Selena Frost vs. Bree Lancaster

[SnowQueenSCW]

OOC: The CD takes place following the December 5th edition of Breakdown. Promo takes place the weekend following last week's Breakdown (January 9th). Posted in two parts due to length.

 
I of the Storm

“Who I Used To Be”

The 'Believe it!' tour bus had left her driveway over an hour ago, Eric – the chaperone – driving it to its rented parking space, his job done for the time being. The bus had taken a long, twenty-hour drive from Biloxi, Mississippi to Manhattan, New York, and it and its driver were clearly in need of some time off. 

Selena had not really heard them leave her driveway. She hadn't really heard anything as she stood in place, her feet rooted to the hard, black surface, having not left the spot she currently occupied since she had stepped off the bus. Before her eyes stood her beautiful home – the 'Forever Home' she had purchased, furnished, and changed with her beautiful wife, Deanna. The roof had a fine dusting of snow amidst the Christmas lights she saw hanging around the roofs many edges. Like the house, the ground at her feet was covered in snow and it, along with the wind, blew her platinum hair back as she stood in place.

And yet, she barely noticed any of it. The cold was easy to ignore. Compared to her upbringing in Nome, Alaska, the Manhattan winters were like summer to the Snow Queen. Still, for Selena Frost to ignore everything around her – every detail of her home – anyone that knew her would say this was unusual, for there wasn't a time that seeing this place didn't bring a warmth to her heart, regardless of the temperature outside... 

Until this moment.

Is she there? Is she waiting for me inside?

She could not help the dread – even if the logic battled against it with all it had. Of course 'she' was there! She had promised Selena that she would be here when she returned. And yes, though Selena had failed to capture the United States Championship – thanks to the interference by Katya and Dark Fantasy in a stupid display of power and 'machismo', which reeked more like a desperate plea for attention to the Snow Queen – not hard considering the source was mostly the whining brat that Syren had become – still, Selena winning the title had not been a factor in her wife's decision.... right?

How many times have I asked that? Selena thought as she breathed deeply through her nose. As she exhaled, she saw her breath condense into the thin mist of vapour as it flew away into the winter sky. For the umpteenth time, she changed her gaze, shifting from the beautiful house before her, down to the blue box that was a few feet away from where she stood. Her bag was by her feet, but it was not as big as the blue, recycling bin that sat nearby. And though it had a fine blanket of snow covering its top and contents – proof that it had been out there for some time, Selena could easily spy the shining pieces of glass that stuck out – like heads on pikes in the old castles of medieval times. For a moment, Selena imagined herself a knight, fighting for her beloved princess as said fair and red-haired (yes, the Snow Queen could rhyme on occasions – thanks in part to reading Elsianna, Amiliah and David to sleep whenever she had the chance) princess ruled the kingdom, which would technically have made Deanna a queen, but it was Selena's imagination, dammit! The white-haired woman, dressed in blue and white armour, would use her strength and abilities to slay dragons and monsters for her princess by day and be... rewarded by her ruler by night...

It was enough of a dream to cause a faint blush to colour Selena's cheeks, but reality was not to be so easily deterred for very long. Because the bottles of glass, the kaleidoscope of colours ranging from clear to green to brown were not trophies or displays of greatness. No, to Selena, they were much like the heads impaled on spikes on display – a warning to everyone else.

Warning, an alcoholic lives here... 

Earlier this week, the platinum blonde would have been the same as she had been when she had left her Manhattan home and headed for Arkansas and her United States Title match, denying it up and down that she wasn't an alcoholic. That she had everything under control, like she had told Deanna she did.

She couldn't say that aloud now – even to herself as she stood in the cold. Because she knew it would be a lie.

So... are you afraid that she's broken her promise and is gone? Or are you afraid that she's there and you're going to have to tell her what happened?

Selena forced her sapphire eyes shut hard and breathed in the cold, wishing she could freeze her lungs with her inhalation – thus making her brain oxygen-deprived. Anything to keep that damn voice at bay. “You do not get to talk.” she hissed, her voice less than a whisper. “This is your fault!”

Oh really? My fault? I'm the one that forced that stuff on you? On yes! Blame the ghost that's inside your head! That won't sound pathetic to anyone!

The voice was mocking her, and Selena felt her body tremble slightly at it – a slight shiver through her core. She didn't remember much of “what happened” - as the haunting phantom of Sirus described. But she didn't need to. Waking up in that hotel – still in her clothes from last night, the room an absolute mess – things that should never have been released from within her now on full display... and those... those...

Selena tried to keep her eyes shut even tighter. So many of them were empty, littering the floor.

The Snow Queen turned her head away from the recycling bin, casting her eyes back to her house. Except before her, there was still green. But unlike some of the bottles of alcohol she had just seen, the green before her was emerald and was complimented by the shining red hair that barely went past its owner's shoulders.

Before the young woman, Deanna stood on the porch just in front of the door, her arms crossed over her chest and her expression – Selena had no idea what to make of it. Was it angry? Was it sad? Was it worried? She had no idea – it could be any of those. One thing was certain, however - the expression was not happy.

The pair stood there, unable to take their eyes off one another, both at a loss for words. The wind whipped the red and platinum strands of hair of the Frost wives. While Selena's 'cold-blood' allowed her to stand in the winter with her black jeans, dark-blue sweater and winter, white long coat (complete with light-blue, detailed snowflake designs on the shoulders, wrists and along the rim of the entire coat), her redheaded companion was a different matter, the younger Frost dressed in a gray hoodie – which Selena could see a hint of what looked like a maroon sweater underneath that – and black sweatpants, which the older woman guessed were concealing leggings or something.

“Are you coming in or what?”

The voice broke through to Selena, causing her eyes to widen slightly. Instinctively, she reached down to grab her bag, moreso to keep the contents of said bag close to her.

What's your plan, murderer? mocked Sirus. Charm her and then confess?

“I...” Selena tried, her attempt at ignoring the voice in her head. “I'm not sure.” she finally answered.
A raised eyebrow was Deanna's initial reaction. “It's your house.”
“It's our house.” Selena automatically corrected without thinking.

There was another moment of silence between the two before Deanna gave a huff, her breath, much like Selena's, freezing into mist within the air. “What do you want, Selena? A parade? Red carpet?”

Quickly, Selena shook her head. “No...just you.” she settled on honesty for her answer and it seemed to catch Deanna off-guard, albeit only slightly.
“Well... I'm here. Now please come inside. I'd say 'before you freeze' but we both know that's not an issue.”

Biting her lower lip, Selena finally moved her legs, walking the short distance to her porch stairs and up to where Deanna stood. 
“No new title, huh?” Deanna asked.
“No.” Selena admitted. “The match got thrown out.”

The emerald-eyed beauty shook her head but said nothing, instead turning to enter the house. Despite the tension between them, Selena was fairly certain that Deanna's irritation over the lack of title was less to do with the Snow Queen and more to do with the current state of SCW. Be that as it may, Selena put those thoughts aside and followed her wife into their home, closing the door behind her. She had only a moment to dust any snow off her form before she heard the loud voice of-

“MOMMY!”

Following the direction, the platinum-blonde saw her oldest daughter, Elsianna, dressed in a simple sweater and jeans rush down the stairs and towards the wrestler – Selena, herself, barely having time to lower down to a kneeling position to catch her child. “Hello, snowflake.” she whispered happily as she then heard more steps coming down the stairs, at a less frantic pace than Elsianna's. Still, she soon felt smaller, shorter arms pushing through Elsianna to hug her. “Hold!” came the voice in a slight whine and, seeing as how it was the only boy-sounding voice, it wasn't hard for Selena to instantly recognize the voice of her son, David, who squeezed his short arms around Selena's neck.

“Hello, my little prince.” Selena smiled as she held her son, Elsianna backing away with a slight pout and a sniffle that her time with 'mommy' was being interrupted by her 'mean' little brother. However, as Selena felt her son's arms tighten around her neck, she gently had to grapple them off her. “Easy there, mister. Mommy is fragile.”

“No, you're not.” Elsianna declared. “You're stronger than anyone.”
“Really?” Selena raised an eyebrow at her daughter. “What about Superman?”
“Yay!” came the answer with zero hesitation.
“Nuh-uh!” chimed in David. “Soopahman fly! Mom no fly!”
“Mommy can be in two places at once!” Elsianna countered – recalling last Halloween.
“Soophaman has cape!” David countered.

“Hey!” Selena interjected. “I wear a cape!”. Quickly, the Snow Queen unzipped the main compartment of her bag, digging through it for a second before pulling out her entrance attire, specifically, her ice-shard cape. The long material only made a fraction of its way out of the bag, clenched in Selena's pale hand, but it was more than enough, especially with the amber light of the mudroom the family stood in bouncing off the small gems of embroidered snowflakes. “See?” Selena asked with a grin.

“Yay!” Elsianna repeated. “See?!”
It seemed that David, the young two-year old that he was, would not be so easily deterred. “Soopahman punch walls! BOOM!” 

He gave a cry and threw his right arm forward, simulating the action he had just described. Though it made Selena smile, she could not stop her smile from fading a little as Elsianna sniffled and sneezed a little before turning her head towards her mother – the six-year old had no answer to give her brother.

“Well...” Selena tried. “Does dry-wall count? I can definitely kick a hole through that! And I threw someone out a door once!”
“Selena!” Deanna finally decided to speak – though Selena, in that moment, wished it wasn't chastising her.
“What?” Selena asked. “It was back at Nome. When I worked at Liam's – and the door was open!”
“Ha ha!” Elsianna stuck her tongue out at her brother in triumph. “Told you. Mom can easily beat Superman.”
“COULD NOT!” screamed David in defiance! Not that Selena could blame the boy. From the moment she and Deanna had shown him that movie (the Christopher Reeves version, no way was Selena letting David near the 'neck-breaking' work of Zack Synder and Henry Cavill anytime soon), all he wanted to be was Superman. So for Elsianna to say that his 'hero' was weaker than his 'boring mom'?

“Alright, that's enough.” Deanna's voice rang through with a rather strong tone. “Until we see mommy fight Superman, we can't possibly know. Besides...” she added. “Mommy is a good guy, right, David?”

Slowly, David nodded his head. “Mommy is good.”
“And does Superman fight good guys?”
 
It took a moment for the child to consider this question, but he eventually shook his head as an answer.

“That's right. He fights bad guys. Just like mommy does.” Deanna concluded. “And that's the last I want to hear about it. No more arguing or yelling.”
“She started it...” mumbled David.
“I did no-” Elsianna started before suddenly sneezing, her voice echoing through the room and earning the response of a cry from one of the rooms upstairs, the youngest of the Frost children, Amiliah, having been awakened from her nap. Elsianna, however, finished her statement, seemingly unfettered. “I did not!”

“Did too!” David countered, the interrupting sneeze clearly having no effect on him either. 
“Did too!”
“Did not!”

Back and forth they went, and just as Selena was about to speak, a snap in the air came, one that Selena had not really heard before. Turning her head (for she was still kneeling on the ground), the Snow Queen saw her five-foot-five wife standing there, having just snapped her fingers crisply. Both Elsianna and David's eyes widened in alarm as Deanna stood there.

“What does this mean?” Deanna asked, her voice calm but her tone very strong as she held her snapped fingers up.

“It means stop.” both children replied automatically, the daughter more eloquently than the son due to their difference in age and vernacular.
“And what happens if you don't?” Deanna asked, her voice still calm.
“Grounded.” both children stated.
“So? Do you want to be grounded?” Deanna asked.

Both children did not answer with words, but shook their heads fiercely.

“Then apologize to one another.”
“I'm sorry.” Elsianna was first, quick, but still muttered slightly, embarrassed as she was.
“Sorrwee.” David replied.
“And?” Deanna intonation stated that there was more.

Reluctantly, the siblings reached out and hugged each other, Elsianna still a good foot and a half taller than David.

“Alright.” Deanna nodded, satisfied with what she saw. “That's better. Selena?” she turned her head to her wife, the platinum-blonde's mouth hanging agape at what she just saw. “Go upstairs and check on Amiliah. Take Elsianna with you.” 

“Ri...right.” Selena replied, her own fears and memories of the past week temporarily forgotten at the sight of Deanna's 'mother-mode'. Seriously...what the hell just happened?! she asked herself. Pushing her ice-shard cape back into her bag, the Snow Queen stood to her full height. She saw her daughter waiting patiently for her, David standing still as Deanna put her hands on the young boy's shoulders.

“You and I, David, are going to find Oberon in the backyard. Make sure he's not chasing any squirrels.”
“O...Okay.” David nodded and, before Selena could really say anything, the two were out of the mudroom and heading to the basement, where the backyard entryway was located.

Turning her head, the former World Champion offered a smile to her daughter before holding out her free hand, which Elsianna happily took, sniffling a little as she did. The two made their way up the stairs in silence. Reaching the top, Elsianna went into Amiliah's room as Selena dropped by hers and Deanna's room to drop of her bag – though she made sure to unzip the side compartment and pull out the small envelops of white that were inside, tucking them into her inside coat pocket. A few seconds later, she, too, was in the young baby's room, standing in the doorway as Elsianna, sniffling a little more, picked up her little sister, cradling the crying baby Amiliah gently.

“Quietly hush now, to sleep.” the song came from the short girl standing before Selena. “On the wings of the butterfly, let all your cares drift away. And now is the end of the day...”

At first, the woman said nothing as she watched her daughter, merely gazing in wonder as Amiliah, seeming to recognize Elsianna's cooing and singing, settled down and even, to Selena's surprise, laughed a little. 

“If you close your eyes and count to ten, you'll hear your dreams are calling again...
Just follow the moon, for all too soon, a new day will appear...
You'll have nothing to fear...”

At that, Selena quietly walked in – amazed at the bond that was already growing between little Ami and Elsa. Seeing her mommy there, Elsianna's singing gently faded as she gently brought the baby to her mommy, placing the small child in Selena's arms. Not wanting to create more distance between the sisters, Selena chose to sit down on the carpeted floor of the room while she rocked and cuddled her youngest. 

“For wherever you are and forever...” Selena sung softly, finishing the lullaby. “I'll be here...”

Amiliah, thankfully, instantly recognized her as well, smiling as Selena smiled at her, giving the small child with short, red hair, a kiss on the forehead.

“Hello, little flame. Did we wake you up?” she asked softly as Elsianna sat down beside her. Amiliah gave no real answer other than more 'baby sounds' but that was good enough for the Snow Queen, allowing her to turn her attention to her other daughter. “Elsa... why do you keep fighting with David?”

The child beside her huffed and shrugged her shoulders. “I don't know. He's just...mean?”
“But you're much older than him.” Selena stated. “He's going to look to you for stuff.”
“Stuff?” the girl with hair almost as platinum as Selena's looked in alarm. “I gotta give him my stuff? Why?!”

“No, no...” Selena laughed a little, which Amiliah picked up on with a laugh of her own. “I mean, he's going to look to you for advice. Emulate the things you do – like you did, learning that lullaby I taught you.” the Snow Queen smiled at her oldest. “And as he grows up, he's going to see you as his big sister – can't you get along with him like you do with Amiliah?”
“That's...different.” Elsa settled on answering.
“Different how?”
“Ami's a girl – and she loves me.”
“David loves you too.” Selena replied. “He's just young and doesn't really understand family just yet.”
“No...” the six-year old sighed. “It's different. Can I leave it at that?”
“I...” Selena sighed. “I suppose. But you need to try to get along with your brother better, okay? You are allowed to walk away from arguments, remember?”

The young girl nodded her head in understanding and the two remained in silence, both concentrated on baby Ami as she, eventually, drifted back to sleep. Unlike the silence Selena had suffered outside a short while ago, this silence was warm, calming – making her forget, for a moment, all the bad things outside her home, some of which were waiting for her. But when she heard another sneeze coming from the white-haired child standing beside her – she simply could not ignore it.

“Okay.” she suddenly said as she stood up. Carefully, and gently, she placed the sleeping Amiliah back into her crib before gently ushering Elsianna out of the room and into the Snow Queen's own room, stopping only to gently close the door to baby Ami's room. Once inside, Selena moved around Elsianna in order to kneel down beside her – for the child was still quite shorter than Selena.

“What?” Elsianna asked.
“That was, at least, the third time I've heard you sneeze – and I lost count how many times you've sniffled since I got home.” Selena stated, immediately holding the back of her hand to her child's forehead. “Are you sick, Elsa?”
“No.” the child shook her head. “I...I don't think I am.”
“Well...”

Selena tried to think of something – but the reality was that the Snow Queen had really been sick for years – as in before her father had disappeared years. She had come down with the flu in combination with a bad case of bronchitis – the one-two whammy leaving her, eight years old at the time, bedridden for about a week and a half. Not fun... Selena thought, as much as she could remember. Still, since then, it was as if she couldn't really get sick. Cold invigorated her and heat made her feel sluggish – but that was because she was a damn polar bear from Nome – something Deanna had called her in the past.

Still, don't be an idiot! You know what people get when they are sick! she rationalized.

“Alright, Elsa.” Selena decided. “Tell me how you feel?”
“Okay.” the child shrugged, causing the platinum-blonde mother to roll her eyes.
“No. I mean, are you tired? Do you have a lot snot in your nose-”
“Ew...”
“Elsianna.” Selena pressed. “How long have you been sneezing and sniffling?”
“A few days.” Elsianna replied. “And I'm a little tired.”
“Okay.” Selena nodded. “That's enough for me to worry. You need to be in bed.”
“Mommy...” Elsianna whined. “I feel fine.”
“Yeah, nice try.” Selena laughed, reaching out to put the back of her hand back on her child's forehead – testing for temperature. “A little warm. You're going to bed, under the covers.”
“But Mom said dinner will be as soon as you get back.”
“Mom and I will bring you dinner – and you can watch TV in your room as well.”

Now... sick or not – no child could refuse such an offer, and Elsianna, while definitely unique and special in her own way, was no difference. Small, blue eyes became wide and her mouth hung open – it was almost comical to Selena. “Really?!” the child asked.

“Yes, really.” Selena stated. “Now go go – and use your headphones!”

Elsa was off like a shot, almost bowling past Deanna as she ran out of the room and straight to her bed, Selena even hearing the 'errr-eeee' of the springs as the small child jumped onto the mattress. Meanwhile, Deanna could only turn to watch her daughter before then turning to her wife. “What was that all about?”

“I told her she needed to go to bed. How long has she been sneezing and sniffling?” Selena asked.
“A few days now.” Deanna replied. “Some of the kids have called in sick at her school. So, I've been keeping watch.” after her answer, the younger Frost pointed back behind her to Elsa's room. “She really agreed to go to bed this early?”

“Well...” Selena shrugged. “I told her she could have dinner in bed and watch Netflix on her TV.”

“Of course you did.” despite herself, a small smile cracked through on the side of Deanna's mouth. “Lucky for you, I made soup for dinner and not lasagna.”

“Don't...call me lucky just yet.” Selena whispered, instinctively crossing her arms over her form as she stood to her feet, feeling the envelops in her jacket pocket. 
“You realize David is going to want to watch TV in his room now as well, right?”
“He doesn't have a TV in his room.” Selena stated in confusion. “Elsianna just got hers a month ago.”
“Uh-huh...” Deanna prompted slowly, waiting for her wife to connect the dots.

And Selena did, eventually. With his terrible twos still in full swing, David was in a state of what the Frost wives called, “The gimmies”. Whenever someone had something, he wanted it. Whenever someone was getting more attention than him, he wanted it. Whenever someone got to choose the movie to watch, he wanted to pick. And with an older sister capable of more responsibilities and, thus, more privileges for her age and a younger sister that still needed so much attention (being a baby and all), the jealousy phase of the 'gimmies' seemed to be a 24-hour show whenever Selena was home.

“Okay, I'll handle this.” Selena replied simply. “Can you get Elsianna her soup and...uh...” she paused, closing her eyes to gather her courage. “Meet me in the office?”

Deanna did not speak a reply, merely lifting her head a little before nodding. In fact, if Selena didn't know any better, Deanna seemed expecting something like this. Before she had a chance to consider it further, the redhead had turned around to eye her white-haired wife. “No television.” she reminded to Selena.

“I know.” Selena smiled with a shrug. “No TV for David or Ami unless you and I are there to watch.”

Deanna nodded before leaving the room first. It wasn't that this was new for Selena – these guidelines. Since Deanna was the 'stay-at-home' woman of the two, Selena had bowed to her concepts of raising the children. Plus, it wasn't like Selena had first-hand knowledge to draw from in being a 'mother'. Her birth mother had not existed in her life until a few years ago and her adoptive mother – well she hadn't really been a mother until a few years ago, and it had gotten her killed. At least Deanna had experience from being raised by her older sister, Amy, after their parents' death. Besides, Deanna had done most of the research – continued doing most of the research – in raising the children while Selena wrestled and promoted SCW. And seeing her wife handle the situation in the mudroom, the Snow Queen wasn't going to question it.

Coming downstairs and following Deanna into the large kitchen/family room area, Selena spotted her young son sitting quietly at the table, picking at the plateful of veggies with a fork. Reaching up, the platinum-blonde offered him a smile before leaning down and kissing his forehead. “What you eating?”

“Care-it!” David held the orange vegetable out, half-eaten, with pride.
“Good boy!” Selena smiled. “Is it good?”
“Yay!” the boy smiled before picking up another baby-carrot and holding up to her.
“For me?” Selena asked, earning an amused smile from the boy. With a shrug, she plucked the carrot out and dropped it into her mouth, chewing it and swallowing it in amusement. “Thank you.” she said when her mouth was empty.

The two sat in silence after that, David continuing to eat and Selena simply watching him. Deanna, meanwhile, had finished the soup she had been making, placed it in two bowls and walked past, placing one small bowl in front of David to finish after his veggies and the other, a slightly bigger bowl with a spoon inside of it, she walked out of the room and headed up the stairs – clearly to take it too Elsianna.

“So...” Selena smiled as David finished his veggies and began sipping on his soup – immediately distracting Selena as he hissed a little. “Easy, son!” she urged. “It's hot! Here.” 

Gently taking the spoon from the young boy, Selena scooped up a spoonful of soup, which she realized was chicken-noodle soup. Gently, she blew on the steaming liquid until said stem had mostly left before then offering it to David, and though the two-year-old was hesitant (not wishing to be burned again), he eventually took the soup into his mouth, seemingly enjoying the warm broth more so the second time. 

“Better, right?” Selena smiled as she gathered another spoonful to feed him, blowing on it gently before offering it to him. This continued for several minutes and several spoonfuls until she held one spoonful out to David – 'uncooled' by the Snow Queen. “You try, sweetie.” she gently prompted. “Just do this...” softly, she blew a quiet breath from her mouth.

Which was the exact opposite as David, who took a deep breath and “APFFFFFTTTTTTTTT”, sending the soup flying back into the face of the former world champion of SCW.

Selena's head jerked back and she reached up to wipe a few drops of the soup from her eyes. “Bit too much there, kiddo.” she laughed as she opened her eyes, seeing the laughing face of her son, who clapped his hands as he made another “PPPPFFT” sound – thankfully with no soup near him.

“Alright, alright, smart guy.” Selena shook her head, refilling the soup and continuing to feed David – returning to her original plan of cooling each spoonful herself. By the time she heard steps coming down the stairs and entering the room, David's plate and bowl were empty, and Selena promptly picked them up to carry them to the sink to wash.

With a slight turn of her head, Selena spotted Deanna nearing her with the bowl and spoon she had brought up to Elsianna – though now the bowl was practically empty.

“She alright?” Selena whispered, turning the sink-tap on to wash the dishes.
Deanna nodded. “I stayed with her to make sure she ate all the soup and didn't spill.”
Selena nodded. “I figured.” she replied, finishing one bowl and gently taking the one Deanna was holding.

Though the only sound was that of the running water as Selena cleaned, she suddenly felt a soft, warm hand reaching out to touch the skin on her cheek. It seems to settle there for a moment and, for that same moment, the platinum-blonde forget everyone once more. Her instincts taking over – these ones of being a young woman in love – she reached up to cup the hand and press it into her cheek further before turning her head against it to kiss the palm before opening her eyes to stare into Deanna's emerald ones.

“Uh...” Deanna stated, pulling her hand away from Selena. “You had a piece of noodle in your hair.”

Her hand free after that pull, Deanna reached up to pluck the stray noodle – which had now moved closer to Selena's temple. The redhead held the noodle in front of Selena's eyes before shrugging her shoulder and tossing said noddle into the trash bin under the sink.

“Well...” Selena tried covering up her error in judgment. “I've been told my hair is made of horse-hair before... least we know now it's noodles. Oodles of noodles.”
“Oodles of noodles!” proclaimed David happily in rhyme, causing both mothers to turn their heads towards him for a moment.

For Selena, the awkwardness she felt from her mistake simply reminded her of everything she needed to talk to Deanna about. With a sigh, she placed the last washed dish on the plastic and metal drying rack. “David?” she called out, earning her son's attention. “Do want to keep busy with your coloring book?”

Not really waiting for an answer, though the boy's enthusiastic “Yay!” didn't hinder anything, Selena walked around the kitchen area before she reached a cupboard by one of the cabinets. Opening it, she saw pieces of blank paper and tins filled with crayons and markers. Quietly, she pulled out a few pieces of blank paper and, on another shelf, a coloring book – this one a blue one with a green frog smiling on it. With her right hand still free, she plucked a tin filled with crayons of every color out of the cupboard as well, using the heel of her foot as she turned to close the cabinet door. Placing the items on the table by David, Selena ruffled his head of blondish-white hair (darker than his sister's and mother's) with her now free hand. “Stay there and have fun, okay?” she asked, though Deanna caught the silent order in the woman's voice. David, oblivious, simply nodded his head before he sprang into action, grabbing red and blues to draw on the blank paper.

Satisfied, Selena reached out to take Deanna's hand into hers. There was no error in judgment this time and both women knew that. Despite this, neither fought to let go of the other as Selena gently pulled her wife with her, the couple walking out of the kitchen, down the flight of stairs and past Oberon's little doggy-pen, the white husky pup simply sleeping in his kernel, and into the large, cinema room, past the hallway that ran to that until, at last, they were standing in Selena's study, the circular room – despite Selena's anxiety – giving her a sense of calm.

“Okay.” Deanna moved further into the room so she could prop herself onto the large desk in the back. From the look of her posture and staring into her eyes, this was not the same confident, nurturing mother Selena had just spent time with. This was Deanna, her wife, and the shake in Deanna's voice at that one word was impossible to miss – Selena's powers of observation apparently back in full force.

“I...” Selena started, crossing her arms across her chest and jacket again. “I'm not sure where to start, actually.”

Deanna said nothing – clearly not wanting to guide Selena.

“I guess...Well, Katya is running SCW now – or at least she thinks she is? I don't really know.”
“Did you call O.?”
Selena nodded quickly, her legs shifting to allow her to pace around room. “I did – I spent all night calling him. He's not answered. Not a message or an email – nothing.”
“I see.”
“I mean...” Selena huffed. “I didn't even suspect Katya was in league with Dark Fantasy – all this time! Why do I keep doing that?!”
“Doing what?”
“Giving people in SCW the benefit of the doubt? Why do I believe people are just going to do the right thing? When over and over and over again, so many of them don't! SASHA!” she snapped her fingers as if in sudden remembrance. “Sasha even warned me! She thought something was wrong – something was off with Katya but I didn't see it! I told her not to worry! I TOLD her to trust Mr. D. and not her instincts!”

It was almost laughable to her now, and a chuckle escaped her pale lips. “The hell do I know about people, anyway?” she grumbled. “Regan, Sienna, Dawn, and then everyone that fooled me – Syren, CHBK, Blake pulled a few on me last year.”

Her aggravation mounting, Selena ran her hands through her platinum locks. “I don't...maybe... maybe he's just hiding away. Maybe he doesn't want to deal with this. Maybe it's too much – and now he's leaving it behind for his daughters to figure out.”

“Maybe you should too.”

The voice came from Deanna and ripped Selena from her ranting. “What?” she asked.
“You heard me.” Deanna stated, though her voice still held the shakiness it had since the redhead had been in the room. “I watched Breakdown, Selena. I saw what happened.”
“You mean you saw me fail.”

“I saw you fail at a place that continuously just screws you over.” stated Deanna. “I mean, how many times are you going to get people running down to the ring during your matches? How many times are you going to have sisters and teammates and managers and friends getting involved in what you do? And what happens when a plan of theirs actually succeeds and they injure you?”

No words came from the platinum-blonde, for she had none to give.

“And, you know what? I hated watching it this past year, but I thought 'the boss likes you, he'll make it right', but he's gone now. And we don't even know if Sasha is doing anything or even if she's different from Katya.” 

Again, Selena didn't reply, once more finding her feet frozen in place.

“Maybe...maybe this is a sign. Maybe we – maybe you – need to stop while you're ahead. So you don't win the United States Title – you've done enough there.” urged the redhead. “And it's not like we need the money – and if it's because you love wrestling, you've worked for other companies before, remember? We can find another one! Something better...”

With a sigh, Selena shook her head, looking down at her hands as she did so. Her answer was not what Deanna was actually expecting...

“Maybe you're right.”

The silence hung in the room for a good minute until Selena broke it. “Did you hear me?”
“I...I heard you.” Deanna replied. “I just am surprised you're agreeing with me about this so easily.”

“It's not easy – and it's not because of anything you said.” Selena revealed, her tone growing stronger. “All those things you said? Katya? Authority changing? Yeah, maybe it's getting worse, and maybe I hate it, but abandoning SCW over it? I'd never do it over something like that. If anything, that would make me want to stay more! Fight more! Change it back to what it should be!”

“Then why are you agreeing with me?” Deanna asked, her eyes narrowing. 
“Because I'm...” It was Selena's turn for her voice to crack as she felt tears prick the back of her eyes. “I don't think I'm strong enough to change it back.”

Once more, Selena gaze was fastened on her pale hands, the fingers locking and unlocking together as her form began to tremble. “You...” she looked up, the tears falling down her cheeks. “You were right...” she quietly sobbed. “About me... about... about everything...”

She closed her eyes for the briefest of moments, but in that moment, as if by magic, Deanna was suddenly close to her, Selena only knowing this when she felt arms wrapping around her to cradle her to the warm body that was her wife. The fact that Selena, the taller woman of the two, was being held as if she was so much smaller didn't mean a damn thing to her. She clung to that warmth with all she had, allowing her tears to fall and her cries to escape her dry throat. “I fucked up, Deanna.” she whimpered. “I don't have control. I never had any goddamn control. I was just fooling myself!”

“I know, Selena.” whispered her wife. “I already know.”

It was a quiet voice, but the truth of it was enough to stop the crying Frost, even just for a moment. Confused beyond measure, the platinum-blonde lifted her head, her bloodshot eyes taking in her wife's saddened expression. “Wha-what do you mean you know?” she asked. 

Her only answer from Deanna was a sad smile before the younger Frost pulled her cellphone out of her trackpants' pocket and pressed a few buttons. It wasn't long until a third voice filled the room, one both Selena and Deanna easily recognized...
*********************************************

Wednesday, December 5th

“...you've reached the voicemail box of...” she could quote the damn message from memory at this point! She had heard nothing but the same message for the past five hours! “Please leave a...”

Before the machine could finish, Selena gave an aggravated yell before turning her phone off and tossing it as hard as she could against the pillow that sat on her bed, she herself standing at the foot of it. Why can't you answer?! Do you even care?! her mind screamed – wishing the person she had been trying to contact all night could somehow, magically, hear her thoughts.

Why are you still trying? her thoughts mocked. If you couldn't reach him at the start of Breakdown – when all of this crap was coming down, what makes you think you will now?

For the first two hours of her calling the same number over and over again, Selena had been able to battle this argument with excuses like 'Maybe he's in a different time zone' and 'maybe his phone is dead'. As the time went on and tonight's show had ended, those excuses had only escalated in their desperateness to try and explain – as if she were grasping at straws.

'Maybe he's lost his phone.'
'Maybe he's in the hospital and didn't see the show.'
'Maybe he's trying to call me right now.'

But as Selena's eyes took in the sight of the digital clock sitting on the nightstand of the hotel she was staying at in Little Rock, Arkansas, the hour now in the single digits of the late night, her brain had no more excuses to make – no more defences she could conjure up to protect the image of her employer and – in a small way – mentor.

The world of SCW – the world she loved and believed in – the dream job and career she had found simply by fate, was crumbling around her. And wherever he was, O. D., the owner of SCW, was doing nothing. Wherever he was, he didn't want to be found. He didn't want to solve this problem his family – particularly his daughter, Katya – had created. 

Selena Frost – the Face of SCW – was on her own, a fact that had been made adamantly clear when she had been screwed out of her United States Championship match a few hours ago. Yes, wrestlers had come out to help her from being put on the shelf by Dark Fantasy and Marie Jones, but she had left Breakdown with no promise that her championship match – thrown out from the interference – would be given further consideration.

And that didn't say anything about the crap that was surrounding what Katya was doing behind the scenes. 

Quietly, the Snow Queen paced around the medium-sized hotel room. Normally, she would have simply slept on her 'Believe It' tour bus as it travelled towards the set of the house shows she had tomorrow and the few days after. However, Eric and her had a near twenty-hour bus ride ahead of them at the end of those shows back to Manhattan and the platinum-blonde was not going to push her driver friend too far with that on the horizon. Besides, she had reasoned on the way to Breakdown, she needed a change of scenery after her fight with Deanna. 

For a moment, Selena considered calling her red-haired wife – maybe she would still be up, looking after Amiliah. The notion was quickly squashed. Even if she was, Selena wasn't going to risk waking up her wife and children just to see if she was there. Deanna had promised to stay at home and wait for Selena to return and – and Selena had to believe that she would. 

She's not O.... she thought darkly. She wouldn't abandon me...

Oh, like your father did?
Like your mother did?
Like your step-mother did?

Turning around in a flash, Selena saw the aggravating sight of Sirus, lying on the bed, a toothy grin coming from the pale face of the spectre, practically splitting the facial features with its wideness. As usual, the creature before Selena wore the same clothes – a simple set of pyjamas, though the colors often changed with each new visit – as she had the night she had died before Selena's eyes, the real Sirus meeting her end at the hands of her mother, Evangeline DeWinter.

“Go away.” Selena ordered. “I don't have time for you.”

Sure you do. Sirus teased. Not like you're going to sleep tonight anyway. Not with you ringing up Daddy Drachy's telephone like that. 'Oh, where's 'Daddy D?!' her voice was suddenly higher and accented – as if she was trying to poorly imitate the voice of the Alaskan Dragon. 'I can't do anything without someone helping me!'

Closing her eyes, Selena pressed her fingers against her temples, massaging them aggressively. “Conceal...” she whispered, repeating her mantra. “Don't feel...”

Oh, knock it off with that stupid saying! Who taught you that, anyway? Sirus spat, though only Selena could actually hear her. Oh, that's right! Your father, Donovan, who also abandoned you! Wow – I'd say the only thing you are more horrible at than actually wrestling these days is actually keeping your daddy figures around- or anyone for that matter!

“Conceal... Don't feel... put on a show... make one wrong move and everyone will know...”

I mean, let's REALLY think about this. Sirus sat up at the edge of the bed, swinging her white, wrinkly legs over the end. We've got your boss, your birth parents, your step-mother and her family, Adrian, or is he Ryan now? – but hell, let's include Dawn Lohan, Kelcey Wallace, Sienna Swann, even your wife! They abandoned you!

It was that last stab that pushed Selena – shattering her mantra-chanting as the platinum-blonde spun around on the spot to stare down the hated ghost. “Deanna did not abandon me! She's waiting for me at home!”

The laugh was deep from the 'throat' of Sirus. Really, is that right? Then why'd you make her promise? If you're so sure, you wouldn't need her to.

“It doesn't matter.” insisted the young Frost. “She DID promise and she IS there.”
Right...because people don't break promises right? People don't lie when the going gets tough right? People don't deceive and mastermind – oh, I'm sorry, didn't you JUST come back from work where that is EXACTLY what is happening?

Selena turned her back to her tormentor, her eyes scanning around the room. She didn't really recognize much in this room – having been so used to simply sleeping and working on her luxury bus. And yet, given the small size of the room compared to said bus, it was not long before her eyes settled on the silver, square holding chamber of sorts – or as anyone with sense would call it – a mini-fridge. Quickly, despite the slight guilt she had of her actions reminding her of her argument with Deanna a few days ago, Selena marched over to the medium-sized fridge, knelt down and opened the door, immediately feeling the slightest brush of chill that came from the inside.

And what, pray tell, are you up to? came the amused question.

“Shutting you up for the night.” Selena spat back as her pale hands dug through the rows of drinks and snacks that lined the interior. She ignored the food, even though she had not eaten since a few hours before Breakdown – her nervousness regarding her United States Championship match taking place having been the cause of that – and went straight for the glass bottles, pulling out as many as her hands could fit and placing them on the table near the fridge. Closing the door, Selena stood up to her full height and gazed down at the different colors of liquids and class before her. Some were green, some of the liquids were orange and some were clear. She had even grabbed a few bottles of Perrier water as well to round out the color scheme.

“There.” she grinned. Before quickly beginning to scan the drinks – however, it was very quickly apparent, as the labels (several she did not recognize and a few in a language she could not understand) appeared before her-

Oh no... teased Sirus. No Crown Royal. Your personal choice. Your 'guaranteed potion' to shut me up... should I sing a song? Sirus laughed before suddenly singing in a horribly off-key fashion. ALL BY HERSELF! SELENA IS... ALL BY HERSELF! FOREVER!

Frustrated and annoyed, Selena's teeth clamped down hard on her lower lip. She would rather have had the Crown Royal in here – but she was not going to put up with this brat of a ghost all night! Determined, she quickly scanned each of the medium-sized bottles, reading percentages like 14%, 8%, and... there was one as low as 5.17% and another at 4% - an orange one called Breezer!

Before she could stop herself, the idea struck her and she soon was unscrewing the bottle cap of the lowest percentage, grabbing the 5.17% bottle as well. 

Now what? asked Sirus, partly curious and partly annoyed that Selena had not simply given up.

“For someone that seems to know so much about me – you seem to forget where I came from.”

You mean you or your gimmick? Because one's from the North Pole and the other is from Disney. So, take your pick.

The barb hurt far less than Sirus' other jabs, perhaps because Selena was already working on a plan. She grabbed a simple plastic cup from a small pile of them and placed it on the table before her. “I worked at a bar and grill.” she stated. “Doing what I had to to make money to keep working on my father's goldmine.”

More daddy-issues. Perhaps you should see a shrink...

“Make your jokes now.” Selena shot back, turning her head for a moment to sneer at the ghost. “You won't be here much longer.” 

Confidently, the Snow Queen poured a quarter of the Breezer orange-flavour liquid into the cup, filling the cup only about a quarter of the way. “Working for Liam at his bar and grill, he taught me a few little things about servings drinks.”

Placing the glass down, Selena then opened the clear, second bottle. “The Crown Royal is about 40% alcohol in terms of volume, and I only drink a mouthful to deal with you. So... even with these two combined – the volume percentage is no more than 10%.”

She felt accomplished – proud that she could recall some good lessons from her horrid life in Nome. That it was being put to use to deal with her problems now – perhaps that was something she needed to remember when she was back home and reflecting on how to deal with SCW – what would 'Nome-Selena' do in this situation.

One thing at a time. she told herself, and poured the clear liquid into the cup until it was practically full. Placing the bottle on the table and turning without hesitation, she held the now full cup to her unwanted ghost. “Meaning that I can regulate how much of this I take – so I can STILL get rid of you! It just needs a bit more.”

Hence the full cup. Sirus raised an eyebrow and smiled. It may have appeared to be smug, but Selena knew – she 100% knew – that this was a bluff. Sirus was mad. She was about to get wiped off the face of the earth again – sent back to purgatory because she underestimated her 'victim' – just like everyone else in SCW kept doing!

“You know – “ she looked down at her orange-colored drink with a smile, remembering the 'Breezer' label on the orange drink. “I was going to name this drink after you, but – hell, I got a better idea.” 

Raising her hand, Selena held the concoction in toast to the heavens and gods. “Since she loves so much to steal from me – I call this, 'the Bree-Zee'! Because, while it looks pretty and maybe potent, it'll take at least two or three of them to do what a crowned royal can do!”

With one last toast, Selena downed the whole drink in one go – as she often did with her Crown Royal. The mixture was unpleasant and burned her throat, which somewhat surprised her. Still, it went down and into her system and, with the cup empty, she took a deep breath to steady herself, smiling confidently at Sirus, though the Snow Queen's eyes were closed. “Only a matter of time now.”

Oh, I imagine it will be...

The voice, completely different from Sirus, forced Selena's eyes to fly open. Before her was not the elderly woman that had haunted Selena for months and months. In her stead, was the woman that had haunted Selena, perhaps unknowingly to the Snow Queen, for years and years. The woman that Selena had left behind in Nome, Alaska. The woman that Selena swore she would never deal with again...

Selena Frost.

You look good. Lost all that baby-fat, I see. The woman, wearing a baggy, stained shirt that said 'Liam's Bar and Grill' on one of the sides, and long, black pants (the uniform of a waitress at Liam's) tilted her head as she ran a hand through her platinum-blonde hair. 

“What are you doing here?” Selena asked. “What even are you? Is this another trick, Sirus?”

The woman on the bed laughed. While she did, however, Selena could see the difference between her and this woman. The voice was a bit colder – devoid of any love or joy. The bags under the eyes were heavy, not because of lack of sleep like Selena had, but lack of hope. Lack of passion and desire. Lack of life in general. The woman before her – if Selena could call her that – seemed to be something that looked to be barely functioning. 

Sirus is just a stupid ghost in your head, Selena. Just like with Dawn and Deanna and... the look-alike's eyes widened. And...

“And Elsianna.” Selena finished, seeing her 'doppleganger' shake her head.
No! She's real!
“Yes. She is. The one that I have. The one that lives with me and my wife and other children. The one you are looking for? No. That snow-child isn't real.”
Or maybe you just...stopped believing?

Selena shook her head as she felt a little buzz begin to fill it. “What I can't believe is that I was as weak and stupid as you.”
I can't believe that I become as weak and as stupid as you! the other Selena countered.

“How am I weak and stupid?” Selena demanded to know.

Well, let's see – 2016, you won the Best of the Best Tournament and then the World title. Nobody could touch you. Nobody could beat you. Everyone thought you were unstoppable. And now: here we are – and you can't win a damn title from a Dior model! Sorry... EX-Dior model!

“Things have changed!” Selena explained. “The rules are changing-”

Oh boo-hoo! The rules change and you're just trying to change them back! You're just putting out fires! What happened to 'forging your own path'? What happened to 'never being the doormat'... like I was?

“I am NOTHING like you!” Selena spat, though it was hard because her tongue felt a little dry and heavy.

Really? the look-alike shrugged. Sienna? Regan? Owen? Christy? And you just blew it with Bree? At what point were you 'the best of the best' this year? At what point were you 'calling the shots'? Because here you are, 2018, whining and crying to your boss to save you – just like I did to Liam whenever Gavin and his boys would bother me.

Despite herself, Selena couldn't answer. Instead, she only shook her head.

And then I'd head home – to be alone – and drink myself into oblivion. Just to escape my problems – the hate from every person that lay eyes on me. Just for some peace and quiet for awhile. With a smirk and shake of her head, the younger Selena pushed herself off the bed to walk slowly to the one standing by the counter, the real Selena grasping the ends of it with her hands until the knuckles turned white to stabilize herself. The waitress-Selena smiled and leaned forward, placing her hands on top of Selena's.

“I...” Selena's breath caught. “I am nothing like you...” the declaration was far weaker than it originally had been but Selena pressed on. “I left you behind in Nome... I swore I would never become you again...”

Before her eyes, the Nome-Selena smiled, almost sadly, before shaking her head. Oh Selena... you already are me... you just haven't realized it yet...

Reaching behind Selena, the ghost – to Selena's shock picked up the clear bottle of drink Selena had used for her Bree-Zee concoction. Looking at it for a moment, the ghost made a click with her tongue before turning it around before Selena's eyes. It was only then, having the bottle so close to her vision that Selena realized the horrifying mistake she had made. The clear liquid, the one she had filled most of the cup with hadn't been 5.14% alcohol level.

Before her eyes, the number read was 51.4%...

“No...” Selena's eyes widened in horror, before realizing that the ghost of her Nome-self was gone. And it was her hand that was clutching the bottle. Turning her head, however, Selena spied the large, vanity mirror hanging on the wall. Before her was her reflection – complete with bags under her eyes, the sign of lost hope – the alcoholic bottle of gin in her hand (one of her favourites in Nome) and the waitress uniform of Liam's Bar and Grill covering her figure in place of her street clothes.

“NO!!!!!” screamed Selena, turning away from the reflection. “It's a lie! It's Sirus!” she choked, her hands flying to unscrew the bottle. Sirus was fucking with her! Playing tricks on her! The concoction hadn't been strong enough! Quickly, Selena tilted her head back and, taking the cap off the bottle again, gulped down more mouthfuls of the gin, ignoring the burning in her throat. “Go away!” she ordered! “I'm not you! I'm not you! I'M NOT YOU!”

Stumbling towards the counter top where all the other bottles of drinks were, her head buzzing louder and louder, Selena grabbed them and dragged herself into the bathroom. Without hesitating, she opened every bottle, even the Perrier water, and poured every bottle's contents into the bathtub. That accomplished, she threw the bottles out into the room before stumbling back to her bed. “See?!” she slurred a spat. “I'm not you! You would have drank all of them! Drank yourself into a coma! I'm not you! I'm in control! I'm in COMPLETE control! Here! At home! In S-CEE-DUBU!”

No one could possibly understand her words at this point – between the pitch in her voice and slurred nature of her words. Yet, as she saw her reflection in the vanity again – and saw her Nome-self of years ago staring back at her, her 'confidence' quickly transformed to anger as she ripped her clothes off her frame, throwing the ripped garments onto the floor. “No! No! No! No!” she declared before looking at herself in the mirror again. She was naked and her reflection matched that. But, even if that damn uniform was gone, the dead look – the first thing Selena had noticed about her other 'self' was still there. Still in the reflection's eyes... 

Still in her eyes...

“No...” her voice lowered. And with each passing and weakening 'no' that left her lips, Selena felt her body collapse onto the floor, the carpet doing nothing to comfort her. Slowly, the Snow Queen dragged herself to the bed, but only managed to get to the side. Reaching up, she attempted to pull herself up, but only managed to pull the blanket down onto her naked form. A clatter was heard near her face, causing her to open her eyes to see her phone lying there, having been pulled to the floor by her movements. She could feel her mind swimming and buzzing and her control slipping – as if someone else was in the pilot's seat. 

Someone else was picking up the phone. 
Someone else was going back to the contacts and hitting the 'D' letter.
Someone else was using her voice to talk.
Someone else was dealing with the voice message system...

“O...O....why did you leave me?”


*********************************************