Deanna Frost vs. Marie Jones

[The Matt]

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February 17th, 2024
Boston, Massachusetts
Off Camera
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Marie’s journey towards redemption in Supreme Championship Wrestling began a few weeks ago when she fought Aisling. Jones earned a victory over the former Playgirl and now looks towards her next opponent; none other than the United States Champion Deanna Frost. It is almost like being dropped right into the deep end of the pool before you even learned how to swim. Marie knew she would eventually have to face Deanna. It was inevitable, it would be poetic, even. She just never expected it to happen this quickly. Marie, on the last day when she walked out of her SCW contract, was scheduled to tag with Kimberly to face Deanna and Selena Frost. Now The Phoenix must go face to face with Deanna Frost one on one. Symbolically, she must face down her past. Yet, as much as she does want to redeem herself in the eyes of her fans and of the entire SCW universe, she recognizes that the bigger, more arduous journey is at home with her blood relatives, with her family.

It has been two days since Breakdown and “The Phoenix” Marie Jones finds herself back in Boston, Massachusetts, back at what used to be her home, her luxurious home that is now occupied by her identical twin sister Kimberly Williams. Why doesn’t she live here? If you ask Kimberly, this is about Marie proving herself. Marie spent months away from the family, months in a cult, neglecting her own son; Marie needs to prove that she is back to her old self again and that the old life of recklessness and irresponsibility is behind her. Only then can she get her own home back and her son back. But for Marie, this takes on a whole different meaning. It is all part of a penance she feels that she must pay for the sins she committed against her own family. She turned her back on her family and her own son in favor of a cult and its leader who never cared about her. Marie does feel, in a way, that she deserves to be punished. She also knows that she must prove herself to her family, much like how she must prove herself to the SCW fans and roster that she is back for the long haul and will never again betray them.

Jones sits comfortably on her plush leather sofa in the immaculate, elegant living room. Marie wears a knee length black floral print skirt, black sheer stockings, a red silk blouse, and black high heeled pumps. This certainly feels normal for her. Marie has always preferred living the luxurious lifestyle. She can only imagine how Kimberly is holding up. She detests this lifestyle; yet Kim has remained here ever since Marie ran off with the Inner Peace cult. Kim has stayed her to take care of Sean, Marie’s son, to attempt to give him sone semblance of normalcy while Marie herself was gone. The Phoenix cannot help but admire Kim for doing this, for taking on a responsibility that was never hers to begin with, and she also cannot feel guilty for burdening Kim with this responsibility. Jones longs to return to normal. She longs to return to her son Sean. But she knows that it will be a long time before that happens. Therefore she will treasure these few moments she has.

“Hi diddly ho twin sisteroonie!” Marie turns at the sound of the voice. It’s almost like looking into the mirror as she watches her twin sister, Kimberly Williams, entering the living room, having exited the kitchen area. Kimberly is wearing torn denim jeans, is barefoot, and is wearing a “Queens of Chaos” logo t-shirt. The reigning SCW Underground Champion is carrying two glasses of wine, one in each hand. A playful grin is etched across her face which makes Marie wonder about what Kim has on her mind. The eccentric Kim approaches and holds both wine glasses out to Marie. “Now we’re gonna play a game!”

“A game?”

“Uh-huh,” Kim nods her head “see, one of these is actually wine, the other is Welch’s Grape Juice.”

“Seriously, Kim?”

“Dead serious.” Again she shoves both drinks at Marie. “Now you must choose…but choose wisely…for while the true grail brings life, a false grail will take it from you!”

The Phoenix looks at both drinks closely. Then up at Kim. She smirks. “You’ve obviously been watching Indiana Jones.”

“And the Simpsons, twin sisteroonie!”

“Right.” Marie rolls her eyes. “So we’re really playing this game, huh? I gotta pick.”

“Yup!” Kim nods her head insistently. Marie sighs and takes the drink from Kim’s right hand.

“Well, here’s to eternal life, I suppose. Bottom’s up.” Marie takes a sip. She sighs and smiles pleasantly. “Great. Wine.”

“They’re both wine, actually.” Kim smirks as she offers Marie the other glass as well. Marie takes it and shrugs her shoulders.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, you can have both. I planned it this way. I’d rather you be good and drunk before you leave.”

“Gee, thanks.” Marie rolls her eyes as she sets the other glass on a table next to her. Kim then sits down on the sofa, sitting right next to Marie. “How are you holding up after Breakdown?” Marie asks.

“Oh you mean ol’ Davey Crockett Striker?” Kim smirks devilishly. “I have big plans for him!”

“Do I even want to know?”

“Don’t worry, sis. I have nothing BAD planned. Hell, I kinda like him, if I’m honest with ya! Maybe I finally found someone worthy to take up the Underground mantle? I mean, I love being Underground Champion and all, and as crazy as I am, even I know that nothing lasts forever.”

“This is true.” Marie says and she sips her wine. “Well, good luck with you and Striker and…well…whatever it is you have planned…”

“Right.” Kim points at Marie. “So, how does it feel to be back in ol’ SC Dubya?”

“Honestly? It’s definitely been an experience, one I didn’t expect. I mean, I didn’t think mom could pull the strings to get me signed to a new contract to begin with; but then to get the reception I had from the fans…”

“Quite a few cheers.” Kim points out.

“...and a few boos. But the cheers, yeah, that was surprising. I went on to beat Aisling. And now, I hear who I’m facing next…”

“Selena Frost for the SCW World Championship!” Kim declares. Marie sighs and shakes her head.

“Wrong Frost.”

“Deanna Frost for the United States Championship!”

“No title is on the line, Kim!” Marie exclaims. “Just a straight up one on one match!”

“Y’know, I could let you walk out with the Underground Title.” Kim begins. “Deanna may THINK its me and offer to defend her title and…”

“No!” Marie shakes her head vehemently. “No games. I need to redeem myself and that means no shenanigans, no tricks.”

“I know, I’m just messing with ya.” Kim pats her on the back. “I know how important this is to you. Especially this particular match. The night we walked out on SCW was the night we were supposed to face The House of Frost.”

“Yes and you paid your fine and went back. You also went on to face Deanna at Rise To Greatness. You paid your debt.” Marie shakes her head. “I never did. This is my shot at redemption. I need to make this count.”

“You will.” Kim says reassuringly. “Look, I’m a wacko, so ignore my random, crazy comments. Just remember that facing Deanna isn’t about winning or losing, necessarily. I mean, obviously you want to try and win. But the match itself is just about redemption. In a way, this is the match you walked away from. Just go out there, give it your all, and hold your head high throughout the match and at the end of the match, win or lose.”

“You know, Kim,” Marie smiles as she takes in the heartwarming words Kim just spoke “you really know how to say the right words when you need to.”

“Eh, I kinda had to take on the role of ‘responsible adult’ after you left.” Kim shrugs her shoulders. “Which reminds me, you need to hurry up and get better because I hate being a responsible adult.” Kim folds her arms over her chest and pretends to pout. Marie sighs and shrugs her shoulders.

“Sorry…” Marie’s voice trails off. Kim grins and then pats her on the back.

“Don’t worry about it, sis! Remember? I like to mess with ya!”

Marie nods her head acknowledging what Kim just said. But Marie is worried that Kim secretly harbors some resentment towards her. Kim has been the most forgiving human being she has ever known but surely Kim has limits. Marie embarrassed her by walking out on her SCW contract and convincing Kim to go along with it. Marie left Kim alone in SCW to survive on her own. Marie ran off to rejoin the Inner Peace cult, forcing Kim to step up and raise Marie’s son Sean. Does Kim hold a grudge? It is possible.

“So, how are ya handling yourself living with mom again?” Kim asks, suddenly breaking Marie’s thought process.

“Huh? Oh…I am supposed to be independent, on my own, not living with my mother.” She shrugs. “But I do need help getting through this difficult time in my life. I allowed myself to be used and manipulated by a cult. I betrayed my fans, my friends, and my family. I burned bridges in the process. It will take a lot of time to heal and rebuild everything. But our mom has been through all of that. Everything I just endured, every mistake I have made and now the consequences I have to pay, she has gone through it all.” Marie smiles. “If anyone can help me get through this, it’s our mom.”

“See? There is a method to my madness!” Kim exclaims, patting herself on her head. “I know staying with mom for awhile might not have seemed ideal at first but trust me, it is the best way to get past whatever demons you have. I know. I needed her help to overcome my own demons once upon a time.”

“Yeah, well, hopefully these inner demons of mine will be easily taken care of.” Marie then finishes off the last of the wine from her first glass. She looks at the second glass, still full of wine, and then back at her twin sister Kim. “Before I move on to my second drink, I’d like to see Sean. I want to see my son…” she pauses for a moment “...if it’s ok.”

“Of course it’s ok.” Kim says. “You know where his room is.”

Marie nods her head. It feels odd to have to ask permission to see her son. And while Sean hasn’t legally been taken away from her, she would not dare fight this arrangement made between her and Kim and their mother. Both Kim and Angelica agree that after Marie rejoined the Inner Peace cult and abandoned her son, that Marie needs to prove herself worthy of being a parent. Marie also knows full well that the state of Massachusetts would probably agree with them and social services would no doubt take Sean from her legally if Marie did anything. This is a large part of the reason why Marie is willing to jump through these hoops. She wants her family back, her son back, her entire life back. The Phoenix rises up off of the sofa and walks out of the living room. She immediately is met by the familiar sight of the staircase. She ascends the staircase to the second floor, where her son Sean’s room is. Marie gets to the top, rounds a corner, and immediately finds Sean’s room; his door is already open, as if he was expecting her. Marie pokes her head in and sees him sitting up in bed reading a comic book.

“Sean?”

“Huh?” Sean puts his comic book down and smiles upon seeing his mother standing there. “Oh, hi mom.”

“May I come in?”

“Sure.”

Jones wasn’t sure if she would be ready for this moment, but the moment is here. She finally gets to see her son. He no doubt has many questions, tough questions that she isn’t sure she is prepared to answer. Marie enters the room and approaches his bed. She sits down on the edge of the bed.

“So, how has it been living with your Aunt Kim?”

“It’s been alright.”

“Only alright?” Marie asks with an arched brow. “I thought Aunt Kim was the fun aunt?”

“She is!” Sean says with a slight bit of laughter. “She is fun! But…”

“But what?”

“...I missed you.”

Those words are like daggers through the heart of Marie Jones. She hurt her son. Mentally, emotionally she hurt him. She fights hard to hold back the tears. She nods her head.

“I missed you too, Sean.”

“Aunt Kim said you were sick.” Sean states. “What was wrong, mom?”

“I was sick. But I wasn’t physically sick. I was sick up here…” she points to her head “...I haven’t been well, Sean. I haven’t been well mentally or emotionally lately. But that is no excuse for what I did to you.”

“You don’t need to apologize for anything.” Sean insists. “If you are sick you need to get better.”

“I do need to apologize because I haven’t been the parent that you deserve.”

“You did the best you could.”

“No,” Marie shakes her head “I could have done a lot better. And I promise you, Sean, I swear on everything I hold dear, that I will be the best possible mother I can for you one day. I will get better, I will be back, and I will make everything better again.”

Marie can no longer hold back the tears. She starts crying as she leans forward and embraces her son Sean in a tight hug. This is why she must fight to redeem herself. This is why she cannot fail. She wants her family back. After a long, tense moment she breaks the embrace and kisses Sean on his forehead.

“Be good for your Aunt Kim, ok?”

“I will, mom.”

“Love you.”

“Love you too.”

Marie turns and exits her son’s room, gently shutting the door behind her. She can only think about her son as she descends the staircase and makes her way through the hall and back into the living room. She finds Kimberly sprawled out on the sofa. Marie approaches and Kim looks up at her.

“Oh, I wasn’t expecting you back.”

“Nice. Love you too, Kim.”

Kimberly swings her feet over and then moves over, making room for Marie to sit back down. Kim.

“You look awful. Was it that bad?”

“I haven’t seen him in months. You tell me.” Marie sighs and wipes some of the tears from her eyes. “And it’s all my fault.”

“Yeah, it is.” Kim states, once again getting more serious with the tone she is taking with her sister. “You gave all of this up…this nice home, your son, your career…you gave all of it up and for what? Raul? Inner Peace?”

“I was wrong, Kim.” Marie insists. “But I am going to fix this. I am going to fix myself.”

“I know you are.”

“How can you be so certain?”

“Because I beat this once before. And if I can beat it, so can you, because you are damn sure a stronger person than me.”

Marie shakes her head. “No, you are stronger. Face it, I grew up in the lap of luxury. Kim, you had to fight for everything. You had to bite, scratch, and claw for everything. I was handed everything and yet I still managed to screw it all up.”

“Why not let’s just agree that we’re both screw ups and leave it at that?” Kim smirks knowingly.

“F…fair enough…” Kim’s light hearted humor does manage to get a laugh out of Marie.

“But most importantly…” Kim places a hand on Marie’s shoulder “...you are not alone. Me and mom, we’ll help get you through this. Ok?”

“Yeah, I hear you.” Marie nods her head.

This journey of redemption will continue to be trying and difficult. She has already passed a few tests but more remain. One big test comes on Breakdown when she faces the woman she walked away from, Deanna Frost. She has other tests, bigger tests, coming up. Those tests make the upcoming match seem like child’s play. She will have to win back the trust of her friends and her family. She must prove herself worthy of being a mother to Sean. That is the endgame for this redemption journey. And that is one test she cannot afford to fail.