Selena Frost vs. Ryan Lecavalier

[SnowQueenSCW]

Scars of a Fascade

”Missed the Deadline...”

Barclays Center
Brooklyn, New York
July 30th, 2026
11:38 p.m.

“You’re going to feel that tomorrow.”

The medic’s warning followed Selena Frost into the hallway, echoing in her head as she walked, her left shoulder already throbbing beneath the fresh wrapping.

Ryan LeCavalier had known exactly where to attack. Like a pro... Selena thought.

The blow from behind had rattled the platinum-blonde’s senses; the BODY/PRISON had done the rest. Once again trapped... Once again in a hold I couldn’t get out of... She clenched her jaw at the immutable facts.

The medic had called it a ‘strain’. Rest. Ice. Further imaging if the weakness persisted. Blah blah blah. This wasn’t a concussion or fractured rib or smashed foot that needed a boot for several weeks... The shoulder irritated her...

Ryan irritated her more. She had never asked for the woman to be so ‘at the hip’. At first, it had been ‘okay’ at best – perhaps their ironwoman match from a few years ago had lent itself to a new mentality for the ‘rookie’. But after so many months of it? It had become annoying... until all of this happened. And now, she was set to wrestle a match she wasn’t even sure she wanted. This was just for LeCavalier to do what she couldn’t do two years ago! Use the Snow Queen as a stepping stone to the world title!

And people wonder why I believe zebras never change their stripes... she thought bitterly, though she wasn’t certain that thought was entirely aimed at Ryan.

Because neither her shoulder nor her future opponent troubled her as much as the announcement made before LeCavalier’s attack.

Special guest enforcer...

Selena flexed the fingers of her left hand as she moved through the backstage corridor, testing the muscles and nerves. Everything hurt but still worked. Manageable.

What wasn’t manageable was being placed in Deanna’s Rise to Greatness main event after spending weeks trying to remove herself from it.

Five consecutive years, Selena had stood beneath the brightest lights of the biggest show SCW could produce. Five main-events. This year was supposed to be different. She had known that the second she had seen the redhead standing in the ring by herself at the end of the THOTF royale – and she was ashamed it had taken her that long to realize the truth.

Winning the Shot of Adrenaline tournament by going undefeated – something Selena had never done.
Winning the royale – also not done by her.
Being a champion...

This year belonged to Deanna. Not her.

It was why she had refused the World Championship match offer. She had already stolen enough from the woman she loved. She had even tried to keep her distance! Now SCW – or, rather, Frank Delatosso specifically - had placed her directly at ringside for the match she had been trying not to touch. A ‘damned if you do/damned if you don’t’ scenario!

If she did nothing and Delatosso’s collection of parasites interfered, she would fail Deanna.
If she acted, any victory for Deanna would come with an asterisk.
If Deanna lost, people would blame Selena.
If Deanna won, people would credit Selena.

There was no action she could take that would not leave fingerprints on Deanna’s moment! Compared to all of that... the idea of fighting LeCavalier was almost... therapeutic. Least I can cut loose on a loudmouth brat...

A violent crash sounded from behind a nearby door, causing Selena to stop in her tracks at the sound. Another crash followed, followed by a familiar voice cursing!

The platinum-blonde turned toward the changeroom door, seeing the sign. DEANNA FROST. It also had a bit of art as part of the sign – fire-red leaves being blown by an undercurrent of wind and fire. She did say something about a ‘Wildfire’ name... Selena quickly dismissed the thought before opening the door. She had tried to stay away, but if Ryan, the Glimmers, or, gods forbid, Amelia or Delatosso were going to try anything to hedge their bet...

She barely had the thought processed as her eyes took in everything. The room looked as though someone had ransacked it! Towels, clothing, bottles and cosmetic containers littered the floor. One of Deanna’s boots lay near the wall. The other sat beneath the bench beside the Adrenaline Championship and both World Tag Team Championship belts.

Out of the corner of her eye, Selena spotted Deanna in the corner. The redhead was crouched beside an overturned gym bag, digging through it with both hands aggressively.

“Red?” it was a whisper of a voice, but it was enough. Deanna snapped her head up, strands of dark-red hair clinging to her face.

“I...” she tried to stammer out, her expression a mixture of surprise, relief, shame and much more, which probably explained her inability to choose which words to say. “I’ve been... where have... did...”

“Easy.” Selena tried, raising a hand. “I just heard noise as I was walking by. Wanted to make sure it wasn’t anyone trying to...” she tried to choose the right words. “Mess with you before the pay-per-view, okay?”

“Mess with-” she didn’t seem to understand, which Selena merely dismissed with a wave of her hand.
“Don’t worry about it. Long as you’re okay.” she turned to go.

“Wait!” The voice came stopped the Snow Queen. “Have... have you seen it?”
Selena remained by the door. “Seen what?” she asked, turning back around to regard the redhead.

“My ring.”

The pain in Selena’s shoulder briefly disappeared beneath another, quieter sensation as Deanna continued searching through the bag.

“I put it here. I always put it here.” She seized the interior pocket and pulled it inside out, revealing nothing but black fabric and a loose thread.

“What ring?” Selena asked, causing Deanna to stop. For an instant, she looked almost embarrassed. Then she raised her left hand. The pale indentation around her ring finger was subtle, but visible.

“My wedding ring.”

The room suddenly became very quiet. For Selena, her right hand rose unconsciously to her sternum. Beneath her shirt, hidden on a thin chain, rested the ring Deanna had placed on her finger more than a decade earlier.

They had been divorced for nearly two years... and it seemed that neither ring had gone very far. We’re too alike for it to be a good thing... Selena thought, trying to ignore her heart skipping a beat and the way her breath staggered a little at what the mess in the changeroom clearly indicated. “You... you still wear it?” Selena asked.

Deanna looked at her as if the question made less sense than the missing object. “Yes.”
“Why?”
A flash of anger crossed Deanna’s face, but it collapsed beneath the fear already there. “Because it’s mine.”
“That wasn’t what I asked.”

“I know.” Deanna sighed before she returned to the mess, checking beneath a folded shirt she had already moved twice. “I only take it off when I wrestle or shower.” she continued. “I don’t want it damaged or coming loose in the ring. I put it in the small pouch, zip the pouch and put the pouch in this pocket. Every, single time.”

“Perhaps you left it at the hotel.”
“I wore it here.”
“You may have put it somewhere else.”
“I didn’t.”
“How can you-”

“Because I always...” Deanna stopped abruptly, taking a breath to calm herself. “I always kiss it before I leave my changeroom, okay? For luck... to remember... to help.” she looked liked she had just admitted to some embarrassing secret. “And I remember doing that before I went to the ring earlier.”

The certainty sharpened Deanna’s voice. She stood, eyes sweeping the room before settling on the belts.

Then her expression changed, becoming colder, more certain. More angry. It wasn’t a look Selena liked at all.

“The Glimmers.” the redhead’s voice growled, her hands clenching into fists.
Selena was quick to respond. “You don’t know that.”
“They were here.”
“They were in the arena.”
“They interrupted me, Selena. They stood over the tag-team championships and made it very clear what they wanted.”
“That doesn’t place them in this room.” Selena tried to reason.

“They’ve gone through Amelia and Luz’s personal belongings before!” Deanna grabbed her jacket from the bench, throwing it over her frame. “They crossed lines because they think everything is some cute little game.”

She was immediately marching towards the door, only for Selena to step in front of her.

“Move.” the redhead ordered.
“No.”
“Selena.”
“Think.”
“I am thinking!” Deanna tried.

“No, you’re reacting.” Selena kept her voice level and cold. “You are nine days from the World Championship match. Delatosso has Gavin Taylor, Polly, Dawn Lohan, Federico and whatever other idiots he decides to point in your direction. Amelia is already unstable enough without you giving her another reason to believe you are distracted. You do not need the Glimmer Sisters added to that list.”

“They stole my wedding ring!”
“You suspect they stole a ring.”
“It is more than a ring to me!”

The words struck Selena hard. Deanna’s breathing was fast, but her eyes remained fixed on the platinum-blonde, more focused/determined than Selena had seen in a long time. If she only she brought THIS to the pay-per-view...

“It isn’t valuable because of the diamond or gems.” Deanna continued, quieter now. “It isn’t valuable because we stood in a church and promised something neither of us understood would become this difficult. It matters because you gave it to me.”

What the hell could Selena say to that? She had no idea and her emotions weren’t doing any favours! She had avoided the alcohol and NX tonight, not wanting to make any mistakes on the go-home Breakdown episode that would cost Deanna.

But that also meant she was feeling everything on 10 rather than 1. Taking a slow breath, Selena settled for the cold truth of reality. “We’re divorced.”

Deanna merely nodded. “The paperwork says we are. But not here.” she pressed her hand against her chest. “That ring reminds me who I chose. Not who chose me. Not who stayed perfect. Not who never hurt me. Who I chose. And I’ve worn it through prison, through Veil, through losing you, through losing myself and finding parts of both of us again. So no, I’m not going to shrug it off because Rise to Greatness is coming.” she went to push past Selena, but the taller woman held firm.

“That mentality is exactly why Amelia could destroy you.”

Deanna recoiled as if Selena had slapped her, but the Snow Queen forced herself onward.

“You keep placing me, the children, this family – everything - before SCW. Before the match. Before yourself. You think nobody sees that? You’ve basically made this whole crusade – everything you’ve done – the SoA tournament, the royale, RTG, all for me. You think no one’s put it together? Amelia will exploit that. Delatosso will exploit it. Ryan already exploited my hesitation tonight!”

“Caring about my family isn’t a weakness.”
“In that ring, anything can be-”

“It’s why I’m there!” Deanna ripped off her jacket and threw it back onto the bench angrily. “It’s why I survived Veil. It’s why I came back after nine months when I could barely walk into an arena without remembering what he did to me! It’s why I entered the Shot of Adrenaline tournament when I failed last year! Why I kept fighting until I won the Flame. Why I tagged you into that match last week when everyone expected me to be afraid you would take everything again!”

Selena said nothing.

“I’m not standing across from Amelia despite loving you!” Deanna continued. “I’m there because I love you. Because I love our children. Because every time I thought I couldn’t get up, one of you gave me a reason. That brought me to this point, Selena. Not selfishness. Not shutting everyone out. It brought me here instead of leaving me broken on a floor somewhere in Kentucky…” Her voice faltered, causing her to shake her head. “And it brought me to a rooftop when you needed me.”

The room disappeared in the blink of an eye. In the span of a second, Selena was no longer in the changeroom or even in the arena. She no longer saw the determined passion in Deanna’s emerald eyes or the full red of her beautiful hair.

No... what she saw was the orange of a sunrise crawling over New York City.
A balcony rail released from her hands.
The streets waiting for her far below.

Give me a year... One year. From this date...

Selena’s breath stopped. July 30th...

The day Deanna had found her.
The day Selena had agreed.
The year was over.

The deadline had passed while she stood beneath arena lights arguing with Amelia Nevado. It had passed while Ryan had attacked her from behind. It had passed without ceremony, without realization, without either woman acknowledging that Selena had done what Deanna had asked...

She had stayed. She given the redhead a year... And what had it produced?

A forged signature.
A stolen championship opportunity.
NX.
Alcohol.
Another failed attempt to become world champion.
Another attempt to disappear.
Another problem Deanna carried because Selena could not.

One year to prove there was a road back to before, and Selena had spent it digging deeper.

“Selena?” Deanna’s voice sounded distant. “What is it?”
The platinum-blonde looked at her.“Nothing.”
“That wasn’t nothing.”

Quickly, Selena stepped away from the door, putting as much distance between herself and Deanna as she could. “Don’t confront the Glimmers tonight.” she ordered
“My ring-”
“If they have it, they want you angry. Don’t play their game...”

Deanna studied her. “You’re agreeing they took it?”
“I’m saying you cannot afford another war.”
“And I’m saying some things matter more than SCW.”

“I know.” The answer came too easily but Selena suppressed as much emotion from it as she could. Instead, she simply reached out and straightened the collar of Deanna’s shirt.  “Go home.” she whispered. “Be with the children. Prepare for Amelia.”

“What about you?” Deanna asked.
“Ryan and I will handle our own business.”
“And the enforcer announcement?”

Selena’s fingers lingered against Deanna’s neck and shoulder before falling away. “You won’t have to worry about me taking anything else from you.”

Deanna frowned. “That’s not what I asked.”
“It is the answer that matters.”
“Selena-”
“You’ll have the future you earned, Red.”

The nickname barely survived Selena’s throat as she opened the door before Deanna could stop her. Behind her, Deanna called her name. Once... twice... maybe even a third time but Selena kept walking. She kept walking until she was out of the arena and back on her private plane, taking the necessary travel back to Japan. In truth, she wasn’t even aware of herself again until she felt the plane shifting a bit as she gazed out the window at the height of the skies.

Above the clouds... everything seemed so pretty. She sat alone in the dim cabin with her injured arm supported against a pillow, watching the clouds she could see, letting her mind wander.

Ryan LeCavalier wanted to make the World Championship her path. Amelia believed Selena would be unable to resist involving herself. Delatosso had made her enforcer because chaos benefited him regardless of who won.

And Deanna…

She still wears the ring.

After everything Selena had done, Deanna had carried that promise on her hand through everything... While Selena had carried hers around her neck because she lacked the courage to wear it where anyone could see.

The clouds shifted beneath the plane and for one irrational moment, Selena imagined opening the aircraft door and stepping into them. She knew the door would not open at this altitude. Pressure and machinery prevented such poetic simplicity.

But imagination didn’t care about such things.

In her mind, the cabin went silent. Cold air tore through it. Papers and fabric vanished into the night. She stepped forward and gravity accepted her without judgment.

No streets.
No railing.
No Deanna reaching her in time.

Only clouds...Only-

“This is not a path meant for a Snow Queen.”

Selena did not turn immediately. The voice came from behind her, calm and accented, carrying neither surprise nor accusation.

From the corner of her eye, she saw him. O. D. stood near the opposite row of seats, hands folded behind his back, casually regarding the clouds through the window.

“You always did favour dramatic entrances.” Selena murmured.
“And you seem to favour dramatic exits.” he responded in his typical sharp-tongue.
Selena’s lips twitched without becoming a smile. “I have not exited anything.”
“Your body remains seated, but your thoughts are already... falling.”

Selena looked back through the window, taking a slow breath. “The year is over.”
“So?” the old man asked.
“So I kept my word.”

He moved closer, taking the seat across from her. “Was the agreement to live one year, or to die on the first day after it?”
“She promised she would let me go if nothing changed.”
“And nothing changed?”

Selena laughed once at the question, but it was empty. “I forged Deanna’s name. I took the opportunity she earned. I used NX again. I drank again. I failed to become World Champion again and then left her to carry the consequences. Now she is about to enter the greatest match of her career, and SCW has placed me beside it...”

O. listened without interruption.

“One year... and she rose.” Selena finished with a shake of her head. “I sank. Anyone can see it.”
“Then stop asking anyone.”

Selena’s eyes narrowed.

“You have always possessed a remarkable talent for placing a crowd inside your mind and allowing it to vote on your worth.”

“The evidence is not subjective.” Selena countered.
“No. Your interpretation is.”
“I hurt her.”
“Yes.”
“I stole from her.”
“Yes.”
“I failed.”
“Repeatedly.”

Selena turned fully toward him. “You are terrible at this.”
“I am not here to make you comfortable.”
“Then why are you here?”

O. leaned back. “Because after all this time, you’ve confused punishment with integrity.”

The words settled between them, but the owner pressed on.

“A Snow Queen does not become honest by destroying the woman who lied.” he said. “She becomes honest by telling the truth. She does not restore what she stole by removing herself. She returns it. She does not protect her family by ensuring they spend the rest of their lives wondering why they were insufficient reason for her to stay.”

Selena’s throat tightened at the last one. “They would recover.” she reasoned.
O. laughed. “Not even you believe that.”
“They would have Deanna.”
“And Deanna would have what?”

To that, Selena had no answer. It was enough for O., the old man gesturing toward the clouds. “You have tried disappearing for so long now. In castles. Across oceans. Into mountains. Into mines. Did it protect her?”

She couldn’t answer.

“Did refusing the championship opportunity protect her?”

She still couldn’t answer.

“Did standing beside her last week diminish her?”

No answer.

“You keep insisting your presence can only be a burden because that conclusion allows you to avoid the harder possibility that you must learn how to remain without controlling what happens next.”

The engines hummed around them. It and the silence sat like that for several minutes as the plane moved through the clouds, some catching Selena’s eye.

“What if she loses because of me?” Selena finally asked.
“Then she loses.”
“What if she wins because I interfere?”
“Then you will have failed the role you were given.”
“What if doing nothing allows Delatosso to steal it from her?”
“Then be an enforcer.”

His answers were immediate. For every question, he had a line, a counter. Always something – Of course... Selena thought. He always has...

“Perform the duty placed before you. Protect the match, not the outcome.”

“Like you did when Regan and I went to war?” Selena rolled her eyes at the memory before she breathed slowly through her nose. “You make it all sound so simple. As if I can just do those things and all my problems will be solved...”

O.’s voice softened, but only slightly. “You have spent a year proving you can survive. Perhaps the next step is admitting survival was never the destination.”

Selena opened her eyes at that word - destination. She still didn’t believe everything her former boss had said - anymore than she believed she deserved the tag-team titles, or the high spot on the RtG card, or anything...

But still, there was one thing she had realized in the midst of this conversation... she couldn’t just run away to Japan... not now. With a swift hand, she reached out toward the intercom beside her seat and pressed the call button. A moment later, the pilot’s tired voice answered.

“Yes, Ms. Frost?”
“Change of plans.” she called out. “Turn us around. Take us back to New York.”

Back to the tower.
Back to the balcony.
Back to where Deanna had pulled her away from the end and demanded one more year.

“Understood.” The connection ended and she soon felt the shift of the plane as it navigated its new course.

“And what will you do when you arrive?” came the inevitable question.
Selena looked once more at the clouds, seeing the old man in the window’s slight reflection.

“I’m going to finish what began on that rooftop,” she answered aloud. “Honestly.”