For an SCW World Tag Team Championship opportunity

[The Matt]

2 of 2

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April 6th, 2024
Boston, Massachusetts
Off Camera
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Marie Annabelle Jones has been absolutely astounded at how quickly her redemption journey, her rise from the ashes so to speak, has been. She is equally as astonished at how well her redemption journey has gone. First thing she needed to do was the face she turned her back on, but the fans received her warmly and with cheers. Next she needed to wrestle Deanna Frost, giving her and the fans the match she had turned her back on; she may have lost the match but the match itself was very competitive and the fans still supported her. Jones would continue winning, she would earn her first shot at championship gold since her return, becoming SCW Television Champion by defeating Colleen on Breakdown, achieving yet another milestone since her big return. Now The Phoenix finds it odd that opportunities are seemingly falling right into her lap. Taking the Leap is coming up and Marie is teaming with Chris Dumont to determine the next set of challengers for the SCW World Tag Team Championship. If Marie didn’t know any better, she would think that her journey of redemption, her journey back to SCW, is over. She would almost imagine that there is nothing left to accomplish in winning back the hearts, minds, and trust of SCW. But she knows better.

Still, beyond SCW there is also the issue of her personal life. Jones had betrayed her family, twice turning on them to join a cult known as Inner Peace. She had shirked her responsibilities to her family, to her own son, and as a result lost all of it. She lost all of their trust. But what hurt the most was losing her son. Even when she returned to the family after leaving Inner Peace, Marie’s mother and sister would not allow her near Sean due to her past history with the cult. She cannot blame them. She knew that earning her family’s trust back and winning her son back would be yet another difficult road ahead for her. While her wrestling career had been skyrocketing since her return, Marie’s family situation had been slow going; up until now. Marie’s twin sister, Kimberly Williams, and their mother Angelica Jones, have agreed to give Marie her home back and they have granted her custody of her son back.

It is hard to believe but it is as if Marie’s redemption journey is now over. She has her career back, her family back, and most importantly, her son back. Jones is excited and yet, at the same time, nervous, wondering about what might happen next to ruin everything. That one thing might be Julianne Buchanan, her lover. Marie’s family still doesn’t trust Julianne and with good reason; Julianne is the one who, on both occasions, convinced Marie to return to the Inner Peace cult. And Marie has recently learned that Julianne is secretly attempting to bring back Inner Peace. Marie’s heart tells her to trust Julianne, to be with her because she loves her. But Marie’s mind tells her that she has already manipulated her into joining the cult twice and both times she lost her family. Logically, Marie shouldn’t trust Julianne. This now may be the make or break decision for Marie, the final decision on her redemption journey.

This decision can wait. Marie’s tag team match at Taking the Leap, her attempt to work together with Chris Dumont, that can wait. For now, Marie’s singular focus is finally getting the one thing that she has been seeking for a long time; some one on one time with her son Sean Connor Jones at her home…their home…yes, their home. It makes Marie feel so good that she can finally have family time again, that she can once again be with her son. God how she has missed him.

Marie Jones enters the living room, it is an exquisite opulent place with lots of luxurious lavish furniture. Kimberly Williams had been living her for the past few months but this is definitely not Kim’s taste. Kim’s taste is definitely of the more run down variety. Marie is just grateful Kim, like the loving sister she is, kept everything exactly as she left it. The Phoenix finds her comfortable plush cream colored leather sofa right where she left it as well. Marie sits down and leans back. She sighs with a big grin on her face. Home. This is where she belongs. And yet there is still one thing missing from this equation, one last thing to make it perfect…

“Sean!” Marie calls out loudly.

“What is it?”

“Come here, please.”

“I’m doing homework.”

“Just come here.” Marie says.

“But I’m busy.”

“You actually WANT to do homework?” Marie smirks. “What kind of teenager are you?” She laughs lightly. A few moments later she hears footsteps coming from upstairs. Those turn into sounds of steps descending the stairs. Eventually Marie turns to see her son, Sean, walking into the living room. This is what she has been missing. This is what makes everything perfect. Jones pats the sofa. “Come on, Sean. There’s plenty of room.”

“Am I in trouble?”

“Can’t a mother want to hang out with her son without one or the other being in trouble?” Sean shrugs his shoulders and makes his way over to the sofa. He sits down and Marie immediately wraps her arm around his shoulders.

“So….what’s up?”

“Oh nothing.” She kisses him on his forehead. “Like I said, I just wanted to hang out.”

“Mom…” Sean sounds a little annoyed. Marie chuckles quietly.

“Sorry, kiddo, but I can’t help myself. I’m your mother and it has been so long since I have been around you.” She hugs him tightly. “I was so worried about you.”

“Thanks, mom, but you didn’t need to worry. Aunt Kim took good care of me.”

“I know.” Marie nods her head. “And yes, your Aunt Kim is a life saver, in more ways than one, she really came through for me and took care of you when I was…away…” Marie’s voice trails off. Sean furrows his brow.

“What was wrong, mom?” He asks. “Where were you?”

“I was…” she sighs “...I wasn’t well. I was sick.” She taps her head. “Mentally I wasn’t well. But your Aunt Kim, your grandmother too, they helped me get through my problems.”

“You’re better now?” He asks. Marie nods her head.

“Yes, I am better now and I will never leave you again. Ever.”

“Good.” Sean smiles warmly. “Because, I kinda missed you too.”

“Kinda?”

“Ok…I missed you too.” Sean smiles sheepishly.

“Sean, I want you to promise me something.”

“Yeah?”

“If you ever are in trouble, if you are ever having mental or emotional problems, if anything is ever wrong, please tell me…or even your aunt Kim, or your grandmother. Just tell someone. I am your mother, we are your family, and we just want to help.”

“I know, mom.” Sean nods his head.

That is a lesson Marie realizes that she needed to learn herself. She thought she could handle her problems on her own without relying on her family. She thought she could turn on her family and everything would be fine. She was wrong. She was dead wrong. But at least Marie has earned her family’s trust back. But now comes the big problem of Julianne Buchanan. Does Marie trust Julianne or does Marie trust her family’s gut instinct about Julianne being a problem?

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On Camera
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I could just start this with your typical rant about randomly thrown together tag teams getting opportunities to earn a title shot. Strange. In some ways I feel kinda sympathetic towards Twisted & Sadistic. They’re the only team in this thing to have actually beaten the reigning champions, the only team that the reigning champions have not defeated. But I digress.

Am I in one of those randomly thrown together teams? Are me and Dumont just being given this chance so we’ll have a spot on the card? Match filler! Hello!

No way.

For starters, to think of this match in that light is disrespectful to all of the teams in it who want the shot to be champions. European Fiery Nation. Cowgirls from Hell. Team Desire.

And yes, Twisted & Sadistic.

These people believe in tag team wrestling. They want the gold. And hell, I have a soft spot in my heart for tag team wrestling. Need I remind you lot that I have been SCW World Tag Team Champion before with my sister? Check the records. Twin Magic is for real. This is far from just a match filler for me. This is an opportunity to hold even more gold in SCW. This is a chance to be a double champion. I am grateful for this opportunity and I will do my best.

Secondly, I have to disagree with anyone who says that this partnership is random.

My tag team partner is Chris Dumont. His pal, David Striker, and my sister, Kim, are going to hell and back…literally. While they try to maim each other, me and Chris will be working together on a common goal. Trust me when I say that the irony of this is not lost on me.

The thing is that sometimes this business hands you an opportunity that you might not understand, you might not even agree with it, but I’ve learned to never look a gift horse in the mouth. Never act ungrateful in the face of an opportunity.

I will never reject an opportunity.

Chris, we may not have the chemistry that the others have, or the history that the others have, but we do have heart, determination, and a will to win. And we will do what we must to earn ourselves a title shot.

Let’s shock the world.