the road Ace. All you wanted to do was make the SCW World Tag Team Championship mean something. You wanted to restore honor and pride to those belts, some honor and pride that some would argue had been lost since the reign of a Penguin and a Bear at the top of the tag team division. And I’m sure you’re thinking that thanks to Kim’s Cash In followed by Ace and Ravyn at Playing the Wildcard that all of your hard work has been for nothing.” Braddock shakes her head.
“You’re wrong. It wasn’t for nothing because you have inspired people. Look at the tag team division as it stands. Light In The Darkness is ready to take up the fight integrity in the tag team division. And of course I’m going to be stepping foot into the tag team division very soon myself and yes, you two inspired me to a degree. You may believe me, you may not, and you’re justified in not believing me, but I have changed. Your continued effort to fight for what is RIGHT about this business and what is GOOD about this business helped remind me just who the hell I am. And when the time comes, I will carry on the same fight in the tag team division to complete my journey, to finish going down this long treacherous road towards becoming Supreme Champion.” Braddock points to another pothole.
“Now this pothole affects me and my journey. It affects yours too, Deanna. I’m sure you would love nothing more than to get back in the saddle and try to wrestle those belts away from Ace and Ravyn. I would love nothing more than to finish the job and become Supreme Champion. But this pothole is the one created by Owen Cruze when he defeated Josh Hudson to become SCW World Champion and retain the US Title only to retire after Playing the Wildcard. I’m not criticizing him. After all he’s been through he’s certainly earned the right to retire on top. But this now creates the necessity to hold these tournaments to crown a new United States Champion and a new World Champion.” Braddock motions to herself.
“You and I have the distinct privilege of getting an opportunity to participate in the United States Championship Tournament. Now I know what the talk will be where I’m concerned. People are going to say that Glory Braddock is just in this to win championships, to rack up more accolades for herself. Yeah, as if I control who books these matches and who gets invited to these tournaments. But what other people say about me no longer bothers me. They can talk all they want and it won’t bother me. At the end of the day I know who I am and I know that this business and maintaining the spirit of this business, the spirit of competition, is the most important thing to me. Hell, maintaining the spirit of competition is more important to me than even becoming Supreme Champion. And you do not get much closer to the spirit of competition that professional wrestling was built upon than a good old fashioned tournament.” Braddock pats herself on the chest.
“Just in case you forgot, Deanna, I am really good at these tournaments. In my professional debut in January of 2008 I was a late replacement in a one night single elimination tournament to crown a new GDW International Champion. And I won! Fast forward to my years in SCW, I won back to back Trios Tournaments! And the last time a tournament was held to crown a new United States Champion, I made it all the way to the finals. I have a proven track record of being really good at these tournaments. Tournaments are my specialty.” Glory shakes her head. “But I’m not looking past you. I am not looking past you even for one second. You have a history of beating people at their own game, Deanna. All people have to do is ask my cousin Kimberly about that.” Braddock smirks knowingly. “That’s why there are those people out there who believe that you are in Selena’s shadow. That’s why people like Ace accuse you of being just a glorified Selena Frost cheerleader. They say that because they know you are capable of being great on your own and not just as a member of the House of Frost. I won’t bore you with those same accusations or ridiculous insults. But trust me when I say that I am not looking past you just because you are best known for being a tag team champion with Selena Frost. Anyone who can push Kim Williams to her limits in the Underground and even beat her is someone who should be taken seriously. So you can BELIEVE THIS, Deanna…I will bring the absolute best I have to the table on Breakdown. I will throw everything I have in my arsenal. I won’t be a one dimensional submission only wrestler. I will use any and every potential strategic attack plan in order to win this match and advance in the tournament. That’s how much respect I have for what you bring to the table.”
“Yet still one question remains; what is in it for Glory Braddock? What do I get out of it?” Braddock shrugs her shoulders. “I mean, I already won the US Title. This pothole is just delaying my real goal, right? At least, that’s the narrative certain people are going to want to tell. That’s the portrait certain artists are going to want to paint. The problem is that its all based on fiction, the fiction that I am only in this business for championships and glory…” Braddock chuckles softly “...pardon the pun.” The British Bombshell shakes her head. A look of fierce intensity washes across her face. “I am not in this for mere accolades. I am not in this for trinkets of gold. I am in this because of my passion for professional wrestling. I love what I do. I love this business. I love the thrill of competition. Have I done everything to perfection? Has my career been immaculate?” Glory shakes her head.
“No, it hasn’t. I wish I could say I never once made a mistake but damn it, I cannot say it. I have made many mistakes and one of the biggest mistakes, one of the biggest black marks in my career was running around claiming to be the United Kingdom Champion during my first reign as United States Champion.” Glory sighs. “It was a disgrace to the title and a disgrace to my own legacy because I know that I am better than that. I know that I can be better than that. And I get the rare opportunity to fix that mistake.” She chuckles softly. “Only in science fiction do you get to go back and rewrite history. Back To The Future, Star Trek First Contact, Doctor Who, there’s plenty of example in film and television of people going back in time to rewrite the past. Reality is that you can’t rewrite the past.” She pats herself on the chest. “Except me! I get this rare opportunity to rewrite my own history! If I can win this tournament and become United States Champion, then I get to rewrite my own past. I can erase that black mark off of my record and finally have a US Title reign that I am proud of.” She points a finger at the camera. “But first I have to get through you, Deanna.” Braddock points at another pothole in the road. “You are my first pothole on this road to redemption, this road to rewrite my history and regain the United States Title.”
05-10-2023, 04:36 PM
OOC: Second one. Plays off of Selena’s Breakdown events as well as a bit from the PPV.
DISCLAIMER: The following is a work of fiction and not to be confused as complete or accurate representation of any beliefs, religions, etc. Please refer to research/articles by experts for that.
Black Arrow Neighbourhood
Manhattan, New York
May 2nd, 2023
3:22pm
Deanna looked up at the clouds overhead, seeing the collage of black and white swirls that filled the sky, preventing any kind of blue or even sunlight from peeking through. The weather had called for a rather hefty rainstorm in the evening hours and it looked to be already settling in to fill Manhattan with a downpour of sky-water.
It won’t be long now… she heard the thought whisper to her, though she wasn’t really sure what her brain was referring to. Was it the rain? SCW? Or… Selena…
She exhaled a little, letting the weight of Oberon pull her as the dog moved ahead of her, the least keeping the stark-white dog rooted to Deanna’s wrist. It had been a week since her wife had left for Nome, Alaska.
Seven days and no text. No returns from the love messages, “I miss you”, or phone call/audio messages Deanna had left on Selena’s phone. She had ‘given up’ on them after the fourth or fifth day – knowing she wasn’t going to get a response until her wife emerged from whatever sadness or depression spell she was in.
I’m nervous… That was the last message she had sent to her wife. A voicemail in which the redhead had laid out how her fears about this tournament – her tournament for the now vacant United States Championship, made so by the retired Owen Cruze – had plagued her even during, what was supposed to be, their first ‘lesson’ in witchcraft. She had left three voicemails back to back (basically every time her wife’s phone had cut her off).
How she was scared of losing in the first round.
How she was scared of facing a former world champion in Glory Braddock.
How she was scared of losing to another round of “The Five Moves of Doom”.
How she was scared that it would be that ‘easy’.
How she was scared of hearing the same words from Glory, or Quinne, or Bree (albeit good-naturedly) or any of the other competitors in the tournament or… gods forbid, O. D..
Aside from her wife, it had been all the redhead had thought about the past week, spending most of her sleepless nights diving into study on the British Bombshell’s matches or training in the gym or in the ring. Still, she was a mother and had done her best to keep to that duty, even if her wife wouldn’t with her escapades.
Casting her eyes around her as she walked through her neighbourhood of Black Arrow, her house just a few blocks away, Deanna spied her daughters and son walking beside her. David was running and stopping around them, while Elsianna remained silent, holding Amiliah’s hand as they completed the obligatory walk for ‘fresh air and exercise’ Deanna insisted upon – not wanting them to stay couped up in the house with their video games and books and Legos.
Still, Elsianna was the one the redhead focused on, the child’s eyes cast down towards the sidewalk they walked. The girl had not spoken much since her grounding. While Deanna and Selena had rushed to the hospital weeks ago to check on Tannis Parks, the young patient suffering a health-scare, Elsianna had taken it upon herself to steal Selena’s phone (left in the Snow Queen’s office), order an Uber and travel to the Space-Art-Exhibit that Selena had promised to take her to.
It would have been impressive to the redhead, the brilliance of her eldest daughter, had it not scared the Frost wives to death. Had it not been for the receipt of the travel that had been emailed to Selena’s account (linked with the Uber account), they might never have found her. The young redhead could still picture the sight of her wife breaking down in the middle of the art hall as she held Elsianna close to her – so many tears for so many reasons falling from her eyes… just like Deanna’s had cried.
Elsianna had been grounded ‘indefinitely’ – a punishment the Frosts had never used before. No phone, no playing with friends like Asuna Gray, no television, no dungeons and dragons, none of that. She hadn’t fought them on it beyond the initial childish ‘it’s not fair’ but Selena had quickly quelled that with the reality of how Elsa could have been hurt or worse!
It hurt Deanna’s heart to see the child so closed off, but she could do nothing. The child had done something terrible and needed to be punished for it. It was unfair to put her mothers’ through that, regardless of her reasoning of ‘promises’. It was beyond reckless. Just like her mother… Deanna sighed as they continued to walk down the sidewalks back towards the house. She was grateful to the clouds for holding back their ‘tears’ of rain as the ‘Forever Home’ came into view.
But it was the sight of a familiar vehicle: Selena’s AXTGRIFF that she had won in the World Series of Wrestling that caught Deanna’s eyes.
Quickly, she picked up the pace, ignoring David’s protest at the slight increase in marching. Within minutes, the redhead had reached the door, unlocked it and ushered the children inside.
“Elsianna.” She spoke quietly. “Take Amiliah to play. You know to just watch her.”
“Yes, mom.” Elsianna nodded glumly, sticking to her grounding as David scampered off to return to his video games downstairs.
Alone, Deanna quietly ascended the stairs, taking to the second floor and turning there to enter the master bedroom she knew so well. Her timing was perfect, for as she entered, the door to the adjoined bathroom opened and the taller woman stepped out. She wore trackpants and a dark-blue hoodie. In her hands, she tried her long, platinum-blonde hair with a black towel. It took a few minutes of the woman drying herself from (Deanna assumed) a shower before she lowered the towel, allowing her to see the redhead standing in the doorway. Before her, Selena gave slight gasp and jump of surprise, her hand flying to her heart, the former world champion taking a few breaths to calm herself from the shock.
Despite how funny it looked, Deanna said nothing, merely forming her lips into a firm line as she leaned against the doorframe. “You’re back.” She finally spoke, earning a nod from her wife.
“Yeah.”
“Did you find what you were looking for?”
Before her, Deanna saw her wife’s expression, surprisingly, wilt a little, the older woman slowly giving a shake of her head. “No.” was all she said in reply.
The answer almost stunned Deanna. Nome had always been ‘the place’ for Selena to find some kind of answers or purpose or reasoning! It had been where she had gone to find the nerve to regain the U.S title not only against Bree Lancaster but also in a tournament years ago. Quietly. Deanna wished for such a place for herself - gods know I could use it….
But for such a haven to not work for Selena? It sounded almost impossible.
“Oh…” Deanna slowly bit her lower lip, nodding her head. “Well…that sucks.”
“Yeah.” Selena nodded her head. “I’m sorry for not returning your messages…”
It sounded so lame from her, but all the redhead could do was shrug her shoulders, the words she had received from Mrs. Winthrop echoing in her mind. “I get it.” She sighed.
“No…” sighed Selena, frustration etched into her features. “I should have been here! I knew it the moment I left but… I couldn’t stop. I couldn’t shake what happened – and… and how he just threw it away and…”
“Selena… I get it.” Deanna pressed, pushing her own feelings down deep. “I’m just glad you’re back, okay?”
Despite seemingly wishing to say more, the Snow Queen slowly nodded her head. “How did the first lesson of witchcraft go?”
“You’re not in the doghouse if that’s what you’re asking. I covered for you. But I wouldn’t recommend missing any more classes. We’re trying to get this done and over with.”
“Right…” Selena tsked from her lips, sucking a bit of breath to make the sounds. “I sort of dropped the ball, didn’t I?”
Instead of a spoken answer, Deanna merely shrugged her shoulders. “Won’t know that till you fight Hudson, right?”
“What about you?” the platinum-blonde suddenly asked, her sapphire eyes bright. “How you feeling about Glory? She’s…” she tried so hard to find the words. “She’s tough… easily one of the toughest I’ve faced.”
I’M SCARED!
I’M AFRAID!
I NEED HELP!
I CAN’T DO THIS ALONE!
I FEEL LIKE I’M GOING TO FAIL!
I’M TERRIFIED OF LETTING YOU DOWN!
I HAVEN’T BEEN ABLE TO SLEEP THE LAST FEW DAYS BECAUSE I KEEP THINKING ABOUT WHAT RAVYN AND O. SAID!
“I’m fine.” Deanna smiled, forcing her lips into the expression. “I’m not really that worried. I’ll just…” she shrugged. “Find a way to make it work…”
It was the biggest lie she had ever told in her life…
__________________________________________________
So… where do I start? Elephant in the room? Okay, we’ll go ‘Elephant in the room’.
At Playing the Wildcard… I said that I needed to win. I said that I needed to win that world tag title match, not just to undo what the “Chaos Match” had done, not just to return the tag-team titles to the House of Frost and not just because I don’t like Ace Marshall or Ravyn Taylor, but for me…
I said that ‘winning was a necessity for me’. I said that I needed to win in order to disprove Ravyn’s words that I was ‘unworthy’ and ‘unprepared’ to face former world champions and a Hall of Famer. To prove, not only to the SCW Universe, but to the roster, to the boss, and to myself that I was more than Selena’s ‘cheerleader’ and ‘shadow’!
And I lost…
Now, I could bog this promo down with words like ‘interferences’ and ‘weapons’ and ‘illegal maneuvers’ and ‘unfairness’, but you take that all away and get to the bottom line? I lost. Pure and simple. I didn’t prove anything that night… Sure, Selena and I took down person after person, assault after assault and kept standing, kept getting back up until a cheap pin ended things. Sure, I sent Ravyn Taylor scrambling back with failed plan after failed plan. Sure, some could argue that we HAD this match and our opponents based on our skill, our passion, and our abilities, but the bottom line will read forever: The House of Frost lost to Ace Marshall and Ravyn Taylor at Playing the Wildcard.
And now… I am now haunted by those words.
I am haunted by words that came from the boss that I am simply “a cog” in SCW. Something that can be bought, sold, or even tossed away while my wife remains a commodity – irreplaceable in the world of SCW. I am haunted by the words “not ready” and “unfit” and being “a shadow”. I am haunted by the image of being up against that glass-ceiling, kicking and punching away at it until my limbs are bruised and bleeding, but never breaking through. Forever destined to watch my wife on the other side as she wins accolade after accolade, title after title, and accomplishes all she can for integrity and SCW…
So, the question wasn’t “what does The House of Frost do now?” for me. My question was… what does Deanna Frost do?
And some of you, the True Believers and Little Gritters, already made your thoughts known. The words ‘rematch’ and ‘fixing the BS match that occurred’ has been thrown around, but let’s be honest here. I have preached about fairness and integrity alongside my wife since the beginning and, in all fairness, Selena and I are NOT the number one contenders for the SCW World tag-team titles. That honor belongs to Bree Lancaster and Datura, whether they are ready to cash in on it or not. And on top of that, the other tag-teams like Light in the Darkness, Chance Owens and Kelsai Adamson, Simon Lyman and Amy Chastaine, I could go on with the number of teams that have upped their game because of the House of Frost – they also deserve recognition in this division and a chance. So, while I desire to recapture the tag titles with my wife, as she feels the same, that will seemingly not happen right away.
Instead, I find myself in probably a more daunting task. That is in a tournament to crown a new United States Champion in SCW. You all saw last Breakdown. The retirement of Owen Cruze – the boy… the young man, the legend, because that’s what he has become – riding off into the sunset. Leaving a hole in the two biggest divisions SCW has. Gaps that NEED to be filled. Now, I’ve said it before that I have long desired a chance for a top-tier title like the United States Championship. For me, that title has also been special because of my wife.
You see, Josh Hudson can claim his name is ‘synonymous’ with that title, as he sits there having been eliminated from the world title tournament by Selena, but that man has never fallen of a scaffold for that title or battled in a roofed-cage for that title…
And when you think about it, the United States title has long been that ‘special tier’ that served as a bridge between the mid-card and the main-event roster. A tier where such things are not only possible but often necessary to champion such a division. Names like Selena, Shilo Valiant, Jason Zero, Tommy Valentine, Simon Lyman, Regan Street, Bree Lancaster – the list of main-event talent and Hall of Famers that, even after they were former World champions, waged war just to hold the U.S title is an illustrious and incredible one – with that title, at times, being held on par with the world title itself with the contenders, matches and rivalries that fought for it.
So, to be an entrant to crown a new U.S champion… that’s a tall order. It’s a daunting task for someone like me. And with my mind haunted by the pay-per-view and everything that’s been said about me the last few weeks from the roster to the boss, it’s, even more so, an intimidating task.
And the cherry on top? I enter into this tournament taking on one of the most decorated wrestlers in the wrestling world: Glory Braddock.
Damn… it doesn’t get much harder than that, does it, Glory? Cause there isn’t enough time in a segment to list your accomplishments, is there? The world titles you’ve won? The tournaments you’ve won? You are so far accomplished – moreso when compared to me – that a tournament like this? Where you have competed in finals and won them? This is routine for you, isn’t it? This is a zone that you are VERY comfortable with.
Not the case with me. This is my second tournament in my career and the second time I’ve had the odds against me in the first round.
But let me acknowledge something before I get started with that. I will say thank you for your kind words towards the unfairness of the pay-per-view, your views on me and I appreciate your promise to bring your A-game to our match in Salt Lake City. You hear what I’ve heard about myself from so many people for so long, it’s a kindness to have respect from such a high-tiered woman, a wrestler like yourself.
But let me correct something in your assessment of me. I’ve said before it before, I’ll say it again, and I’ll keep saying it until it is fact proven irrefutable… I am not my wife.
You see, Glory, while I agree with Selena on your past regarding the United States and United Kingdom title, in that I don’t agree with your actions, I understand your decisions regarding it. In this business, if you don’t stand out, you stand aside. If you don’t constantly evolve, you get left behind. And in this cutthroat business, where I am constantly fighting for my place, for my stance, for my very individual existence, I can understand your desire to stand out amidst the incredible talent. That need, that desire, is something we share – even if we do not always agree on the ‘methods’.
So, now that THAT is out of the way, you can understand that I also understand your desire to ‘change’ your association with the United States title. Your desire to have a reign filled with integrity that you can look fondly on. I get that too.
But here is where I deviate from our similarities and go straight for what makes us different, Glory. Because you while you can talk about ‘redemption’ and ‘fixing things’, you have that luxury. You have the luxury of being heralded as the star that you are. You are not questioned on your credentials. You are not questioned on your skill.
You have scaled the mountain, stood at its peak, and are now looking back at your time there in reflection…
I have not. I cannot do that. Unlike you, I have yet to reach that mountaintop, yet to punch through that glass ceiling and prove myself beyond a shadow of a doubt. I do not have a ‘past’ to either look back on fondly or ‘with regret’. I do not have a ‘reign’ with a top tier title that defines me like you do. I do not have a tournament that I prevailed in to prove myself to the SCW Universe.
So while you are fighting for what you did… I am fighting for what I have yet to do.
And it took… it took hearing Selena last Breakdown to understand all that. When she fearlessly looked into the eyes of Mr. D. and told him – the boss of nearly 20 years – that not only would she become the new World champion, but I would become the new United States Champion. And being in that ring, Glory, I realized that she wasn’t just blowing smoke. She wasn’t making idle promises. She wasn’t making predictions. She was stating what she believed was the undeniable truth.
And when I asked her why she believed that, she told me it was because she knows me. She knows that I need to win this tournament. That not only do I need to beat you, Glory, but I need to win this tournament as badly as she needs to win hers.
And I suddenly realized how right she was!
Because I look at everything I have endured this past year. The Underground division, the ridicule, the doubt, the pain – having my arm broken inside the Chamber and fighting through the rehab – it was ALL for THIS moment. This tournament. This chance to change things for myself forever!
You want to ‘remake history’, Glory? This is about me MAKING history! MY history. A history where I step out of the shadow cast on me, where I change from ‘undesirable’ to ‘undeniable’! Where I silence the words of Ravyn and D. and others emphatically and I become what I am meant to be! A world-class, main-event tier superstar of Supreme Championship Wrestling! Just like you!
So, Glory, while I appreciate you bring your A-game, I will emphatically say, you had better bring a hell of a lot more than that. Because I will be bringing every game I possess from A to Z! I will be bringing every breath, every drop of blood, sweat and tear that I possess! I will be bringing EVERYTHING I am to get past you just to have a chance to beat a former world champion!
You were so kind to give us a little ‘saying’ in your promo. Let me give you one my sister often told me: Every journey begins with a single step.
Breakdown – Salt Lake City, Utah – you are my single step. You are my first step to the top of that mountain! My first step to being more than a shadow, more than a cog, more than unready, unprepared, whatever the world wants to call me! My first step at being my own woman, my own superstar, my own name!
And more than a pothole for you, Glory Braddock. Because when this Breakdown, you won’t find yourself rolling over me or even tripping over me...
You’ll find yourself fully stopped by me – your road burnt out by the next SCW United States Champion!
Checkmate, bitches!
DISCLAIMER: The following is a work of fiction and not to be confused as complete or accurate representation of any beliefs, religions, etc. Please refer to research/articles by experts for that.
The Witches of Alden
”Silence”
Black Arrow Neighbourhood
Manhattan, New York
May 2nd, 2023
3:22pm
Deanna looked up at the clouds overhead, seeing the collage of black and white swirls that filled the sky, preventing any kind of blue or even sunlight from peeking through. The weather had called for a rather hefty rainstorm in the evening hours and it looked to be already settling in to fill Manhattan with a downpour of sky-water.
It won’t be long now… she heard the thought whisper to her, though she wasn’t really sure what her brain was referring to. Was it the rain? SCW? Or… Selena…
She exhaled a little, letting the weight of Oberon pull her as the dog moved ahead of her, the least keeping the stark-white dog rooted to Deanna’s wrist. It had been a week since her wife had left for Nome, Alaska.
Seven days and no text. No returns from the love messages, “I miss you”, or phone call/audio messages Deanna had left on Selena’s phone. She had ‘given up’ on them after the fourth or fifth day – knowing she wasn’t going to get a response until her wife emerged from whatever sadness or depression spell she was in.
I’m nervous… That was the last message she had sent to her wife. A voicemail in which the redhead had laid out how her fears about this tournament – her tournament for the now vacant United States Championship, made so by the retired Owen Cruze – had plagued her even during, what was supposed to be, their first ‘lesson’ in witchcraft. She had left three voicemails back to back (basically every time her wife’s phone had cut her off).
How she was scared of losing in the first round.
How she was scared of facing a former world champion in Glory Braddock.
How she was scared of losing to another round of “The Five Moves of Doom”.
How she was scared that it would be that ‘easy’.
How she was scared of hearing the same words from Glory, or Quinne, or Bree (albeit good-naturedly) or any of the other competitors in the tournament or… gods forbid, O. D..
Aside from her wife, it had been all the redhead had thought about the past week, spending most of her sleepless nights diving into study on the British Bombshell’s matches or training in the gym or in the ring. Still, she was a mother and had done her best to keep to that duty, even if her wife wouldn’t with her escapades.
Casting her eyes around her as she walked through her neighbourhood of Black Arrow, her house just a few blocks away, Deanna spied her daughters and son walking beside her. David was running and stopping around them, while Elsianna remained silent, holding Amiliah’s hand as they completed the obligatory walk for ‘fresh air and exercise’ Deanna insisted upon – not wanting them to stay couped up in the house with their video games and books and Legos.
Still, Elsianna was the one the redhead focused on, the child’s eyes cast down towards the sidewalk they walked. The girl had not spoken much since her grounding. While Deanna and Selena had rushed to the hospital weeks ago to check on Tannis Parks, the young patient suffering a health-scare, Elsianna had taken it upon herself to steal Selena’s phone (left in the Snow Queen’s office), order an Uber and travel to the Space-Art-Exhibit that Selena had promised to take her to.
It would have been impressive to the redhead, the brilliance of her eldest daughter, had it not scared the Frost wives to death. Had it not been for the receipt of the travel that had been emailed to Selena’s account (linked with the Uber account), they might never have found her. The young redhead could still picture the sight of her wife breaking down in the middle of the art hall as she held Elsianna close to her – so many tears for so many reasons falling from her eyes… just like Deanna’s had cried.
Elsianna had been grounded ‘indefinitely’ – a punishment the Frosts had never used before. No phone, no playing with friends like Asuna Gray, no television, no dungeons and dragons, none of that. She hadn’t fought them on it beyond the initial childish ‘it’s not fair’ but Selena had quickly quelled that with the reality of how Elsa could have been hurt or worse!
It hurt Deanna’s heart to see the child so closed off, but she could do nothing. The child had done something terrible and needed to be punished for it. It was unfair to put her mothers’ through that, regardless of her reasoning of ‘promises’. It was beyond reckless. Just like her mother… Deanna sighed as they continued to walk down the sidewalks back towards the house. She was grateful to the clouds for holding back their ‘tears’ of rain as the ‘Forever Home’ came into view.
But it was the sight of a familiar vehicle: Selena’s AXTGRIFF that she had won in the World Series of Wrestling that caught Deanna’s eyes.
Quickly, she picked up the pace, ignoring David’s protest at the slight increase in marching. Within minutes, the redhead had reached the door, unlocked it and ushered the children inside.
“Elsianna.” She spoke quietly. “Take Amiliah to play. You know to just watch her.”
“Yes, mom.” Elsianna nodded glumly, sticking to her grounding as David scampered off to return to his video games downstairs.
Alone, Deanna quietly ascended the stairs, taking to the second floor and turning there to enter the master bedroom she knew so well. Her timing was perfect, for as she entered, the door to the adjoined bathroom opened and the taller woman stepped out. She wore trackpants and a dark-blue hoodie. In her hands, she tried her long, platinum-blonde hair with a black towel. It took a few minutes of the woman drying herself from (Deanna assumed) a shower before she lowered the towel, allowing her to see the redhead standing in the doorway. Before her, Selena gave slight gasp and jump of surprise, her hand flying to her heart, the former world champion taking a few breaths to calm herself from the shock.
Despite how funny it looked, Deanna said nothing, merely forming her lips into a firm line as she leaned against the doorframe. “You’re back.” She finally spoke, earning a nod from her wife.
“Yeah.”
“Did you find what you were looking for?”
Before her, Deanna saw her wife’s expression, surprisingly, wilt a little, the older woman slowly giving a shake of her head. “No.” was all she said in reply.
The answer almost stunned Deanna. Nome had always been ‘the place’ for Selena to find some kind of answers or purpose or reasoning! It had been where she had gone to find the nerve to regain the U.S title not only against Bree Lancaster but also in a tournament years ago. Quietly. Deanna wished for such a place for herself - gods know I could use it….
But for such a haven to not work for Selena? It sounded almost impossible.
“Oh…” Deanna slowly bit her lower lip, nodding her head. “Well…that sucks.”
“Yeah.” Selena nodded her head. “I’m sorry for not returning your messages…”
It sounded so lame from her, but all the redhead could do was shrug her shoulders, the words she had received from Mrs. Winthrop echoing in her mind. “I get it.” She sighed.
“No…” sighed Selena, frustration etched into her features. “I should have been here! I knew it the moment I left but… I couldn’t stop. I couldn’t shake what happened – and… and how he just threw it away and…”
“Selena… I get it.” Deanna pressed, pushing her own feelings down deep. “I’m just glad you’re back, okay?”
Despite seemingly wishing to say more, the Snow Queen slowly nodded her head. “How did the first lesson of witchcraft go?”
“You’re not in the doghouse if that’s what you’re asking. I covered for you. But I wouldn’t recommend missing any more classes. We’re trying to get this done and over with.”
“Right…” Selena tsked from her lips, sucking a bit of breath to make the sounds. “I sort of dropped the ball, didn’t I?”
Instead of a spoken answer, Deanna merely shrugged her shoulders. “Won’t know that till you fight Hudson, right?”
“What about you?” the platinum-blonde suddenly asked, her sapphire eyes bright. “How you feeling about Glory? She’s…” she tried so hard to find the words. “She’s tough… easily one of the toughest I’ve faced.”
I’M SCARED!
I’M AFRAID!
I NEED HELP!
I CAN’T DO THIS ALONE!
I FEEL LIKE I’M GOING TO FAIL!
I’M TERRIFIED OF LETTING YOU DOWN!
I HAVEN’T BEEN ABLE TO SLEEP THE LAST FEW DAYS BECAUSE I KEEP THINKING ABOUT WHAT RAVYN AND O. SAID!
“I’m fine.” Deanna smiled, forcing her lips into the expression. “I’m not really that worried. I’ll just…” she shrugged. “Find a way to make it work…”
It was the biggest lie she had ever told in her life…
__________________________________________________
The Guard Tower
So… where do I start? Elephant in the room? Okay, we’ll go ‘Elephant in the room’.
At Playing the Wildcard… I said that I needed to win. I said that I needed to win that world tag title match, not just to undo what the “Chaos Match” had done, not just to return the tag-team titles to the House of Frost and not just because I don’t like Ace Marshall or Ravyn Taylor, but for me…
I said that ‘winning was a necessity for me’. I said that I needed to win in order to disprove Ravyn’s words that I was ‘unworthy’ and ‘unprepared’ to face former world champions and a Hall of Famer. To prove, not only to the SCW Universe, but to the roster, to the boss, and to myself that I was more than Selena’s ‘cheerleader’ and ‘shadow’!
And I lost…
Now, I could bog this promo down with words like ‘interferences’ and ‘weapons’ and ‘illegal maneuvers’ and ‘unfairness’, but you take that all away and get to the bottom line? I lost. Pure and simple. I didn’t prove anything that night… Sure, Selena and I took down person after person, assault after assault and kept standing, kept getting back up until a cheap pin ended things. Sure, I sent Ravyn Taylor scrambling back with failed plan after failed plan. Sure, some could argue that we HAD this match and our opponents based on our skill, our passion, and our abilities, but the bottom line will read forever: The House of Frost lost to Ace Marshall and Ravyn Taylor at Playing the Wildcard.
And now… I am now haunted by those words.
I am haunted by words that came from the boss that I am simply “a cog” in SCW. Something that can be bought, sold, or even tossed away while my wife remains a commodity – irreplaceable in the world of SCW. I am haunted by the words “not ready” and “unfit” and being “a shadow”. I am haunted by the image of being up against that glass-ceiling, kicking and punching away at it until my limbs are bruised and bleeding, but never breaking through. Forever destined to watch my wife on the other side as she wins accolade after accolade, title after title, and accomplishes all she can for integrity and SCW…
So, the question wasn’t “what does The House of Frost do now?” for me. My question was… what does Deanna Frost do?
And some of you, the True Believers and Little Gritters, already made your thoughts known. The words ‘rematch’ and ‘fixing the BS match that occurred’ has been thrown around, but let’s be honest here. I have preached about fairness and integrity alongside my wife since the beginning and, in all fairness, Selena and I are NOT the number one contenders for the SCW World tag-team titles. That honor belongs to Bree Lancaster and Datura, whether they are ready to cash in on it or not. And on top of that, the other tag-teams like Light in the Darkness, Chance Owens and Kelsai Adamson, Simon Lyman and Amy Chastaine, I could go on with the number of teams that have upped their game because of the House of Frost – they also deserve recognition in this division and a chance. So, while I desire to recapture the tag titles with my wife, as she feels the same, that will seemingly not happen right away.
Instead, I find myself in probably a more daunting task. That is in a tournament to crown a new United States Champion in SCW. You all saw last Breakdown. The retirement of Owen Cruze – the boy… the young man, the legend, because that’s what he has become – riding off into the sunset. Leaving a hole in the two biggest divisions SCW has. Gaps that NEED to be filled. Now, I’ve said it before that I have long desired a chance for a top-tier title like the United States Championship. For me, that title has also been special because of my wife.
You see, Josh Hudson can claim his name is ‘synonymous’ with that title, as he sits there having been eliminated from the world title tournament by Selena, but that man has never fallen of a scaffold for that title or battled in a roofed-cage for that title…
And when you think about it, the United States title has long been that ‘special tier’ that served as a bridge between the mid-card and the main-event roster. A tier where such things are not only possible but often necessary to champion such a division. Names like Selena, Shilo Valiant, Jason Zero, Tommy Valentine, Simon Lyman, Regan Street, Bree Lancaster – the list of main-event talent and Hall of Famers that, even after they were former World champions, waged war just to hold the U.S title is an illustrious and incredible one – with that title, at times, being held on par with the world title itself with the contenders, matches and rivalries that fought for it.
So, to be an entrant to crown a new U.S champion… that’s a tall order. It’s a daunting task for someone like me. And with my mind haunted by the pay-per-view and everything that’s been said about me the last few weeks from the roster to the boss, it’s, even more so, an intimidating task.
And the cherry on top? I enter into this tournament taking on one of the most decorated wrestlers in the wrestling world: Glory Braddock.
Damn… it doesn’t get much harder than that, does it, Glory? Cause there isn’t enough time in a segment to list your accomplishments, is there? The world titles you’ve won? The tournaments you’ve won? You are so far accomplished – moreso when compared to me – that a tournament like this? Where you have competed in finals and won them? This is routine for you, isn’t it? This is a zone that you are VERY comfortable with.
Not the case with me. This is my second tournament in my career and the second time I’ve had the odds against me in the first round.
But let me acknowledge something before I get started with that. I will say thank you for your kind words towards the unfairness of the pay-per-view, your views on me and I appreciate your promise to bring your A-game to our match in Salt Lake City. You hear what I’ve heard about myself from so many people for so long, it’s a kindness to have respect from such a high-tiered woman, a wrestler like yourself.
But let me correct something in your assessment of me. I’ve said before it before, I’ll say it again, and I’ll keep saying it until it is fact proven irrefutable… I am not my wife.
You see, Glory, while I agree with Selena on your past regarding the United States and United Kingdom title, in that I don’t agree with your actions, I understand your decisions regarding it. In this business, if you don’t stand out, you stand aside. If you don’t constantly evolve, you get left behind. And in this cutthroat business, where I am constantly fighting for my place, for my stance, for my very individual existence, I can understand your desire to stand out amidst the incredible talent. That need, that desire, is something we share – even if we do not always agree on the ‘methods’.
So, now that THAT is out of the way, you can understand that I also understand your desire to ‘change’ your association with the United States title. Your desire to have a reign filled with integrity that you can look fondly on. I get that too.
But here is where I deviate from our similarities and go straight for what makes us different, Glory. Because you while you can talk about ‘redemption’ and ‘fixing things’, you have that luxury. You have the luxury of being heralded as the star that you are. You are not questioned on your credentials. You are not questioned on your skill.
You have scaled the mountain, stood at its peak, and are now looking back at your time there in reflection…
I have not. I cannot do that. Unlike you, I have yet to reach that mountaintop, yet to punch through that glass ceiling and prove myself beyond a shadow of a doubt. I do not have a ‘past’ to either look back on fondly or ‘with regret’. I do not have a ‘reign’ with a top tier title that defines me like you do. I do not have a tournament that I prevailed in to prove myself to the SCW Universe.
So while you are fighting for what you did… I am fighting for what I have yet to do.
And it took… it took hearing Selena last Breakdown to understand all that. When she fearlessly looked into the eyes of Mr. D. and told him – the boss of nearly 20 years – that not only would she become the new World champion, but I would become the new United States Champion. And being in that ring, Glory, I realized that she wasn’t just blowing smoke. She wasn’t making idle promises. She wasn’t making predictions. She was stating what she believed was the undeniable truth.
And when I asked her why she believed that, she told me it was because she knows me. She knows that I need to win this tournament. That not only do I need to beat you, Glory, but I need to win this tournament as badly as she needs to win hers.
And I suddenly realized how right she was!
Because I look at everything I have endured this past year. The Underground division, the ridicule, the doubt, the pain – having my arm broken inside the Chamber and fighting through the rehab – it was ALL for THIS moment. This tournament. This chance to change things for myself forever!
You want to ‘remake history’, Glory? This is about me MAKING history! MY history. A history where I step out of the shadow cast on me, where I change from ‘undesirable’ to ‘undeniable’! Where I silence the words of Ravyn and D. and others emphatically and I become what I am meant to be! A world-class, main-event tier superstar of Supreme Championship Wrestling! Just like you!
So, Glory, while I appreciate you bring your A-game, I will emphatically say, you had better bring a hell of a lot more than that. Because I will be bringing every game I possess from A to Z! I will be bringing every breath, every drop of blood, sweat and tear that I possess! I will be bringing EVERYTHING I am to get past you just to have a chance to beat a former world champion!
You were so kind to give us a little ‘saying’ in your promo. Let me give you one my sister often told me: Every journey begins with a single step.
Breakdown – Salt Lake City, Utah – you are my single step. You are my first step to the top of that mountain! My first step to being more than a shadow, more than a cog, more than unready, unprepared, whatever the world wants to call me! My first step at being my own woman, my own superstar, my own name!
And more than a pothole for you, Glory Braddock. Because when this Breakdown, you won’t find yourself rolling over me or even tripping over me...
You’ll find yourself fully stopped by me – your road burnt out by the next SCW United States Champion!
Checkmate, bitches!