Wake Up - MotoXAngels - World Wrestling Entertainment [Archive of Our Own] (2024)

Chapter 1: Introduction to Siren

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“Follow your heart” that’s a saying that I’ve heard since I was child. When you’re young it sounds easy enough; follow your heart, do what makes you happy, make your dreams come true. That’s what we all want, right?

But what happens when you finally get what you’ve been chasing? What happens when you finally make your dreams come true? Is it ever truly enough, or will we always keep wanting more?

Some say once you get a taste of the spotlight, you yearn for more, that you can never get enough. You crave the attention, the money, the fame. Inevitably you begin to alienate the ones who were behind you from day one, the ones that were there before you became famous. And then one day you’ll wake up and realize that you’re alone. On that day you have to ask yourself one question… is fame and fortune worth what you lose…….

Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Tasha Rene’, however most people know me as WWE Diva Siren Rose. I have been with the company since I was 16 years old. The people I work with have become my family and close friends.

Now when you spend the better part of 15 years in the WWE, the majority of your relationships are with the people you spend 24/7, 365 days with. However like some of my more promiscuous co-workers, I can count the number of boyfriends I have had in the company, on both of my hands.

Over my lengthy career as a WWE women’s wrestler, I have had only 6 relationships, all of which were real both on and off camera. Before I get to the story of my current relationship, which is the center of this story, let me give you some background on the men that drove me to where I am now.

When I started in the WWE, alongside my mentor Eddie Guerrero, female wrestlers were explained as Divas. We were simply eye candy for the fans, and a few of the male superstars. We had ridiculous matches designed solely for the purpose of displaying our bodies. Bra/panties matches, pillow fights, etc. None of which I ever participated in, I refused, which is something you simply didn’t do if you wanted to keep your job. However, management seemed keen to work with me on this, as I was one of the best managers they had ever seen.

I was willing to put my career and my body on the line, I would do whatever I had to, to ensure my client’s success. I have spent many nights in the hospital receiving stitches, surgeries to repair broken bones, and weeks of rehab to get back to the ring. I never thought about the consequences of my actions, of how much something was going to hurt. That was how I earned the respect of my fellow wrestlers. I wasn’t afraid of anyone, I would go toe-to-toe with any of the divas or superstars. It didn’t matter how much bigger or stronger they were than me, I never backed down.

My first client ended up being the first man to steal my heart on and off camera. Adam Copeland, known to the WWE Universe as Edge. Our relationship started off scripted, but over the course of a year it bloomed into something more.

I proved my managing skills and knowledge later when I lead the team of Edge and his best friend Christian, to multiple Tag Team Championships as well as the team of the Hardy Boys later on.

But as time proves, some things just don’t last forever, and sadly mine and Adam’s relationship was one of those things. It was a mutual breakup, no hard feelings or hate, and I continued to manage him and Christian.

I tried dating a few others in the months after that, but it never went past one date. There was just something missing… that spark you’re supposed to feel, just wasn’t there.

Until he came along.

June 22, 2002 was the day I met the man that not only stole my heart, but captured my soul as well. His name was Johnathan Felix Anthony Cena.

From the day he debuted on Smackdown, I was a goner. He had me hook, line and sinker from that first dimpled smile. He was every thing I had ever wanted in a man. Smart, strong, handsome, caring and the cherry on top; funny. He could make me laugh even in the worst of times. I’ve always had a weakness for a man who could make me laugh.

John and I were such a cohesive team that the big bosses terminated all of my other client contracts and I became a one woman manager.

Until the day that John’s best friend also made his way into my managing graces. Randy Orton. Third generation wrestler and a legacy in his own. Randy was a force to be reckoned with, a strong competitor and fierce wrestler.

Under my reign, Cena and Orton became the two youngest and hottest superstars WWE had to offer. We were inseparable backstage, find one of us and you would always find the others. The other superstars called us the Three Musketeers, they were my two best friends.

Now as you all know, not all relationships are sunshine and rainbows. Every one has their own issues and problems. I am no saint, I will admit that and I have made some huge mistakes in my life. So, some of you may criticize me for what I say next, but believe me when I tell you I am not proud of it.

Over the next year I bounced back and forth between John and Randy, intimately. I loved John, but I also loved Randy. Each of them gave me something that the other couldn’t. John gave me kindness and romance, while Randy gave me fire and a raw passion that I craved.

Now before you whip out your flaming torches and pick axes, my relationship with Randy started by accident. I had found out that John was seeing his ex behind my back, and I turned to my only other close friend, Randy.

Now when I say that I bounced back and forth, it wasn’t like a ping pong ball. I started out with John, went to Randy and then I ended up back with John until things went sour again. After that I had a brief stint with Brock Lesnar, which resulted in a long month stay in a hospital (a story for another time) followed by John winning me over again.

Things were perfect the second time around, but nothing good ever lasts forever, however I was hoping for the best. John proposed to me in the middle of the ring in 2004 at Wrestlemania 20, right after he defeated the Big Show for the US Title. One year later we were saying our vows in the middle of the ring at Wrestlemania 21, and right after that John beat JBL for the WWE Championship.

Our marriage lasted for 4 years until John’s infidelity caught up with him again. I wish I could say it was just one girl, but I would be lying.

I decided after that, that relationships and I just did not work.

Until a certain tattooed straight-edged wrestler set his sights on me. Though on camera he and I shared a hatred for one another, because of my managing his rivals Cena and Orton; behind the scenes it was quite the opposite. I found something in Punk that I had never had before, an ear. No matter what I had to say, he always listened. We had long conversations that lasted for hours into the night and sometimes well into the morning too.

That was until Triple H and Stephanie decided to announce our real-life relationship to the world, in order to throw some heat into the storyline between Punk and Cena. And as my track record has shown, my relationships are short lived and end in pain, just as this one did.

But there is a silver lining to this one, Punk and I were able to remain very close friends. So much so, that later down the road after he left the company, I was standing there the day he said his vows to my good friend AJ. They are blissfully happy together and I could not be more happy for them.

But that’s jumping too far into the future, let’s rewind just a little while to the day I set eyes on the man I would eventually call “the one true love of my life.”

Survivor Series, November 18, 2012. During the main event of the WWE Championship match, a triple threat between Punk, Cena and Ryback.

I was standing alongside the ring trying to rally my boyfriend Punk (at the time), when over the barricade to my right jumped three men. Dressed in black from head to toe, I watched as they proceeded to rip apart Ryback, before lifting him up and giving him a triple power-bomb through the announcer’s table. Afterwards Punk was able to pin Cena to retain his title.

On the November 26 episode of Raw, the mystery group identified themselves as “The Shield”, and vowed to rally against “injustices.” Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins. Despite claiming that they were not working for either CM Punk or Paul Heyman, over the next few weeks, on both Raw and Smackdown, they would routinely emerge from the crowd to attack Punk's adversaries such as Ryback, The Miz and then WWE Tag Team Champions Team Hell No (Kane and Daniel Bryan).

Despite multiple interviews and claims by myself and Punk, everyone thought that the group was working for us. Truthfully, neither of us had any idea of why they were intervening on Punk’s behalf.

The group also attacked Randy Orton after he defeated Brad Maddox; Maddox was the referee who helped Punk defeat Ryback during their Hell in a Cell match at the previous Hell in a Cell event for the WWE Championship. This led to The Shield's debut match at the TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view, where they faced Ryback and Team Hell No in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match and emerged victorious.

After TLC, despite continuing to attack Punk's and Maddox's adversaries such as Ric Flair, Brodus Clay and Sheamus, The Shield soon expanded their ambushes to other wrestlers, such as Mick Foley, Tommy Dreamer and Ricardo Rodriguez. The Shield's attacks were also used to write off wrestlers from television via injury angles, such as Randy Orton and Sin Cara, who were already suffering from legitimate injuries.

On the January 7 episode of Raw, The Shield once again aided CM Punk by attacking Ryback during his Tables, Ladders and Chairs match for the WWE Championship, which resulted in Punk retaining his title.

On January 21, during the last Raw before the Royal Rumble, The Shield triple-power-bombed The Rock, Punk's WWE Championship contender at the event, resulting in Mr. McMahon declaring that their interference in the title match would result in Punk being stripped of the title.

Four days later on Smackdown, Punk and myself denied an alliance with The Shield before calling them out and informing them that he did not want them to interfere in his upcoming title match. However, during Punk's title match at the Royal Rumble, a blackout occurred and The Rock was attacked by The Shield in the darkness; when the lights came back on, The Rock had been put through the announce table leading to Punk pinning The Rock and retaining his title, only for the match to be immediately restarted by McMahon with The Rock winning the WWE Championship. The following night on Raw, it was revealed through footage played by McMahon that Punk's manager Paul Heyman had been paying The Shield and Brad Maddox to work for him all along.

Over the next months the group continued to dole out their own brand of justice to the WWE. The part that had everyone enticed was the fact that whenever I seemed to be in the ring, whether it was alongside Punk, Cena or Orton, all of whom I was still managing, The Shield seemed to make an appearance. The fans began thinking that there was something going on between myself and the three men. Which there wasn’t, but you try telling millions of fans that their theories are wrong.

It wasn’t helping my case that a certain two-tone haired Hound of Justice seemed to have developed a small crush on me. Whenever the two of us were down around the ring together, his eyes seemed to instantly find me. He would constantly pop up out of nowhere when I was backstage and he enjoyed bringing me flowers.

One night in particular during an unscripted and unplanned backstage segment in which I found myself surrounded by the three men, Rollins managed to leave me speechless, which anyone who knows me, is very hard to do. After giving me their message for my boyfriend Punk (whom I was still dating on camera, however we had split months earlier), and me aptly giving them the moniker “Hounds,” Rollins handed me a single purple orchid before smiling and walking off.

I stood there for a moment dumbfounded, I couldn’t understand what on earth was going on. Rollins’ actions were not scripted, which I found out during a lengthy chat with Stephanie and Hunter, who by the way thought that it was cute. But despite my concern, I couldn’t remember the last time a man had given me a flower, or made me feel special.

I smiled as I placed the orchid over my right ear and then took a picture, posting it to my Instagram with the caption; “@wwerollins just gave me this beautiful flower. Hmm, what is he up to? I wonder if he knows orchids are my favorite?”

Things went on this way until April 7^th on the grandest stage of them all, Wrestlemania, when The Shield debuted their new manager to the world; and the reaction from the Universe and the superstars backstage nearly imploded the MetLife Stadium. They had given an inkling on Monday Night RAW during their promo, that they had an ace up their sleeve that would ensure their win over Orton, Sheamus and Big Show.

And that ace……. was me; Siren Rose.

It had finally been revealed that I had been the one guiding the hounds for months without anyone being non the wiser. It seemed to everyone both backstage and in the WWE Universe that I had officially crossed the line and turned heel; I had been flirting with that line during my time with Punk, but now everyone agreed that I had joined the dark side. The truth was that management wanted The Shield to turn face in the coming months, and who better to help them become truly likeable than everyone’s favorite manager.

All I knew, was making my way through the massive crowd at Wrestlemania with the three hounds behind me, was by far the coolest thing I had ever been apart of in my career thus far.

January 26, 2014 was without a doubt the second hardest day of my life, the number one being the first show without Eddie after his passing. This was the night that I said goodbye to one of my closest friends, Punk. After everything that he had endured and the way that he was treated by the company I could hardly blame him for leaving, but that didn’t stop the aching in my heart that his absence brought.

Once Punk was gone, it felt like I had no one. Despite how close we were in the beginning, myself, John and Randy hadn’t really spoken in months. Part of this was due to Randy going through his own relationship problems and John beginning to date Nikki Bella, whom did not like the close friendship that John and I shared.

Being alone sometimes drives you towards the most unlikely people, and I found myself spending more and more time with the Hounds of Justice. Even though I had been managing them for the prior 10 months, I hadn’t fully opened up to anyone of them like you would someone you were dating.

But despite that, Roman and Dean were like the older brothers I had always wanted. Roman was my rock, an ear to listen and my protector. Dean was my partner in crime, we were forever messing around and pulling pranks on the other two, as well as the rest of the roster.

And then there was Seth. There was an undeniable chemistry between the two of us, but for some reason the two of us dating just never felt right. Still he was the one that I spent the majority of my time with. We would sit together on planes and road trips, go sight seeing together, watch movies, go dancing. Everything that a couple would do, but we just couldn’t figure out how to take that next step.

So it went for the next 5 months, wherever The Shield went, so did I. Stephanie and Hunter had taken advantage of the response from the crowd, deeming me the Alpha of the pack. It was hardly true, the three men were a cohesive unit, they didn’t need a manager, they were perfect on their own.

But every once in awhile I proved myself to be a part of the team. Whether I was interfering on their behalf in a match, standing between them and another superstar aiming to attack them, or making a suggestion to the bosses that would benefit them. In five months I had been beat up, bruised, bloody and had bones broken; not nearly as many or as bad as when I was backing up Cena, but enough.

And they proved on multiple occasions that I was a full member of the pack, including me in their interviews and promos. They would back me up if another superstar was harassing me, and they would not hesitate to fight for my honor if I was disrespected. Before long the entire WWE roster knew that I was not to be messed with, because if you did, you would find yourself at the mercy of the Hounds.

Chapter 2: Betrayal

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Now there is a saying I’ve heard which goes, “sometimes the person you’d take a bullet for, is the one behind the trigger.”

On the June 2nd episode of Raw following Payback, The Shield realized exactly how true this saying was, and not one of us saw it coming.

Triple H announced his intention to continue Evolution’s feud with The Shield, but Batista quit WWE for a second time, officially ending Evolution’s feud with The Shield. Later that night, myself and the guys made our way to the ring. I was standing in between Dean and Roman with Seth to the big man’s left, holding a steel chair in his hands; Triple H came down the ramp with Randy. Triple H explained that while Batista had walked out, the Cerebral Assassin always had a “plan B” for destroying The Shield.

Studying the two men standing at the bottom of the ramp, trying to figure out their plan, I never saw the betrayal coming. My head snapped to the left as I heard the distinct sound of a steel chair connecting with a human body. Eyes wide I stared at Seth, the steel chair shaking in his hands as Roman dropped to the canvas.

Behind me Dean, not understanding what was happening took a step towards Seth and was rewarded with a hit to his stomach, then another to his back dropping him to the canvas as well. Seth proceeded to slam the chair onto Dean’s back ten more times and once again on Roman’s before tossing it out of the ring.

I leaned up against the turnbuckle, not trusting my legs to support me right then. I stared at Seth, my eyes not believing what I was seeing. Seth, my friend, their brother had turned on us. I could understand turning on me, we hadn’t known one another that long; but for him to do this to the men he called his “brother’s”, that was what I couldn’t wrap my head around.

I watched Seth move to the corner opposite me and pick up another steel chair that was lying on the canvas. He stalked over to Dean who was trying to rouse himself to his feet. Amid the deafening taunting of the fans yelling “you sold out”, Seth tossed the chair down just in front of Dean. With a scowl on his face that I never expected to see towards one of us, he bounced off of the ropes to my left. With a feral vengeance he jumped up and brought his foot down on the back of Dean’s head, smashing his former brother’s head off of the steel chair with a vicious curb stomp.

I gasped at the violent impact, covering my mouth with my hands. Seth looked around at the crowd, before picking up the chair and walking towards me. I noticed he avoided my eyes at all costs, which I found ironic. He could betray his brother’s, but he couldn’t look me in the eyes. He climbed out of the ring without so much as a backwards glance at me, and walked over to Triple H. Stopping beside the boss, he stared at the chair in his hands, before holding out the steel chair to the Viper.

I watched Randy take the chair with a sinister smile and start walking to the ring. Shakily I moved to the other turnbuckle, the ropes aiding my path as I didn’t fully trust myself to make it on my own. I slid down to the canvas, pulling my knees up to my chest as Randy climbed into the ring.

Standing over Roman, Randy brought the chair down onto his back with a force that shocked me. Five times I heard the steel echo in the arena as it met Roman’s back. I wanted to help my friend’s, but I couldn’t make myself move. For the first time in my career, I was frozen, not by fear, but by shock.

Randy shoved Roman over onto his back, then slammed the back of the chair down into the big man’s stomach three times in rapid succession. He then drug Roman over onto his stomach again, before bringing the chair down in a vicious hard blow that had Roman lurching up off of the canvas in pain. Once again Randy rolled Roman over, this time unzipping the protective vest that Roman wore to protect him, then after turning him over Randy ripped the vest and tank top from Roman’s body.

I looked up to find Triple H and Seth climbing into the ring, I locked eyes with Triple H, seeing the maniacal look in his eyes I felt my self preservation instinct kick in and I quickly rolled myself out of the ring. Leaning on the ring steps I watched in horror as the three men surrounded my brother’s. Randy picked Roman up, supporting his weight as Roman could barely hold himself up and gave him an RKO onto the chair.

As Triple H and Seth walked up and stood beside Randy, I gingerly made my way around the outside of the ring to where Roman was lying. Standing beside him I reached out and grabbed his hand, squeezing it to let him know I was there. My eyes lifted to the men standing in the ring before me, watching as Seth looked almost desperately to Triple H before locking his eyes with mine. After being around Rollins for nearly two years, closely for five months, I could read him like the pages in a book. As I stared into his eyes I saw the desperation and hurt shining through them. Desperation for us to understand that he had no choice, and hurt because of what he had no choice but to do. That coupled with a massive amount of guilt, if there ever was a look of pure heartbreak, Seth’s face that night was it.

I felt his pain, but the longer I stared into his eyes, the angrier I became; at him, at Hunter, at the entire WWE. Friendships and relationships were hard to come by in our business, so if you found one worth while, you had to fight for it. This company had not only ended some of the best friendships I had ever had, but I lost the man I thought I would spend the rest of my life with, all because of a damn storyline. After that I vowed that I would never again let this company take anyone away from me again.

And yet here I stood, staring into the eyes of the man I was surely falling for, after he had betrayed the two men he called his brother’s.

As RAW went off the air Seth finally broke eye contact with me as he followed Triple H and Randy out of the ring. At that moment my anger outweighed my self preservation, I ran and grabbed a mic from Lillian and rolled into the ring.

“Rollins!” I screamed, my voice booming through the arena.

Triple H and Randy both stopped and turned to look at me, but Seth refused to turn around.

“Rollins!” I screamed again. “Look at me, you sonofabitch!”

The crowd cheered at my curse, but it worked, Seth slowly turned around his eyes meeting mine. I could see the pleading tone in his face, he was begging me to understand, and maybe some day I would, but right now I was pissed off.

“We’re not done here. Get your ass back in this ring.”

I knew no part of him wanted to come back down to the ring, but I also knew that he would stick to his character. So despite Colby Lopez’s wishes, Seth Rollins walked back down the ramp and climbed into the ring standing face-to-face with me.

We stood there nearly nose-to-nose, or rather my nose to his chest due to my height, before I took a few steps back. Thinking I was retreating the crowd booed, but they soon gasped as I kicked the steel chair at my feet over to Seth. “You forgot one.”

Seth hesitantly glanced down at the chair, so I motioned to it with my hand. “Go on. Pick it up.”

Bending down Seth retrieved the chair, holding it tightly in the grip of his right hand. I nodded for him to hit me, I knew he didn’t want to, but in this business you don’t get to play favorites. We were a team, if one fell, we all fell.

He made no move to lift the chair, his eyes pleading with me to let this go. I shook my head as I raised the mic to my lips. “What’s the matter Seth? Lose your nerve already?” I paused before a scoff left my throat, “Oh, I get it. You can’t face me, can you?” I nodded before I turned around putting my back to him. “Here. This should make it easy for you, right?” I tossed the mic to the canvas as I held out my arms to my side, leaving myself vulnerable to attack.

I tried desperately to will him to hit me, he had to do it, I needed him to do it. I needed it to happen, so that I could justify my feelings and thoughts. The Shield was done, once again I had lost someone that I cared for and things would never be the same between us again. There was no going back. If he hit me it would prove to me that he truly was a lost cause, that he had let the power of the Authority go to his head, and there was no bringing him back. I could walk away without a look back, not spend my days wondering what could have been.

But there was no hit that came, no steel biting into my flesh, no smack echoing around the building. I heard the chair hit the canvas behind me and I lightly shook my head. “Coward.” I whispered, knowing he would be the only one to hear it, and he did as I felt him momentarily pause in his steps.

“I’m sorry.”

If I hadn’t been blocking out the roar of the crowd I never would have heard his whispered words, and in that moment, I wish I hadn’t heard them. I felt the tears build in my eyes, within seconds they were cascading down my cheeks like small rivers. I dropped to my knees in between Dean and Roman who had still yet to rise from the canvas.

Seth climbed out of the ring much to the displease of Triple H and Randy, their scowls told him that he should’ve hit her. But no matter what anyone thought of him, or how much he had hurt his brother’s, he could never do that to her. Never her.

As he walked up the ramp his eyes lifted to the titan-tron which was showing the ring. When his eyes saw the scene he was walking away from, he wished he had never looked. There in the ring laid his brother’s, the two men he had entered the company with, had fought side-by-side with for nearly three years, decimated by his own hand. But what clenched his heart was the devastated look on Siren’s face, her tears falling freely, her mascara leaving small black trails down her porcelain cheeks. It was in that moment that he had second thoughts about what he had done. But there was no going back now.

As he came through the black curtain into the backstage area, he could see several other superstars milling around. By the looks of hatred on their faces they had seen what he had done. Even though storylines like this happened all the time, there was still a good amount of animosity towards the perpetrator.

Seth flinched as Triple H clapped him on the back, “Hell of a job kid. You put on one hell of a convincing act out there.”

“Yeah, maybe too convincing.” Seth mumbled as he glanced around at all of the angry faces surrounding him.

Hunter shook his head, laying his arm around Seth’s shoulders. “Hey, sh*t like this happens all the time. We’ve all been there. Factions never last forever, eventually they all disband and go their own separate ways. It’ll blow over. Give it time.”

“They’ll never forgive me.” Seth said nodding towards the monitor that showed a beat up Roman and Dean being helped to the back by trainers and Siren.

“Hey, look at me. I broke my best friend’s back, put him in a wheelchair. To this day, he’s still my best friend. This is our job, it ain’t personal unless you make it. Give ‘em time, you four will be fine.”

Seth nodded as Hunter and Randy took their leave, he stepped back into the shadows as Roman and Dean came through the curtain, both leaning heavily on the trainers as they were lead toward the medical room.

“Siren.” Seth called to his friend as he stepped out of the shadows to face her.

He heard her sigh slightly before she turned to face him, her eyes bloodshot and ringed with black from her mascara. “I’m sorry. I didn’t have a choice.”

“We all have a choice Colby.” She said after making sure there were no cameras around filming them. “You made yours.”

“This was never gonna last forever, Tash. I want to be champion…”

“You don’t have to explain yourself to me, I’ve been here long enough to know how things work. I have seen factions come and go, but not all of them were able to still be friends back here. I’m sure Hunter told you about turning on Shawn, breaking his back. Did he tell you how long it took Shawn to forgive him? Did he tell you that Shawn never allowed him to come visit him in the hospital. This is our job, we all know that, and we do what we have to, to keep it. But there comes a time Colby, when you have to ask yourself, what are you losing on your rise to the top? When you reach the top of the mountain, you might find it’s kinda lonely up there.”

She turned to leave, but Colby’s hand caught hers causing her to pause and turn back to face him. He looked at her with pure hope shining in his eyes. “Will you guys ever forgive me?”

Tasha sighed, squeezing his hand that held hers. “There’s nothing to forgive, Colby. When it all comes down to it, this is our job. We do as we’re told. But if you need to hear it, then I forgive you. They will too. But it won’t be soon. You really hurt them, and I don’t mean physically. Bruises heal, but broken trust, is not so easily earned back. Every thing will work out.”

She leaned up and laid a light kiss on his cheek. “Give it time.”

Colby knew she was right, but as he watched her form disappear from his sight, he felt a pang of sadness and fear course through him. At that moment, he knew time was not on his side. The longer she spent away from him, the more sure he was that she would never come back. He couldn’t let that happen. He had fallen for her. Somewhere between their late night talks and endless road trips, she had broken down the wall he had around his heart. Now he just had to find a way to tell her how he felt, and hope she felt the same.

Tasha sat in the trainer’s room watching the medics check Joe and Jon. She understood why Colby had done what he had, going solo was inevitable in their business. During her tenure with the WWE she had managed several factions. She had watched teams come and go, but never had she seen a group of men that were so close. When they referred to themselves as brothers, they weren’t just saying that. The only way they could’ve been closer, is if they were born with the same blood. They had fought together, bled together, traveled together, they were family in every sense of the word.

Then Siren came along, and despite their apprehension at first, they welcomed her into their faction and eventually their families. The four of them had roomed together, been apart of one another’s families, stayed with one another on the road, as well as spending the holidays together.

Never had any of them ever thought that their bond would be broken, and by the man that was responsible for bringing them together.

But it had ended.

And now they all had to figure out what to do next.

As for Tasha, she now had to make one of the hardest decisions in life. Whether to walk away, or to try harder.

Chapter 3: Painful Memories

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That night as she sat in her hotel room alongside Joe and Jon, she found herself reminiscing. She typed away at her laptop that was perched on her thighs, as she sat propped up on one of the beds. To her right Joe was on the other bed, sitting much like her as he spoke to his wife and daughter on the phone. In front of her sat Jon, staring intently at the TV. His friend’s knew that even though it looked like he was watching the TV, his mind was elsewhere.

Tasha knew that Jon wanted nothing more than to rip Colby’s spine out of his mouth. Out of the three of them, Jon was the most hurt by Colby’s actions. It was no secret to the WWE Universe that Jon had a rough upbringing. He didn’t really have a family. So when Colby and Roman came into his life Jon finally found people he could count on. He found a reason to keep fighting for his dream, he found people he was willing to fight for, to protect. He had found a family.

Tasha had vowed to both Jon and Joe that she would never abandon or betray them as Colby had. She considered them her brothers, and nothing, not even her bosses would change that. She smiled as she pulled up a video on Youtube, a fan had made it just that night, probably right after they witnessed Seth Rollins’ betrayal. It was set to the song by Kelsey Ballerini called “Peter Pan”, it was one of Tasha’s favorite songs and right now the lyrics spoke volumes to her.

The entire video had clips and photos of Siren and Seth together. Every interaction the two of them had had in the last 2 years was shown in chronological order. The last chorus of the song actually managed to bring Tasha to tears, now that the words finally had a reason to hit home.

You’re just a lost boy, yeah I know who you are

And you don’t know what you lost boy, too busy chasing stars

And you’re always gonna fly away, just because you know you can

Never gonna learn there’s no such place as Neverland, you don’t understand,

You’ll never grow up, you’re never gonna be a man

You’re never gonna grow up, yeah you’re never gonna be a man

Peter Pan

Never gonna be a man

Once she had finished tearing up for the moment, Tasha favorited the video and tagged it on her Instagram and Facebook. She knew there was a good chance that Colby would see it and that’s what she was counting on.

After that she found herself on the WWE Network, feeling like remembering the good times she found one of the most fun appearances she had made with The Shield. On the April 8^th, 2014 edition of Main Event inside the Cajun Dome, it was The Shield versus The Wyatt Family.

Sierra Hotel India Echo Lima Delta Shield.

The Shield’s entrance theme boomed throughout the arena as all eyes turned to the upper bleachers where The Shield always made their entrance from. Sure enough in less than a minute the crowd erupted in cheers as the three men appeared at the top of the stairs, but the pop of the crowd grew as a fourth member stepped up to the front of the group.

Dressed in a pair of skintight black leather pants, thick heeled black motorcycle boots, a black tactical vest just like the men wore, only hers showed off her impressive cleavage, black gloves and a half skull mask that matched Seth, Roman and Dean’s, only hers was pink instead of white, was …….

“And that is their manager, the Alpha of the pack, Siren! One year ago this month Siren shocked the WWE Universe by aligning herself with the Hounds of Justice.”

A grinning Siren lead the group of men down the stairs, punching fists with the crowd as the announcer introduced them.

“The following is a six-man tag team match, scheduled for one fall. Introducing first being accompanied by Siren, weighing in at 707 pounds, United States Champion Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns. The Shield!”

Seth somersaulted over the barricade rolling quickly to his feet, he turned back and held out a hand to Siren who placed her hand in his as she jumped over the barricade beside him. Dean climbed over next holding his title in his hand, followed by Roman. The four of them made their way into the ring before removing their half masks. With Siren calling the shots, the three men jumped up onto the turnbuckles drawing a huge rise from the crowd.

The arena went black as Bray Wyatt appeared on the titan-tron with his always present lamp. Lighting the fuse inside Bray looked to the camera, “Cajun Dome. We’re here.” He then blew out the flame as their music started up. The arena remained black, the only light coming from Bray’s lantern and the fireflies throughout the arena, which were actually the WWE Universe’s cell phone flashlights.

As the Wyatt’s neared the ring Seth reached out to his right and lightly laid a hand on Siren’s side easing her to the left behind him protectively. She nodded, lightly touching his lower back to let him know she understood.

Once Bray was at the bottom of the ramp, he seated himself in his rocking chair and blew out the lantern’s light once more. The lights in the arena came back up as the Wyatt’s walked over to their corner, but not before Bray taunted Seth and nearly got a boot to the mouth as Seth tried to kick him through the ring ropes.

Knocking fists with the three men Siren climbed down out of the ring and stood by the steel steps awaiting the start of the match. After deciding who was to start the match off, Seth and Roman climbed out of the ring, standing beside their respective turnbuckle. Inside the ring Dean prepared to square off with the big man Eric Rowan, who wore a creepy broken sheep’s mask whenever he came to the ring.

The match started off with Dean talking smack, followed by a slap to Rowan’s face which knocked his mask off, revealing a snarling beast underneath. The two trading blows until Dean got the upper hand by diving off the second rope and shoulder checking Rowan, taking him off of his feet. Tagging Seth in, the two of them delivered a double suplex to Rowan before Seth went for the cover, but only getting a two count.

The match went back and forth for several minutes, until The Shield got the upper hand. Seth launched himself off of the top rope nailing Rowan with a knee to the side of the head. He dropped to the canvas as Dean picked him up and hit his finisher “Dirty Deeds” for the three count.

Siren let out a yell as she threw her fists up into the air in pride, she climbed up into the ring immediately being caught in a bear hug by Seth. As he set her down she smiled at the newest interviewer Renee Young, whom Dean had a slight crush on, as she stood in the ring to interview the team.

“Guys, an incredible victory tonight against the Wyatt family.”

“That’s what I’m talking about right there!” Seth hollered as he spoke into Renee’s mic. “Defeating the Wyatt family, maaaaan, that feels good because it was a long time coming. But it is proof, that no one can stop a shield united!” Seth screamed beating his fist on his chest.

Dean stepped up to Renee, reaching for the mic, but he can’t seem to speak. He’s nearly choking as he clutches his ribcage, muttering, “You guys do the promo, I got to…”

Siren shakes her head smiling as she pats Dean on the back. “You were saying Renee.”

“Look guys, I need to take you back to Monday Night RAW. I mean the entire WWE Universe has been talking about this. You turned on Triple H, and came to the aid of Daniel Bryan.

“Hey, the Shield does, what the Shield wants.” Dean says coughing as he clutches his ribs. “My rib really hurts. The Wyatt’s are one of the toughest tests we’ve ever had to face. But any test we get we face it head on, alright. And the Authority found that out, cause the Authority tried to test us and they found out what happens when you test the Shield!” He yells out, his face turning a nice shade of red.

Seth chuckles as he tries to calm Dean down, he places his hand on top of Renee’s that’s holding the mic. “Look, the Authority called us faceless. They called us nameless and expendable. Renee, we are not anonymous you understand that.”

Roman who has been quietly standing beside Siren, his hands holding onto the neckline of his vest, finally makes a move. He reaches up with his right hand, sexily moving his long black hair off of his face as he glances sideways at Renee. “Renee.” His deep velvety voice sending all the females in the arena into a fit as he again grabs his vest. “Do I look like I’m faceless baby?”

Behind him Seth breaks into laughter at the chorus of screams that come from the fans. To his left Siren crosses her arms over her chest as she watches the sexiest grin ever spread across Roman’s lips.

“Cajun Dome?” The crowd erupts in cheers. “Do I have a name?” He licks his bottom lip as the crowd screams. “What’s my name?”

“Roman Reigns!!!” The WWE Universe screams loudly.

The group stands smiling as the crowd begins to chant Roman’s name, but quickly they break off into cheers as Seth steps up behind Siren and places his arms around her neck. She smiles at the reaction as she leans back into him, reaching up and holding onto his arms with her hands.

Roman takes the mic from Renee, which causes the crowd to quiet down, as they realize that the normally silent Reigns as something to say. “Triple H. My name’s Roman Reigns, and I’m the guy that speared you on Monday Night. And I’m standing right here.” Roman hands the mic back to Renee as he stands with his arms open wide, a clear invitation for Triple H.

“I mean is there any sense of worry about retribution?” Renee asks. “I mean Roman you speared the COO of the company.”

Roman nods casually, proud of himself. Seth shakes his head, as he moves over to speak, still leaving one arm around Siren’s shoulders. “Hey, look, we know exactly what we did on Monday Night. And we know that there will be consequences. Let me tell you something, we are prepared for war. From the moment, we stepped foot in WWE, our cause has been to fight injustice and there is no greater injustice in the WWE than The Authority. Triple H, fired the first shot. He put out a hit on us, we’re gonna fire the final shot.” Seth takes the mic from Renee as he looks out into the crowd. “We are gonna own this war, you can believe that, and you can BELIEVE IN THE SHIELD!!!”

Their music rings throughout the arena as Dean holds up his title and Roman stands on the turnbuckle, raising his fists in the air as the crowd cheers. Siren stands in the center of the ring, she smiles at each of the guys before she holds out her fist in front of her. Seth’s fist immediately joins hers, followed by Roman and Dean.

Tears fill Tasha’s eyes as she finishes the video, closing her laptop she sets it on the bedside table, before laying down in her bed. Pulling the covers up around her she hugs her pillow as her light tears give way to heavy sobs. Her head hurt with every sob, but the pain in her head was nothing compared to the pain clenching her heart. She missed Colby, she was closer to him than anyone. They had done everything together, traveled, went sight-seeing, had dinner, he was her partner in crime.

The memories that had once made her smile now sent a wave of white hot pain throughout her entire body, emanating from her heart. They could never go back, lines had been drawn, deals had been made and now they all had to deal with the aftermath of Colby’s decision.

As her sobs subsided she drifted off to sleep dreaming of the night she had fallen for Colby Lopez.

The Shield was still reeling from their win over the Wyatt Family in Paris. Tasha was sitting in her hotel room alone, Joe had brought his beautiful wife Galina on the trip with them and they were currently out seeing the sights. Jon was out on a romantic date with Renee and lord only knows where Colby had gotten off to, probably out wooing a French girl into coming back to his hotel with him.

Feeling boredom creeping up on her Tasha stood up and walked out onto the balcony. Before her eyes sat the beautiful skyline of lights that was Paris, with the Eiffel Tower rising gracefully into the sky. In all of the years she had been with WWE and had traveled to Paris, she had yet to see any of the sights beyond her hotel room.

Determined that she was finally going to see the sights, even if it was by herself, Tasha walked back inside heading for her closet. Hearing a knock at the door Tasha changed direction walking towards the door. Opening it she was greeted by none other than Colby, dressed in a pair of black slacks, a black dress shirt, black pea coat, black beanie, his hair pulled back in a bun at the nape of his neck and he had his glasses on.

“Colby, hey. What’s up?” Tasha said, honestly shocked to see him standing outside her door.

“Um, I was thinking that since everyone else was out enjoying the sights, that you might like to, um, go out with me. I mean… go out sight-seeing with me. And, um, maybe grab some dinner.”

Tasha smiled as Colby removed his right hand from behind his back, a single stemmed red rose in his fingertips. She reached out and took the flower from him, glancing down at it she raised it to her nose and inhaled the sweet fragrance. Looking back up she found Colby hesitantly awaiting her answer.

“Yeah, I’d like that.” She saw him visibly relax, it made her smile, Colby Lopez was not the nervous type. “Do you wanna come in while I change?” She asked stepping back so he could enter.

He nodded as he stepped into the room, pausing by the couch. Tasha placed the flower on her bedside table before grabbing a few items out of her luggage case, before she walked into the bathroom.

While she was inside the bathroom changing she could swear she heard Colby outside having an argument with himself. She nearly laughed when she heard him tell himself to shut up. Shaking her head she opened the door, hearing him give a whispered “wow” that made her cheeks turn pink.

Pulling her knee length black leather jacket out of the closet, Tasha shrugged it on, pulling her hair out of the back. Picking up her small clutch purse she placed her phone and wallet inside before picking up her rose and turning back to Colby. “Ready?”

“Uh, yeah.”

Driving to the restaurant Tasha and Colby laughed together remembering the antics of Jon in their match earlier that night.

As the car came to a stop Tasha got out, her eyes grew wide as she stared up at the Eiffel Tower. She had wanted to come here so many times, but had never made it on one of their trips.

Walking up the stairs to the first floor Tasha allowed Colby to lead her over to the transparent floor. Being not so great with heights Tasha hesitated stepping out onto the solid glass floor that suspended them 57 meters above the ground. Only a thick layer of glass stood between her and the unforgiving concrete below.

But having Colby’s warm hand holding hers gave her an extra burst of confidence as she stepped out onto the glass floor beside him.

“This is amazing, Colby.” Tasha smiled as she looked down to the ground below where she could see throngs of people walking around the tower.

“It gets better, come on. Dinner is up there.”

Tasha took Colby’s outstretched hand as he lead the way into the tower elevator, she stared out of the elevator windows as they rose to the second floor of the tower where the Jules Verne restaurant awaited them.

They were shown to their table which sat by a window and provided them with a breathtaking view of the city.

After a delicious dinner and dessert of authentic French cuisine, Colby rose and took Tasha’s hand. “One more surprise.”

Tasha followed Colby out of the restaurant to the glass elevators and the two of them rose to the top of the tower. Stepping out of the car Tasha was rewarded by the sight of the entire city, and it was just as she had always imagined it, breathtaking.

Colby left her side for a moment and returned with two glasses of the Champagne Bar’s famous rose champagne. He handed her one and then lead her up to the top floor of the tower.

“Surprise.”

Tasha gasped as she took in the lights of Paris from the highest point in the city. Each time they moved up a level Tasha thought it couldn’t get more amazing, but now standing in the open air at the top of the Eiffel Tower, she realized that it could.

“Is it every thing you thought it would be?”

She turned to look at him, “It’s better.” Leaning up she placed a light kiss on his lips. She knew that it would ultimately change their relationship, but secretly that’s what she was hoping for.

They ended the night with a picture taken of them on Colby’s phone.

Little did Tasha know but Colby was also asleep in his bedroom that night, dreaming of that exact time they had spent together.

Colby was nervous as he got dressed, he was hoping that Tasha was still in her room and she hadn’t decided to go see the city by herself. He had been planning this for quite a while, and he hoped it would help lead him to his next step in making Tasha his girlfriend.

He picked up a flower from the small shop in the lobby before heading up to her room. Knocking on her door he tried to calm his nerves. He was relieved when Tasha opened the door, she hadn’t went out alone.

“Colby, hey. What’s up?” Tasha said, honestly shocked to see him standing outside her door.

Clearing his throat Colby fidgeted shoving his left hand in his jacket pocket. He had no idea why, but for the first time he was nervous around Tasha. “Um, I was thinking that since everyone else was out enjoying the sights, that you might like to, um, go out with me. I mean… go out sight-seeing with me. And, um, maybe grab some dinner.” He was fidgeting as he awaited her answer.

“Yeah, I’d like that.”

He relaxed then as she asked, “Do you wanna come in while I change?”

He nodded stepping into the room and stopping by the couch. Tasha placed the flower on her bedside table before grabbing a few items out of her luggage case, before she walked into the bathroom.

After the door shut behind her Colby let out a breath, he had no idea why he was so nervous. Tasha and he went out sight-seeing together all the time, they went to dinner and movies, hung out. But for some reason tonight just felt different.

‘Because you like her.’

“Shut up.” He said trying to quiet his inner voice. “She’s my friend.”

‘And you want her to be more.’

“Shut up!” He said out loud, but quickly closed his mouth as the bathroom door reopened and Tasha stepped out. “Wow.” He whispered as he took in her outfit.

She had changed out of her sweatpants and t-shirt into a pair of black leggings, a long black and green striped sweater dress and a pair of knee high black suede boots. She had taken her brown hair out of her ponytail and brushed it out so it settled in waves down her back.

She pulled on her jacket and grabbed her purse before turning back to him. “Ready?”

“Uh, yeah.” He said shaking his head, coming back to reality he opened the door and held it for her to exit, then shut it behind them making sure it locked.

Driving to the restaurant Tasha and Colby laughed together remembering the antics of Jon in their match earlier that night.

Pulling up to their destination the two of them got out and Colby’s smile grew wide at the star struck look that overcame Tasha’s face when she realized where they were. There before them rising up into the sky was the Eiffel Tower. Colby knew it was the one place that Tasha had always wanted to visit, but every time they were in the city, it seemed they never had enough time to go see it.

Walking up the stairs to the first floor Colby lead Tasha over to the transparent floor. He knew she wasn’t good with heights so he kept a tight hold on her hand.

“This is amazing, Colby.”

“It gets better, come on. Dinner is up there.” Colby said pointing up to the second level of the tower.

He took her hand as they rode the elevator up to the restaurant. They were sat at a table by the windows with an extraordinary view of the city.

But Colby’s eyes weren’t watching the view, they were locked on Tasha the entire time. The look on her face as she stared out at the city was a memory he wouldn’t soon forget. As they started talking Colby’s nerves completely left him, this is what he loved about Tasha. She always made him at ease, they could laugh and talk about anything together.

After dinner Colby rose and took Tasha’s hand. “One more surprise.”

Colby lead the way to the glass lifts that took then to the top of the tower. He was rewarded again with the look of awe that came across her face.

Colby disappeared for a few moments as Tasha stared out at the city, when he returned he was holding two glasses in his hands. He handed one to her, keeping the other one for himself he took her free hand in his and lead her outside to a small staircase. Walking up to the outside top level Colby guided Tasha in front of him, leaning down he whispered in her ear. “Surprise.”

She gasped as she took in the sight, Colby’s chest swelled in pride as he realized he had made this happen. He had finally given her something she had always wanted.

“Is it every thing you thought it would be?” Colby asked softly from his place behind her.

He was again rewarded as Tasha turned around, “It’s better.” She leaned up and placed her lips on his, it was everything he had thought a kiss with her would be and more.

Colby smiled as Tasha pulled back from him, pulling out his phone he turned around placing the city behind them. Placing his arm around Tasha he raised the phone and snapped a picture of them.

Tasha would never know it but Colby still had that picture. In fact at that moment Colby was awake in his hotel room, he picked up his phone, swiping to unlock the screen he was greeted by that photo of them. It had been the background of his phone for the last 2 years, and looking at it now it made him realize exactly what he had lost.

Chapter 4: Paris Mattered

Chapter Text

Thursday came with everyone anticipating what would be done of Seth Rollins’ betrayal of The Shield. Of course to start out the show Triple H came out to brag, but this time he was joined by the backstabber himself, Seth Rollins. Still decked out in his Shield gear Seth smirked as he stood in the ring with Triple H, the crowd chanting “You sold out.”

Tasha sat in her hotel room, alongside Joe and Jon watching Smackdown. Neither of the men were cleared for action and they wouldn’t let her go anywhere without them, but next week on Raw they would be there and all bets were off.

Tasha didn’t listen to a word Triple H said, she was too focused on watching Seth’s face. Even through his co*cky smirk Tasha could see the hidden emotions shining in his eyes. She could see the slight twitch of his jaw as Triple H mentioned him turning his back on his brothers. She knew him well enough to know, betraying them was not his first choice. But in this business you either play by the Authority’s rules or you fall.

“So everybody wants an explanation.” Seth says taking the mic from Triple H. “You wanna know why I did what I did to my brother’s on Monday Night? So, let me tell you that the only person who knows why I did what I did on Monday, and the only person who needs to know and the only person that I owe anything to, is me.”

Surprisingly to everyone that one to interrupt Seth is not one of his Shield mates, but Dolph Ziggler.

“Now, I’m sure, I’m sure I’m gonna catch a beating for what I have to say and I’m hand to Hunter, I’m sure I’ll be punished and pushed farther down the totem pole. Seth, I couldn’t just sit back there and listen to this. You—I was never a fan of The Shield, man, but I dug your vibe, you know why? You know why? Because you went against the Authority. You, The Shield, went toe-to-toe with Evolution and you won. Hell The Shield played a major part in Batista quitting. That was cause enough for celebration to me, bye-bye, bootista. But what you did was far worse than what The Shield’s done to anybody else. You turned your back on your own brother’s. Something, that’s something that I would never do. You’re nothing but a traitor, Seth. And you’ve done the worst thing you could ever do. You sold out, man.”

For his trouble Dolph was then put into a match against Seth starting right then. Dolph held his own against Seth, nearly getting several pin-falls over the Architect. But Seth nailed Dolph with a curb stomp for the win.

Monday rolled around and Siren was certainly not in the mood to deal with the aftermath of the Shield fallout. She was hoping Stephanie and Hunter would just let things go and focus on Rollins’ rise to stardom, but her hopes were dashed as the man and woman themselves made their way to the ring to kickoff the night.

Despite herself Siren sat on the edge of the couch beside Roman and Dean as they listened to what the couple had to say about them. It really wasn’t anything important, just Triple H proclaiming how he always has a plan B. Well that plan of his, was going to backfire on them all.

Siren joined Roman and Dean as they walked through the backstage area to make their presence known. Only she caught sight of Colby standing by a backstage monitor, his eyes finding hers as she turned to look at him. Seeing him dressed in a suit, with his hair pulled back made her realize just how much influence Triple H had on him. With a sad smile she shook her head before disappearing behind a curtain.

In the ring the men known as 3MB was rambling on about something stupid, however they were cut off when the Shield’s music blasted through the arena. The crowd went wild as Roman and Dean, lead by Siren made their way down through the crowd to the ring. Unlike other times, none of them cracked a smile, nor did they pander to the fans. They were all straight faced, only business on their minds.

Siren jumped over the barricade followed by Dean and Roman, and under Siren’s guidance the two men quickly cleared the ring of the three men.

Afterwards the two men climbed in the ring beside Siren who held a microphone after they knocked fists. Dean takes the mic from her, trying to calm himself before he begins talking.

“The Shield was untouchable, and we will go down in the history books as one of the greatest groups in sports entertainment ever.” He said giving Roman a lighthearted punch to the arm. “We dominated WWE. We beat everybody, even Evolution. But, we weren’t healthy. We had a cancer inside of us, little did we know. And that cancer’s name—that cancer’s name was Seth Rollins. History is full of people like you, Seth. Everybody in this building knows somebody like you, Seth, the kind of guy that would stab is brother in the back. A suck up who would sell out to the Authority. Now, when I get the opportunity to rearrange your face, which I will, your nose isn’t going to be here anymore. It’s goin to be over here by your ear. I say ear, cause you’re only gonna have one left. I’m gonna rip your dirty, stinking hair out by the roots. And I’m gonna stuff it in your mouth. There will be plenty of room where your teeth used to be.”

Roman and Siren are pacing the ring behind Dean as he speaks, laughing at what he’s saying. Dean gets more worked up the more he talks. “Seth Rollins, my brother, you are scum, and we are looking forward to what that scum has to say tonight. We want you to stand out here in this ring in front of the whole world and lie through your teeth. We want you to stand out here in the middle of this ring in front of the whole world, and we want them to hear Triple H’s words coming out of your mouth. We gonna listen to every word of it, and then, we’re gonna beat the hell outta you.”

Dean slams the mic to the canvas before pacing around the ring, he turns back to see Roman looking down at the mic. He realizes his mistake and picks it up with a laugh and an apology handing it to a smiling Roman. Dean paces again before he walks up behind Siren and loops his arms around her neck. Siren raises her hands and holds onto his arms, knowing somewhere in the back Seth is watching them. She smirks knowing him seeing Dean holding her is going to rip into him and she relishes that thought as they wait to hear what the Big Dog has to say.

“Seth, you committed the most unforgiveable sin. You’re the scum of the Earth. There’s things you don’t do in life. You don’t tug on Superman’s cape. You don’t piss in the wind. And you don’t ever stab your brother’s in the back. But, you’re only part of the problem. The other parts are Randy Orton, and Triple H. Randy Orton, he—he runs around here, and he thinks everybody owes him something. He thinks he’s the face of the company. When I get my hands on you, Randy, you’re gonna be the ass of this company. And when I’m done with you, I’m coming for you, Triple H, the King of Kings. Whooooo.”

The group laughed as they pretended to shake with fear.

“We’re gonna have our own Game of Thrones, believe that.” Roman finished before tossing the mic in the air.

Siren could hear the pop of the fans as she leaned down and picked up the mic, tossing it back and forth in her hands as she licked her lips. She wasn’t going to say anything, she was gonna leave it to the boys, but there was something she needed to get off of her chest.

“Seth.” The crowd let out a resounding boo that made her chuckle. “I know you’re back there watching, hiding behind the curtain. I mean that’s what you’re good at right, hiding. You’ve been hiding from your brother’s, from me, from yourself. Hiding secrets and lies. You know if I learned anything about you over the last 2 years, it’s that the Seth Rollins that I thought I knew, he’s gone. All you are now is Triple H’s bitch.”

The crowd roared at that statement.

“But hey, we’ll always have Paris right, Seth.”

Only Siren and Seth knew what she was talking about, but she knew he’d catch the hidden meaning behind her words, while everyone else was left wondering.

“Now you listen carefully Rollins, because I’m only gonna say this once. One day, maybe a year or so from now, you’re gonna find yourself on top of that mountain you so badly wanna be on. You’re gonna be champion, of that I have no doubts.”

The crowd boos at this statement, Siren waves her hand quieting the crowd. “Now, now, hear me out. We all know how good you are, and you will be champion. But one day, that mountain you’re on is gonna crumble and you’re gonna fall. And it’ll be then that you realize that the only family you had, the people watching your back are gone. You are alone Seth. And mark my words, on that day, I will be the reason you fall. If it is the last thing I do in this company, I am going to destroy Seth Rollins!”

Siren throws the mic to the canvas as she knocks fists with Roman and Dean, her words hanging heavy in the air of the arena as the group takes their leave.

Later on in the night the three Shield members stand backstage watching a monitor as Seth makes his way to the ring for his interview with Michael Cole. They know they are being broadcasted for the WWE Universe to see.

“Ladies and gentlemen please welcome my guest at this time, a man who has been at the center of controversy over the past week. He is a former member of The Shield. Please welcome Seth Rollins.”

The camera men are showing quite a few a signs that read “Seth sold out.”

Seth climbs into the ring and takes his seat opposite Michael Cole after shaking his hand. The entire crowd is chanting “You sold out!”

“Seth, welcome.”

“Thank you.”

“There’s been a lot of—lot of talk over the past week about why…”

Seth cuts him off raising the mic. “Michael, let me—let me stop you before you get started here, because I don’t…” He pauses as the crowd starts booing him very loudly. “Look, I don’t get it. I don’t understand what—what all the controversy you’re talking about is all about. I mean, are we just talking about what I did last week? Is that the whole deal? Because, to me, that wasn’t a big deal. I was just doing what was best for business, what was best for my business. The Shield, Michael, the greatest faction in the history of WWE, created by me. You don’t think I have the right to destroy my own creation? It takes an Architect, a mastermind, to put together a faction like The Shield. Do you think Dean Ambrose is in any way responsible for that? Dean Ambrose is a lunatic. Given a week to his own devices, he’s face down in a ditch. And Roman Reigns, the Golden Boy. You’ll never see anger or fury in a man like you’ve seen in Roman Reigns, but without someone to harness that, to control it, he’s nothing. He’s worthless. Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns are nothing without me. They owe me every ounce of success they have ever achieved.”

“And, what about Siren?” Michael asks, everyone wanting to know what he had to say about her remarks earlier.

“Siren, well, everyone needs some eye candy.”

The crowd erupted with boos as Michael raised the mic. “So, what did she mean when she said “you’ll always have Paris?”

Seth’s co*cky demeanor let him for a moment, he could feel his phone in his pocket, he knew the picture was right there. He tried to find a way to skirt the question, but the crowd began chanting “Paris.” Knowing that Triple H would not let him out of ignoring the question, he slipped back into character. His co*cky grin slipped back onto his lips as he raised the mic. “Heh, well, all I can say to that, Michael, is that “Paris”, never mattered.”

Backstage Siren felt like someone had kicked her in the chest, but trying to stay in character she simply glared at the monitor. Only Roman and Dean knew what she was feeling right then and they grew even more angry at their former brother.

“Seth, many people will argue that The Shield was about three individuals who came together to form an awesome team, not just about one man.”

“You know, I guess we’ll find out later tonight when the, uh, the pathetic remnants of The Shield have their last hurrah out here against the Wyatt Family. But, let me ask you a question, Michael. Why is this such a surprise? I took The Shield to the top, as high as we could go. We beat everybody, all right? WE conquered the world, Michael. At Payback, we beat Evolution in a clean sweep, and then from every experience in life, you should learn something. You know what I learned from Evolution? I learned that to be a success in this business, you have to evolve. You have to adapt.”

The crowd starts booing and chanting “you sold out.”

“No, no, no, no, no. I bought in. I bought in to the evolution of Seth Rollins. And another thing, another thing that you won’t admit and that none of you will admit. It took a lot of guts to do what I did last week, and everybody’s fixated on the fact that I stabbed my brother’s in the back, that I betrayed my brother’s. And maybe to Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose, we were brother’s, but to me, they were just business partners. And I severed a business relationship. You know, for two years every night, I came out here, and I put my fist out, and I said, “Believe in The Shield.” And every night, what I meant is what I’m gonna tell you right now, is that you and everybody else better start believing in Seth Rollins!”

Smirking Seth sits back down in his chair. “Yeah, so that’s it, Michael. That’s all you wanted to hear, right? Oh, oh, wait, wait, wait. I heard earlier tonight… I was watching Dean Ambrose, said that he was gonna let me say my piece, and then they were gonna come out here and kick the hell out of me. Well—”

Seth stands up and grabs his chair tossing it out of the ring. “I’ve said my piece.” He shoves his microphone into Michael’s chest as he turns to stare at the camera. “Where you at, boys?” Even without a mic, the camera can pick up what Seth says. “Where you at, boys? You gonna kick the hell out of me?” He takes off his jacket, he’s ready for a fight.

From out of the back Roman, Dean and Siren come walking out, stepping up onto the ramp the two men stalk to the ring prepared to do exactly what they said they would. But just as Roman and Dean climb into the ring the lights in the arena go out blanketing the ring in darkness.

When they come back up Seth is standing down by the announcer’s table, in the ring standing opposite Roman and Dean are Harper and Rowan. The four men go at it, while they are fighting Seth climbs into the ring thinking he’s gonna pick up the pieces. But he finds this is a grave mistake as Rowan and Harper are thrown out of the ring leaving him with Roman and Dean.

The two attack Seth, but before they can deliver the beating he deserves Bray Wyatt enters the fray. Seth escapes the ring as the three Wyatt’s team up against Roman and Dean.

The two men may have missed an opportunity for a shot at Rollins, but Siren didn’t.

Before Seth can hightail it out of the arena through the crowd he finds himself wrapped up in a pair of strong legs and whipped to the floor.

Siren had seen him trying to escape through the crowd, with his words still burning in her mind she cut through the crowd opposite him. Cutting him off in his path she climbed up onto a barricade rail and jumped off catching Seth in a hurricanrana and slamming him to the floor.

“Get up!” She screamed. “Come on! Get up, you backstabbing, lying, coward!”

Rising to his feet Seth turned just to be hit with a super-kick to his jaw that knocked him flat on his back. He rolled onto his side, clutching his chin as Siren came to stand beside him. He rolled onto his back as she knelt beside him, “This “eye candy” just knocked you on your ass.”

Standing up Siren ran back, hopping over the barricade determined to stop the triple team that was happening against her brother’s. But before she could get into the ring, music greeted her ears, she smiled turning towards the ramp. Backup had arrived.

John Cena had seen enough, he had a bone to pick with Bray Wyatt, seeing his opportunity he ran to the ring to assist the former Shield members.

Now that things were even, John, Roman and Dean quickly dispatched of the Wyatt Family, the three bearded men backing up the ramp as Cena, Ambrose and Reigns stood tall in the ring. Siren climbed into the ring checking on Roman and Dean before hugging John, “Thanks J.”

“Anytime girl. You’re my best friend. You know I got your back.” John winked before they all headed backstage.

“Sierra. Hotel. India. Echo. Lima. Delta. Shield.”

The crowd came to its feet as Siren lead Roman and Dean through the crowd to the ring for what everyone believed would be their final time.

“This is a 6-man tag-team match, set for one fall. Coming down the aisle being lead by Siren, at a combined weight of 490 pounds, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns.”

Siren hopped over the barricade followed by Dean and Roman, she climbed into the ring and waved to the fans as the boys climbed up on the turnbuckles. The three of them stand in the ring talking as Cena’s music hits and he runs down to the ring, sliding in and greeting the crowd.

As the arena went dark for the Wyatt’s entrance, the guys thanked John. “Thanks John.” Roman said shaking Cena’s hand.

“Anytime.”

“Yeah, thanks.” Dean said as the two shook hands.

“Any friend of Siren’s is a friend of mine.” John said before the lights came back up and the Wyatt’s made their way into the ring.

“Watch your back Babygirl.” Roman warns Siren as she climbs out of the ring.

“Always.” She nods as the Wyatt’s stand opposite her guys in the ring. “Take ‘em!”

Hearing Siren’s call Roman, Dean and John charge the Wyatt’s and an all out melee starts. After John and Roman take their fights outside the ring, the match starts with Rowan and Dean kicking it off.

After 9 minutes of Roman and Dean tagging one another in, trying to take care of the fight themselves, Roman is knocked off of the ring apron.

“Dean, stop f*cking around and tag Cena! He’s not Seth!” Siren had had enough of the two men trying to avoid tagging Cena in. She knew they were hesitant to put their trust in someone, but she knew John, he wasn’t Seth.

Hearing her words and knowing she was right Dean finally knocked Harper off of him and made the tag to John who entered the ring with a fire. But the numbers game of the Wyatt’s some takes it’s toll of John who desperately tries to reach Roman and Dean who are now back up on the apron.

Finally John makes a tag to Roman who enters the ring and takes out Harper, Dean coming off of the turnbuckle to take out Rowan. The two men continue to beat the Wyatt’s as John climbs up on the turnbuckle to take out Rowan. Another melee breaks out as Roman clears the ring of the Wyatt’s and Dean launches himself through the ring ropes to take out Bray and Rowan. In the ring Harper takes his eyes off of Roman for a split second, which is all it takes for Roman to hit a devastating spear and secure the win for his team.

Siren climbed into the ring raising Roman, Dean and John’s hands as the crowd cheers their win. Knowing that backstage Rollins and Triple H are watching Cena grabs the two former Shield member’s hands and raises them up.

After the show ended Colby returned to his hotel room, noticing how quiet it was without his friends around. Shaking his thoughts from his head he grabs a beer out of the fridge before taking off his suit and changing into a pair of sweatpants.

A knock on his door caught his attention as he set down his beer and walked over opening the door. Seeing no one on the other side he was confused, but when he looked down he found a long slim box on the carpet outside his door. Picking it up he brought it inside and set it down on the bed. Seeing a card on the outside he picked it up and opened it.

The inside read, ‘Paris mattered to one of us.’

Colby knew the handwriting was Tasha’s, he felt a pit settle in his stomach as he set the card down and removed the lid of the box. Seeing what was inside had Colby hurling the bottle of beer in his hand against the wall shattering it. He turned punching the wall nearly putting a hole straight through it as he slid down to the floor. Sitting on the floor leaning back against the wall his hands clenching into fists at his sides, he stared at the box on the bed. Inside was the rose he had given Tasha in Paris, she had kept it all this time.

Chapter 5: Traitors & Threats

Chapter Text

Colby was still fuming on Tuesday as he entered the arena for Main Event. He knew he had a segment with Triple H that night and he knew that what he had to say would only drive Tasha farther away from him.

Triple H started out the show, coming to the ring and bragging about his new found protégé, Seth Rollins. Then he called Seth to the ring to ask him how it felt to turn on his brother’s.

In her hotel room Tasha watched Main Event, she frowned as she watched Seth walk to the ring. Seeing his new found sense of style, wearing suits all the time and pulling his hair back, only furthered her thoughts that Triple H was not just having an effect on Seth Rollins, but on Colby as well.

“You know, that’s an interesting question, actually. When I stood in this ring, right here actually and I had the chair in my hand and I took a step back. And right before I swung as hard as I could at Roman Reigns, there was this moment. This stillness came over me, this clarity. And then I stepped forward and I struck my brother right in the back! And I looked over at Dean Ambrose and I saw him trying to grasp what was happening. And before he knew what hit him, I dropped him too! The feeling I had was a power that I can’t even describe. It was incredible. It was nothing like I ever felt in my entire life. It was nothing like Roman Reigns or Dean Ambrose is ever going to feel. They’ll never knew that power because everything they ever were, they owe to me. And they’re nothing without me. They’ll never know that power, just like each and every one of you will never understand that power, because, just like you, Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose are destined for mediocrity. Their entire lives—yes, their entire lives, and your entire lives you’ll sit in the exact same place, and you’ll do the exact same thing, and you’ll never reach any of your dreams or accomplish any of your goals. Because you don’t have the guts.”

Tasha shook her head as she watches Triple H mouth the exact same words that Seth says. She knew that no one else would notice such a small thing, but she did. It was clear to her that Seth was simply another one of Triple H’s puppets. He wore what he was told to, did what he was told to, and said what he was told to.

“That’s right. You don’t have the guts to do what I did on last Monday. You know who does understand that power? Triple H understands that power. He understands more than anybody what it takes to get to the top. You can’t sit around idly and wait for opportunities to come your way. No you got to strike while the iron is hot. You’ve got to create your own opportunities. And even more than that, you’ve got to seize those opportunities. My goal in this business is to be the greatest that ever stepped foot in this ring. And don’t think for two seconds that I wouldn’t skewer my friends in the back and walk over their bodies to do what I gotta do to be the best! I adapted and I evolved. What you’re looking at is the evolution of Seth Rollins. Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose were nothing but dead weight and I did what I had to do, I cut them loose. Now, I said a second ago that you’ve got to create your own opportunities and you do, but I’d like to take this time to thank a man who helped me create this specific opportunity. Triple H, thank you for helping me create this opportunity.”

The two shook hands and Tasha felt the need to vomit rising in her throat. She knew this was going to end badly for Seth, but if he was so sure that he was doing the right thing, then who was she to tell him otherwise. She smiled however as Dolph Ziggler’s music hit and he waltzed out on stage with a mic. He had been very vocal the last two weeks about his distain for Seth and what he had done to his brother’s.

“Congratulations Seth, let me be the first to congratulate you, on being a self centered scum bag traitor. You see Seth, you can giggle all you want. But I know people like you, everybody here knows someone like you that’s either stabbed them in the back, found the loophole to get around things, taken every possible shortcut there is to get ahead, but not me, Seth. See, every time I step foot in that ring I have a chip on my shoulder that says I’m here to show the world just how damn good I am at this! You Seth, I’m going to wipe that smug look off your face and I’m going to cram that arrogance down your tiny giraffe neck because tonight—tonight I’m gonna show the world what it means to be a WWE Superstar. And I’m going to do it without an evil maniacal boss holding my hand every step of the way. So, sharpen up that knife, Seth, cause tonight you’re gonna need it.”

Tasha knew that Dolph would get crushed in the match, it was inevitable. But she admired the man’s confidence.

She found it interesting that Seth still wore his Shield gear when he came to the ring, she had figured her would ditch it immediately and get some ring gear of his own. She was proud of Dolph during the match, he held his own. But knowing Seth’s talent, she wasn’t surprised when he gained the upper hand and finished Dolph off with a curb stomp for the win.

Thursday night Smackdown came around, another night of every one relieving the destruction of The Shield.

“Sierra. Hotel. India. Echo. Lima. Delta. Shield.”

The night kicked off with Siren leading Dean and Roman down the stairs through the crowd. Roman had a match against Barrett, but first they had a few things to get off of their chests.

Siren hopped over the barricade, followed by Dean and then Roman. The group entered the ring amid the loud cheers of the crowd. Like usual, Siren grabbed a mic from the crew and handed it to Dean, he was slowly becoming their mouthpiece.

“I don’t need to tell you what you already know. So I don’t need to tell you what the Authority is trying to do. It’s as clear as day. Triple H, you think you hold all the cards. You think you’ve stacked the deck against us? Well, listen up, kiddo. We’re not gonna wait for you to deal. We’re gonna flip that table right over, and we’re comin’ for your throat. As for puppet suit Seth Rollins, my, uh--”

Dean glances over at Siren and Roman who shake their heads.

“Well, I guess he’s not my brother, my former business partner, I’m shutting down the Seth Rollins business for good. And I know that look.” Dean says pointing to Roman who wore a scowl on his face. “I feel like you may have a message for another spineless corporate stooge. So why don’t you give it to him?”

Dean hands the mic to Roman who flips his hair out of his face and raises the mic. “I hope you’re enjoying your night off, Randy, because when I get my hands on you, you’re gonna want a permanent vacation. And like I said Monday Night on Raw, you think you’re the face of WWE, but you’re not the face. You’re the ass. And you’re also just a spoiled little kid who gets whatever he wants from his daddy, Triple H.”

Siren and Dean laugh as they make “o” faces, before Dean walks around sticking his tongue out, grinning.

“You didn’t even qualify for the Championship Ladder Match. You were just given the opportunity, like everything else. Well, guess what? Every wants to be WWE Champion. But who knows? Maybe Dean or I will just beat you to it.”

At that moment the group hears Triple H up on the titan-tron, of course he wouldn’t come out there to face them in person. “Wow. Wow, guys. That—that… I got to hand it… That really sounds good. But unfortunately, there are only so many slots available to qualify for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship Ladder Match. I only really have one qualifying slot available, and there are two of you. It seems really unfair. So there’s only one fair way to decide who gets that shot.” Mocking them, Triple H holds up a quarter. “You’re brothers. So, I wouldn’t want to do this any other way. So, here we go.” He flips the quarter before declaring, “Dean Ambrose! Congratulations, Dean Ambrose. You get the opportunity to qualify tonight. I say congratulations kind of loosely, because you’re gonna go up against Bray Wyatt. Oh, and, uh, Roman? I know how you guys like to do things together, so, uh, I’m gonna ban you from ringside, and I’m gonna ban the rest of the Wyatt Family from ringside, as well. And Dean, you might want to just pick up your little things and leave the ring right now, cause you’re banned from ringside for Roman Reigns’ match, which is next. Cause Roman, I’ve got some bad news for ya.”

As Barrett comes down to the ring Dean knocks fists with Roman and Siren before he takes his leave backstage. Siren assures him that she has Roman’s back, she will do whatever to protect her guys.

Siren stands ringside cheering on Roman while also watching the ramp and surrounding areas for any interference from anyone. Just as Roman starts rolling, delivering the Superman punch to put Barrett down, he backs into the corner ready to deliver his devastating spear. 3MB waltzes down to the ring looking for some payback against Roman.

The three men enter the ring and attack Roman, the ref has no choice and calls for the bell. Barrett wins via disqualification as the beat down in the ring continues. Siren, determined to keep her promise gets up on the ring apron and climbs up onto the turnbuckle. Hurling herself towards the group she tackles the three men to the canvas. Rolling towards the corner she clutches her ribs, that was a hard hit, but it allowed Roman a moment to recover.

As the three men struggled to cover Reigns and inflict more pain, Roman burst to his feet, knocking all three men backwards. He clears the ring of all three men before climbing down out of the ring, stalking Jinder Mahal. He grabs the man and hurls him over the announcer’s table, before leveling McIntyre with a spear. Then getting to his feet he spears Heath Slater in mid air as the man jumps off of the ring steps.

Roman climbs back into the ring, leaning down he helps Siren to her feet checking on her. She waves him off, “I’m fine, Rome.”

“Are you sure?” He asks concerned.

“I’m fine. Promise.”

Roman then smirks, “You’re crazy you know that.”

Siren laughs as she raises Roman’s hand, the crowd yelling as they jump to their feet for the duo as The Shield music rings throughout the arena.

Later in the night Siren is stretching her sore muscles as she gets ready for Dean’s match against Bray Wyatt, when Dean and Roman approach her.

“You sure you’re okay, darlin’?” Dean asks her as he inspects her taped up ribs.

“Yes, guys, I’m fine.” Siren says with a sigh. “If I wasn’t okay, I would let you know. But we all know that even if I’m not 100%, I’m still gonna be out there with you.”

The two men nod, they knew she was stubborn and that she would be out there with them no matter what.

Siren stands backstage with Dean as Bray Wyatt makes his way down to the ring for the match. She smirks at Dean as their entrance theme booms and the crowd goes wild.

“Sierra. Hotel. India. Echo. Lima. Delta. Shield.”

Siren leads Dean down to the ring, touching fists with the crowd as they descend the stairs. She hops over the barricade with Dean behind her, the man pointing to the WWE Championship belts that hang over the center of the ring.

The match starts out rough, Bray taking the early advantage over Dean with a wicked clothesline. The two beat one another throughout the next 9 minutes, with Siren cheering on Dean from ringside. She knew he could beat Bray, she just hoped that unlike with Roman earlier, there would be no outside interference.

Finally Dean hit Bray with his finishing move “Dirty Deeds”, Siren slapped the mat begging for him to cover Bray before he could recover.

But just as she had feared there was interference, from someone that Dean could not ignore. Seth Rollins appeared, standing on the announcer’s table shouting at Ambrose.

Siren begged Dean to ignore him, but the lunatic’s hatred for his former brother took over him as he rolled out of the ring and tried to grab Seth. The Architect jumped down from the table and ran towards Siren, she prepared to give him another Super-kick, but he switched directions and rolled into the ring. Dean gave chase, but Bray was lying in wait, he nailed Dean with “Sister Abigail” for the win.

Siren stood fuming, glaring a hole through Seth as the former Shield member laughed walking backwards up the ramp.

Siren was pissed as she stalked through the backstage area, everyone in her path moved to the side, they didn’t want to get in her way for fear of her attacking them. Siren found the door that she was searching for, not bothering to knock she threw the door open as she found the man she was looking for standing in the middle of the room.

“What the f*ck is wrong with you?” She screamed as Seth looked up at her in surprise, he hadn’t expected her to come find him.

“I don’t know what you mean, Siren.” He said after seeing the camera crew that had been following her standing in the doorway.

“If you want to screw up your life, that’s fine. But leave Roman and Dean alone.” She threatened.

Seth smirked, “Are you threatening me, Siren?”

Siren turned seeing the camera men in the doorway. Knowing she had something to say to him that no one could hear she strode over to the door. “Get out!” She shoved them back and them slammed the door in their face.

Turning back she saw the smile fall from Colby’s face, he shook his head. “Tasha, I’m sorry. Triple H—”

She held up her hand halting him, “Yeah, I get it Colby. Triple H calls all of your shots now.” She walked up to him standing as close as she could, her voice low so that no one outside the room could hear her. “You want us to forgive you, to understand? You want all of us to be okay? Then you better start calling your own shots. Right now, I’m the only thing that is keeping Jon and Lee from ripping your spine out of your mouth. Keep pushing me Colby, and I’m gonna let the hounds off of their leashes.”

Chapter 6: Unbreakable Bond

Chapter Text

Monday night came around and the remaining members of The Shield were still fuming about Seth Rollins’ actions on Smackdown. Emanating from Cleveland, Ohio, Raw kicked off with the majority of the male superstars standing on the stage awaiting an announcement from Triple H and Stephanie regarding the upcoming Money In The Bank pay-per-view.

The power couple entered the arena, pausing to clap Seth on the shoulder which made him smile, before they continued down to the ring to make their announcement.

Siren stood in the back with Dean and Roman, the three had been forbid to stand out on the stage by The Authority, for fear that they may start a brawl with Seth. And they were right.

“A Battle Royal for a spot in the ladder match, wow how original.” Siren scoffed as Stephanie made the announcement. “Wonder how long it took creative to come up with that idea?”

Then Triple H had to bring up the superstars that had refused to conform and evolve, they would not be allowed to compete in the Battle Royal. Conveniently, those superstars were Dean, Roman and not surprisingly to Siren, John Cena. Apparently his actions last week, choosing to side with The Shield had condemned him to their fate.

Triple H then said that John’s caring nature which had him coming to the aide of Dean and Roman was the nail in his coffin. He then said that they would give John a chance to earn his way into the ladder match, all he had to do was beat Kane in a stretcher match later that night.

“Sonofabitch!” Siren snapped as she watched the ambulance drive out and two paramedics unload a stretcher from the back. Her face fell as she saw the look on John’s face. “This is all my fault. If I hadn’t asked him to help you guys…”

“Hey, John knew what he was doing. He made his choice, it wasn’t your fault Babygirl.” Roman said trying to ease her guilt.

She nodded even though she still felt guilty, sitting down on the couch she prepared to watch the opening match of Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins. She watched intently, even though she hated Seth right now, she couldn’t deny his abilities in the ring. She was proud to see that Dolph was holding his own, he nearly had Seth pinned several times throughout the match.

Seeing flashes of black out of the corner of her eye she turned her head to find Dean pacing the floor like a caged animal. She shook her head, knowing exactly what he was thinking. “Don’t do it, Dean.”

Dean stopped pacing in favor of giving her a glare, to which she nodded her head. “I understand you’re pissed. He cost you your shot at the ladder match. But in all fairness, you let your anger cloud your judgment. That loss is on you.”

His glare intensified making Roman wince from his seat, but Siren just shook her head, holding up her hands in defense. “I’m not defending him. I’m just warning you. You know damn well that if you go out there, The Authority will have your ass in a sling and with it, me and Roman as well. Just think before you act, for once.”

As she turned back to the monitor to see Seth preparing for the win, she saw Dean storm out the door. “f*ck.” Was all she said as she turned her attention to the match where Seth had just delivered a Curb Stomp to Dolph.

But before he could make the cover, Dean slid into the ring causing the disqualification and handing the win to Seth in the process. As Seth ran back up the ramp out of harms way, Dean picked up a mic from one of the techs. “This ain’t gonna be over, Seth! This ain’t gonna be over until I get my hands on that smug, corporate, extremely punchable face of yours. And I know you don’t do anything without Triple H’s permission these days but why don’t you save yourself some time and get this over with, come down here and fight me like a man.”

Dean drops the mic as he rips off his leather jacket, while Seth paces the stage deciding whether or not to take the bait. But before either one can make a move, Triple H comes across the titan-tron, presumably to save Seth’s ass once again.

“Dean. Ambrose. Calm down, calm down. There’s no need to go all crazy out there, come on. You wanna fight Seth Rollins? That’s great. The good news is you like to fight, but Dean, I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news for you.”

Siren rolls her eyes as Seth makes his way backstage, while Barrett’s theme hits and he saunters down the ramp. “This is gonna be all bad. No pun intended.”

She watches as Dean dominates the majority of the match, until of course as luck would have it, Seth shows up again standing on the announcer’s table. “Slimy, sonofabitch.”

She watches as Seth tries to distract Dean, but it fails as Dean turns to catch Barrett and knock him back across the ring. Seth then jumps up on the ring apron and is immediately clubbed in the face by Dean. She laughs as Seth hits the floor, followed by Barrett as he is tossed out of the ring. Dean then launches himself out of the ring in a suicide dive taking both men to the floor as the referee starts his ten count.

The referee counts Dean out giving the victory to Barrett, but Dean could care less as he follows Seth out into the crowd beating the man with punches.

As he hears the bell ringing Dean leaves Seth to run back into the ring, nailing Barrett with a clothesline to the back of his head. He then picks Barrett up and delivers “Dirty Deeds” laying the man out in the ring as his new individual theme hits.

Backstage Siren stands by as Roman tries to sweet-talk Vickie Guerrero into putting in a good word with The Authority to put him in the Battle Royal. “Hey Vickie, can we talk?”

She is carrying two coffee’s for Triple H and Stephanie, she had been their little intern for the last several weeks. “Oh, really quick.”

“Look Vickie, I know you’re the woman, to put in a good word, to put me in the Battle Royal.”

Vickie shakes her head, “Roman, they don’t want you in it.”

“What they want? Who cares what they want. If it was up to them, they’d have you running coffee for the rest of your career. And that’s no way to treat a beautiful woman. And not only that, you’re a Guerrero. That means something. You have to stand for that. But I could have it all wrong. You may wanna kiss their butt for the rest of your life. But if you’re gonna do that, you better do it the right way. They’re gonna want sweetener in that coffee for sure.”

“Oh, my gosh, I forgot.” She says setting the coffee’s down on the crate beside Roman. “I’ll be right back.”

“Yup.” Roman says as she walks away. He then motions with his finger to someone off camera and in walks Siren with a smirk on her face. The two turn their backs to the camera, the crowd speculating what they are doing.

Vickie walks back up as the two turn to her. “Thank you so much.”

“Of course.” Roman smiles.

“Hey Siren.” Vickie smiles.

“Hey Vic.” Siren smiled, she had Vickie had a lot of history, after all it was her husband that had trained Siren and had brought her to WWE.

“Hey Vickie, when are you gonna tell them to take this job and shove it?” Roman asks.

All Vickie can muster as a reply is a sneeze, which goes all over the cups in her hand. The three of them smile before Vickie walks away with the coffee. Behind her Roman and Siren smirk as they knock fists.

Less than half an hour later the two watch as Stephanie hurls all over Vickie after drinking the coffee that Vickie had given her. The two are rolling on the floor in laughter watching the monitor. The two decide to go see if Vickie is alright, she comes to the door still covered in Stephanie’s vomit.

“What do you two want?” She snaps.

“Vickie, we all know that you’re in hot water now and most likely Stephanie’s gonna fire you next week. But can still do something to stand up to The Authority. And if they do fire you, at least you know that you did something positive for the WWE Universe. Make it official. Put me in the Battle Royal.”

“Fine. You’re in!” She screams before slamming the door in their faces.

Siren turns to Roman with a grin before the two high five.

After preparing for the match Roman and Siren stand in the upper corridor awaiting their entrance for the Battle Royal. All of the other contestants are in the ring ready to fight it out, but their confidence is slightly shaken as Roman’s music booms throughout the arena. Siren had removed the “Shield” portion of the theme and it was now just the music. Roman said he didn’t want to forget how they had gotten to where they were.

“From Pensacola, Florida, being lead by Siren, weighing 265 pounds, Roman Reigns.”

Siren and Roman descend the stairs knocking fists with the fans as they make their way to the barricade. The two jump over, Siren taking her place ringside as Roman jumps into the ring and the fight begins.

Siren cheers on Roman as the match wears on, the number of superstars dwindling with every minute. Finally it comes down to Roman and Rusev. The two trade blows back and forth, each one wanting to win the right for a spot in the ladder match. Roman manages to lift Rusev up and deposit him over the ropes, but Rusev stays on the apron, until Roman nails him with a superman punch sending the big man to the floor and securing his victory.

Siren throws her fists into the air celebrating, she then climbs into the ring where Roman grabs her in a bear hug. “You did it big dog!”

Roman puts her down as the two climb up on the turnbuckles celebrating with the fans.

Backstage Siren pauses as she sees Renee Young interviewing none other than John Cena. Knowing she needs to speak with him she waits for the interview to finish.

“John, we’ve just witnessed Roman Reigns winning the Battle Royal. What’s your reaction to that? And also, what’s your reaction to your upcoming stretcher match?”

“Roman Reigns, earns a spot in the Money In The Bank ladder match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Roman Reigns wasn’t even supposed to be in that Battle Royal. We just saw the impossible and I dig that. When the impossible is possible, when we’re every which way but loose, because in Monday Night Raw anything can happen. Take me for example, tonight The Authority needs my help. They want a stretcher match and Kane doesn’t have an opponent. So, they call on me to lend them a helping hand. Authority, I’d be glad to lend you a helping hand.”

He holds his hand up for everyone to see. “Renee, take close look at this helping hand because there’s a hidden message for The Authority right in the middle of it. Let’s decode it, shall we.”

He closes his thumb. “First, I’m gonna help Stephanie get another cup of coffee because I haven’t seen Vickie Guerrero look that good in years.”

He closes his pinkie. “Second, I’m gonna help the city of Cleveland as they watch Triple H eat a steaming sandwich of his own crap…” He puts down his ring finger, “…when I help Kane out of this arena in a stretcher.

“And finally…” Being the nice guy he is he chooses to put down his middle finger, leaving his pointer finger in the air. “…help myself to the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at the Money In The Bank ladder match because that is what’s best for business. Ah, hah.”

Siren is laughing as John finishes his interview and makes his way over as he sees her standing there. “What’s up bestie?”

“I just wanted to apologize, J.”

“For what?” He says looking confused.

“For getting you in trouble with The Authority. If I hadn’t asked you for help, you wouldn’t be in this match tonight.”

“Hey, no worries. It wasn’t your fault. I’ve got myself into plenty of trouble on my own. I made my choice to help The Shield. Don’t blame yourself, T.” He says pulling her in for a hug.

She smiles as they pull back, “You be careful out there. I’ll be watching.”

“I wish you wouldn’t.” He said sighing.

“Why not?”

“Because I know you’ll come out to help and I don’t want you anywhere near this match. So, promise me you’ll stay back here.”

Siren sighed, she didn’t want to agree, but she knew that John wouldn’t left her off the hook until she agreed. “Okay, fine. I don’t like it, but I promise.”

“Thanks T.” John smiled pulling her in and kissing her forehead before he took off to prepare for his match.

Siren sat in the locker room biting her nails as she watched the stretcher match between John and Kane. Roman and Dean sat one either side of her giving her the support that she needed to watch this match.

Her anxiety didn’t subside slightly until she watched John put Kane through the announce table with an AA. John finally manages to get Kane up onto his shoulders and deposit him onto a stretcher, but before he can wheel him up the ramp someone decides to interject himself into the match.

“Motherf*cker!” Siren snaps before getting up and running out the door.

Dean and Roman who were talking amongst themselves heard her exclaim and run out the door, they had no idea why until they looked at the screen and saw Seth Rollins and Randy Orton attacking Cena.

“Sonofabitch! Siren!” Dean says as he takes off out the door knowing Siren is going after Seth.

Siren runs down the ramp and launches herself onto Seth’s back locking her arms around his neck in a choke hold. Seth is clawing at her arms trying to dislodge her, but before she can choke him out she is grabbed from his back.

Siren thrashes as she finds herself in Randy Orton’s arms. “Let go of me, Randy!”

“Sure thing doll.” He says as he throws her over the other stretcher, she lands hard on the floor beside the barricade.

In the ring Seth hits John with a right hand before Randy levels him with an RKO. Seth climbs out of the ring and grabs a steel chair, climbing back in the ring he orders Orton to hold Cena up as he prepares to hit him. But another man, even more pissed off than the other two runs down the ramp.

Dean saw Orton toss Siren over the stretcher, saw her land hard on the ground and his blood boiled. He rushed down sliding into the ring and attacking Seth and Orton before throwing them both out of the ring.

But Kane gets back to his feet and grabs Dean around the throat, choke slamming him to the canvas. Kane then turned his attention to Cena who knocked the big man out of the ring, Cena then picked up the steel steps that Kane had brought into the ring earlier and threw them out nailing Kane in the face.

With Kane incapacitated Cena rolled out of the ring and loaded the massive man onto one of the stretchers, before rolling him up the ramp towards the line. But a few feet shy of the line Kane stood up, grabbing Cena around the neck he prepared for a choke slam, but Cena reversed it and picked Kane up giving him an AA onto the stretcher, then rolling him across the line for the victory.

But instead of celebrating his victory, John rushed down to check on Siren. Helping her up off of the floor he was surprised to find her smiling.

“Congrats J.” She said clutching her back which had hit one of the support beams for the barricade.

“Thanks T.” He said smiling back as she held up his hand.

Tasha was dead tired as she carried her bag through the backstage area, walking beside Joe and Jon heading to the car. All she wanted was to get back to the hotel, take a hot shower and collapse into bed.

“Tasha!”

She stopped hearing her name being called from behind her, she turned to find John Cena coming down the hallway. She smiled as he walked up to her, nodding to Jon and Joe.

“Can we talk for a minute?”

“Sure.”

“Here Babygirl, I got this.” Joe said as he took her duffel from her. “We’ll meet you at the car.”

Tasha smiled, “Thanks Lee.” She turned back to John. “So what’s on your mind?”

“I wanted to see if you were alright. You took a hard hit out there.”

“I’m fine, just a little bruised.”

John sighed, “I wish you wouldn’t have come out there.”

Tasha smiled at him laying her hand on his arm. “I had to. Seth is our problem, and he’s going after you because you helped us. I couldn’t stand back and do nothing. You know me.”

John laughed, “Yeah I do know you. And that’s why what I wanted to tell you was thank you. Thank you for standing by my side, for giving me another chance, even when I didn’t deserve it. Tasha you are my best friend. Even after everything I put you through, you’ve always been there.”

“Yeah, much to your girlfriend’s disappointment.” Tasha chuckled drawing a smile from John.

“That’s the other thing I wanted to say. I spoke to Nikki, and I told her that despite everything she has said about you, that you are my best friend and you aren’t going anywhere. I basically told her that she could either be with me and tolerate you, or leave.”

Tasha grimaced, “Oh, I’ll bet that went over like a ton of bricks.”

John laughed, “Yeah, I got ignored for about a week. But she finally realized that if she wanted to be in my life, she had to do that beside you. You are a big part of my life, and she decided that she would rather learn to like you, than to lose me.”

“Well, I’m glad to see she has a brain under all that beauty.”

“Tash, I just want to thank you for always being there, even after everything I did to you, ruining our marriage, you’re still here. Still backing me up and fighting beside me. We have a connection that no one and nothing can break. You and me are tied forever. I love you, T.”

“I love you too, J.” Tasha smiled before he pulled her into his arms.

Tasha smiled wide as one thought entered her mind, even through all of the things they had done to one another, all of the horrible things they had said, one thing remained clear. She and John had an unbreakable bond.

When they arrived back at the hotel the trio trudged up to their room, walking inside they all but collapsed on the beds.

Tasha knew if she didn’t get up then she would fall asleep right then, and she desperately needed a shower. Her muscles were aching and tight, she needed to loosen them up before she could sleep. Opening up her suitcase she pulled out a pair of shorts and a tank top. While she was sorting through her duffel bag Joe’s phone rang, she watched in amusem*nt as Joe face-timed with his wife and daughter.

It was times like this that Tasha missed her family and her daughter, Kailynn. Because she was on the road so often her daughter spent much of her time with her grandparents. Kailynn’s father had decided when she was a year old that he wanted nothing to do with either of them. So Tasha became a single parent, which suited her just fine. Normally she would have Kailynn travel with her, but since she had turned school age Tasha didn’t want to pull her out of school so often.

She felt like a horrible parent being away from her daughter so much, but there were several other wrestlers just like she and Joe, that had families and couldn’t always bring them along. Her parents were wonderful about taking care of their granddaughter, they never made her feel bad for pursuing her dreams with the WWE.

Tasha made it a point to call her daughter every night to speak with her and say goodnight. And as soon as she had a few days off she flew home to be with her little one, and as soon as summer started, Kailynn would be on the road with her again for 3 months.

“Hey Babygirl, Lina says hi.” Joe told her referring to his wife.

Tasha smiled, “Tell her I said hi back and I miss her.”

Joe relayed the message and then laughed, “Jojo wants to talk to her Auntie T.”

Tasha again laughed as she walked over and sat down on the bed beside the big man. Joe turned the phone so she could see Jojo’s smiling face on the screen. “Hi sweetie. I miss you.”

“I miss you too, Auntie. When are you coming to visit again?” The young girl asked excitedly bouncing in her seat.

“Soon, I promise. As soon as we have a few days off I’ll be there with your daddy.”

“Okay. Can you bring monkey with you? I miss her too.” Jojo said referring to Tasha’s daughter.

“Of course I can. As soon as summer vacation starts I will bring her along with me. Okay?”

“Okay. Yay! I can’t wait to see you.”

“I can’t wait to see you too, sweetie.”

“Love you Auntie.”

“Love you too munchkin.”

Tasha smiled as she stood up and headed into the bathroom to take her shower. Twenty minutes later she emerged feeling 100% better than she had all night. Feeling exhaustion setting in she crawled into the bed beside Dean, the blonde man putting his arm around her as she curled into his side.

“Night crazy man.” She smiled as Dean chuckled.

“Night darlin’.”

Chapter 7: Constant Headache

Chapter Text

Another Tuesday night, another chance for Seth to annoy everyone as he talked about himself, Siren thought as she walked through the Main Event backstage area. Just as she sat down on the couch in the locker room she heard Seth’s music kick on. “Ugh, and here we go.” She scoffed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “It’s too early for this sh*t.”

“Guys, you don’t even know what I came out here to say, alright? Give me a break.” Seth said as the WWE Universe made their disdain for him known. “No, really, I came out here to congratulate my former business partner, Roman Reigns. Yeah, I know, last night on Raw Roman had a hell of a night, right? He and Siren outfoxed Vickie Guerrero and then after that he scraped and he clawed and he fought and he outlasted every other superstar, and he won the qualifying battle royal and he earned a spot in the ladder match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Money In The Bank. Hey, my hat’s off to you, Roman.”

Siren almost felt that he was being genuine, that was until his co*cky smirk emerged. “And the dick returns.” Roman and Dean chuckled as they watched the monitor.

“Enjoy this small victory, because you also were not supposed to be in that match, which means that you crossed The Authority, and when you cross The Authority there are repercussions. And this coming Monday on Raw, you will face every single one of those repercussions that are coming to you.”

“Oooh, you better watch out Rome, there’s gonna be repercussions on Monday.” Siren teased as the three of them laughed.

“And don’t think for one second, Roman, that you’re just going to skate out of this one, okay? Don’t think that you’re gonna be so cool and calm and everything’s gonna be alright because you’re Roman Reigns. Well, guess what? I know who Roman Reigns is. I know what Roman Reigns is. Roman Reigns is a volcano. Roman Reigns has a rage inside of him that should keep every single one of you people up at night, knowing that you gotta walk the same streets as this guy. Roman Reigns is an angry soul and I am the only person who knows how to control Roman Reigns. I am the only one who knows how to harness that anger. I am the only one who knows how to manipulate Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose. Oh Dean Ambrose.”

Seth chuckles, “Oh, Dean Ambrose. Without me controlling Dean Ambrose, he’s a babbling buffoon. He’s a lunatic, he’s out of his mind, he’s bound to end up in a straight jacket or in some insane asylum somewhere. I am the only one who can control Roman and Dean. I control them, when for two years I was the leader of the greatest group in the history of WWE, The Shield. And two weeks ago—”

Seth is drown out by the fans chanting “you sold out” which only served to make him chuckle. “Two weeks ago I showed why I am still in control.” He motioned with his arm to the titan-tron.

“f*ck, not again. I’m not watching this.” Siren said as she placed her hands over her eyes as the video of Seth betraying them played. She didn’t need to see it, it was permanently burned into the back of her mind.

Back in the ring Seth laughs, “You know I never get tired of seeing that. But onto something more important. Everybody knows that at Money In The Bank there will be a WWE World Heavyweight Championship ladder match and the field is already set for that match, but I have a surprise. I have an announcement for you. At the Money In The Bank pay-per-view, there will be a second ladder match! That’s right. That’s right. And this one will be a traditional Money In The Bank contract ladder match, where above this very ring will hang a briefcase containing a contract for a shot at the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. And even better news than that, guess who the first entrant is. That’s right, yours truly, Seth Rollins. Because everybody knows—everybody knows that me having that contract is what’s best for…”

“sh*t here he goes again. Dean!” Siren yelled as Dean’s music kicked on and he rushed out of the locker room heading for the ring.

Siren catches up with Dean just before he goes through the curtain, putting on her stone face she follows him out onto the stage. The crowd goes wild as Dean raises a mic to his lips.

“You don’t need to worry about Money In The Bank in ten days, Seth. You just need to worry about surviving the next ten minutes.” Dean slaps the mic to the floor and charges the ring, inside Seth rips off his jacket and tie preparing for a fight.

Dean and Seth grapple, rolling throughout the ring trading punches, until Kane’s music hits distracting Dean. Seth takes advantage blindsiding Dean from behind and knocking him to the canvas. Seth continues stomping and punching Dean as Kane walks to the ring. Dean gets to his feet, knocking Seth down, turning around he rushes Kane who is on the ring apron. Jumping up he drop kicks Kane sending him to the floor.

Behind him, Seth gets back to his feet, Dean leans down as Seth charges him, picking the two-tone haired man up and tossing him over the ropes where he lands on top of Kane.

Dean bounces around the ring still ready for a fight, but as Kane and Seth slide back into the ring, Dean jumps out. He joins Siren on the ramp, the two walking backwards smirking as Seth throws a temper tantrum in the ring.

As the trio walks out of the arena after Main Event ends, laughing, Tasha catches Colby watching them from inside of his car where he sits. She knows the look on his face, he’s remembering walking to the car before the same way as they are now without him. Tasha simply shrugs her shoulders at him, pointing a finger in his direction she mouths, “It’s on you.”

She then gets in the car with Joe and Jon heading out to get something to eat, before going back to the hotel and getting some rest.

On June 20^th, Smackdown emanated from Columbus, Ohio inside of the arena. Tonight Siren had her hands full with Roman, Dean and now John. Roman and John were going to be teaming with Sheamus in a 4-on-3 handicap match against Bray Wyatt, Randy Orton, Cesaro and Alberto Del Rio. And if that was not bad enough, Dean had a match against Kane, which was made after the events of Monday Night Raw.

As she changed into her manager attire, which hadn’t changed, it was still her same outfit that she wore with the Shield, she stretched her muscles. She knew that at some point that night she would probably end up on the floor. The worst part about being her, was that the men didn’t treat her like a Diva anymore. Due to her actions while she was managing John, all of the times she had fought on his behalf, she knew she had made herself a target. She was no longer a lady… she was now one of the guys.

Just as she was getting ready to pull on her corset top there was a knock at the door. Setting the top down she walked over and opened the door, it was nothing to her to walk around in her bra, she had done it many times before. She was not ashamed of her body and in reality her bra showed no more than a bikini top would.

“Hey J. What’s up?” She said as she found the one and only John Cena standing outside her door.

He smiled her, his eyes moving from her bra to her eyes. “Did I interrupt something?” He said with a smirk.

Siren rolled her eyes, “No. I was just getting dressed for tonight.”

“Oh, okay.” He smiled. “Well, I was hoping that you might accompany me to the ring tonight. Like old times.” He pulled something out of his back pocket and held it up for her.

Siren smiled as she took the bright green crop top shirt that had his logo on the front. “Absolutely. I miss the old days.”

“Let’s go.” John said as she slipped the top on and the two headed for the curtain as John’s theme hit.

The crowd went wild as John and Siren stepped out onto the stage, they were excited to see the former couple back together, even just for the night. The two stood at the top of the ramp before saluting the crowd and then running down and sliding into the ring. Siren smirked, hopping up onto one of the turnbuckles and sitting down, as John grabbed a mic to address the crowd.

“Welcome to Smackdown. Oh, there is energy here tonight. Can I please direct your attention above my head.” He says pointing up at the two titles suspended over the ring. You’ll notice two beautifully crafted championship belts. It’s the symbol of excellence here in the WWE. But some of you may be a little confused asking questions why. Why is your favorite color suddenly neon green? But if you take a look at my beautiful best friend you’ll know one reason why.”

Siren smiled as John pointed to her and the arena erupted into cheers and catcalls. She turned giving the crowd a kiss which had them cheering louder.

“Why do I always keep saying you can’t see me when it’s obvious visual irony. And why are these championships hanging over my head? Well, that’s a long story, but I’m here to bring you up to speed.”

Siren laughs as John takes a deep breath, and then he speaks as quickly as he can. “At first, there was a fast-counting ref that put them in a ban, then a super-kicking ref that gave them to Randy Orton. Then for a first time one-time attraction, we unified the titles and crowned a face of the company. Batista came back, then he was boo-tista, and then blue-tista, and then through it all smack dab in the middle of the yes movement, yes, yes, yes, Daniel Bryan became champion.”

Siren starts chanting “Yes” along with the crowd, pointing her fingers in the air just like Daniel always does.

“And then he became injured. So, The Authority cooked up a scheme, threw seven of us in the meat grinder, and now we are headed to Money In The Bank for a ladder match to determine the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion. But if that wasn’t crazy enough, if you look at the people in this match, it sounds like the start of a bad joke. So, a Mexican, an Irishman, an Uber-European, a Duck Dynasty reject, a Primadonna, a security guard, and Dudley do-right walk into a WWE ring? That’s where the comedy stops. I’ll save you the punchline and just tell you that I’m gonna put every one of them in line and punch ‘em. I’m walking into Money In The Bank, walking up the ladder to victory and walking out proudly saying the champ is here!”

As the crowd cheers John, Siren hops down from the turnbuckle just as Del Rio’s music hits and the co*cky Mexican walks out on the stage.

“John Cena, you should spend less time talking and more time worrying about Alberto Del Rio. I was the first one to qualify for this Money In The Bank match and I will be the first one climbing that ladder to win the title.” Del Rio climbs up into the ring, standing face-to-face with John as Siren leans back against the corner looking bored.

“I don’t think you remember how dangerous I am, Juanito. But I will make you remember once I’m standing over you as the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion.”

“Jesus Christ. It’s gonna be a full house out here.” Siren groans as Sheamus makes his way down to the ring next.

“Hey, Berty. Hey, lad. Hey, Berty, no one has forgotten how dangerous you are. These people just don’t give a damn about what you have to say. And I see a lot of formidable opponents in the ring right now because at Money In The Bank, it is every man for himself. But, uh, the biggest challenge is neither of you, it’s me. I’m trying to figure out a way to drag those titles through airport security every week because when that match is over, I will be the United States and WWE World Heavyweight Champion, fella.”

“Told you this was a bad idea.” Siren says eyeing John as now Cesaro makes his way to the ring accompanied by his manager Paul Heyman.

“Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Paul Heyman, And I’m sure you share my enthusiasm over the fact that for the very first time ever, at the Money In The Bank pay-per-view, the WWE World Heavyweight title will be decided in a championship ladder match. A match where you are absolutely, positively guaranteed a brand new WWE World Heavyweight champion. A match where I absolutely, positively guarantee it won’t be any single one of you. No, this is every man for himself, which my client likes because, ladies and gentlemen, there’s only one competitor in the Money In The Bank ladder match who’s gonna have the World Heavyweight Title. There’s a full-time strategist in his corner. And I don’t need to strategize for my client to win. I will strategize against you to ensure that all of you lose. My strategy, like in the history-making moment where my client Brock Lesnar conquered the Undertaker’s undefeated streak at Wrestlemania, and my strategy will lead to a brand new WWE World Heavyweight Champion at Money In The Bank. And his name is, Cesaro.”

At that moment a Cheshire grin came across Siren’s face as Roman’s music boomed throughout the arena. She turned her head to the right watching as Roman descended the stairs through the crowd. She propped her arms up on the ropes as she leaned back in the corner. As Roman climbed into the ring beside her, he gave her a wink that only she saw as he held up his hand and the two knocked fists before his attention turned to the men in the ring.

“Ever since Seth Rollins stabbed us in our backs…” He said motioning to himself and Siren. “… I’ve had a lot of trouble trusting people these days. But the only thing that matters now, is that.” He finished as he looked up at the titles. “And I don’t care how many there are and I don’t care who you think you are.” He said turning to look straight at John which had Siren trying to hide her smile. “There’s not a man in this ring that’s gonna stop me now.”

Siren then watches John remove his hat, his dog tags and his shirt, and she knows sh*t is about to get real. But before it can come to blows, Randy struts down the ramp to the ring.

“So, Roman Reigns, you have finally learned that you can’t trust anybody here in the WWE. Congratulations. Now, let’s not forget, I am the face of the WWE. In fact, this company was at an all-time high while I was champion. And you tell everybody in this arena that you’re gonna run through everybody in that ring? Well, I’m not standing in that ring, Roman, and you’re not gonna run through me. As a matter of fact, at Money In The Bank, those titles are coming home with yours truly.”

Roman has heard enough and he rolls out of the ring charging Randy, the two taking their brawl up by the stage.

Meanwhile in the ring Siren quickly drops to the canvas and rolls out of the ring as a fight breaks out between the four remaining men. John and Sheamus easily clear the ring of the other two men as Siren heads to the back to find Roman.

Behind the curtain she finds security trying to keep Roman and Randy apart. She runs over and shoves her way between the two men, shoving Roman away from Randy.

“Will both of you get a grip!” She yells her head swapping back and forth between the men. “You’ll have plenty of time to rip one another apart in your match tonight. Knock it off, before both of you get suspended or fired.”

She turns her back on Randy, gently putting her hand on Roman’s chest and shoving him back a few steps. “Come on, Rome. You’ll get your shot at him later. Come on.”

Roman nods, Siren being his voice of reason, he turns and heads towards the locker room. Behind her Randy just can’t seem to keep his mouth shut.

“I guess Roman was wrong about having trouble trusting people. He still trusts you.”

Siren rolls her eyes, turning back to her now former client. “Yeah, and he was wrong about you too. You’re not the ass of the company, Randy. You’re just an ass period.” She turns walking down the hallway as the fans cheer her, the whole scene being broadcast on the titan-tron.

Siren heads down to catering for a snack, she waves to a few of the Divas sitting at a table in the corner. The girls wave her over to sit with them, she nods and after grabbing a plate of fruit and a water she walks over and sits down.

“Hello ladies.” Siren smiled sitting down in between Paige and Renee, Naomi and Lana sitting opposite her.

“Hey love, how you doing?” Paige asks her as she leans over and gives her a hug.

“Doing okay. Considering.” She said, all the girls nodding knowing she has had a rough couple of weeks. She rubbed her forehead, Paige glancing at her worriedly. “Headache?”

Siren nodded, “Constantly now.” Just then she hears Seth’s music booming throughout the arena, she glances to her right where a monitor shows Seth walking to the ring for his match. “And there’s the cause of it.”

The girls watch as Seth jumps over the top rope, somersaulting into the ring. He takes off the shirt portion of his new ring gear.

“Mm, that’s a damn shame a body like that, gotta be attached to a jerk like him.” Naomi tisked, shaking her head.

Despite herself Siren smiled, there was no denying that Seth was gorgeous. She used to think that he was the total package. Smart, funny, strong and sexy. But over the years she had figured out that if your attitude sucked, it made even the hottest man in the world ugly.

The ladies watched as Seth and Kofi locked up to start the match. It took only a minute for Seth to take control of the match, The whole match only lasting two minutes, with Seth finishing off Kofi with a curb stomp for the win.

“Oh God, of course he has something to say.” Siren groans as she sees Seth grab a mic.

“Not only am I the first entrant in the Money In The Bank contract match. But I guarantee…”

“Seth?”

“…I will be the…”

Suddenly Dean’s face pops up on the titan-tron causing Seth the stop talking.

“Seth? Stop it. Don’t talk. Just listen. And be on your toes because, every time you step in that ring, every time you hear the bell, every time you step out from behind that curtain, I want you wondering, is tonight the night Dean Ambrose gets even. It could be any night, but it is going to happen.”

Seth chuckles, “You know, Dean, it’s—man, it’s a shame that you got to battle with demon Kane tonight or I would love for you to come down here right now so I could kick your teeth down your throat.”

“Shut up. Don’t do that. I don’t buy that, I just don’t. But listen, when I’m done with Kane tonight, I’m going to focus all my energy on you. And you and your new buddy, the demon, are gonna have plenty to talk about when I send you both back to where you both belong. Hell.”

Siren smirks as she sees Seth throw down his mic and stalk back up the ramp. She knows Dean is getting under Seth’s skin, he’s making him regret ever turning his back on them.

“So, do you think Seth’s gonna win the contract on Sunday?” Paige asked her.

Siren nodded, “I don’t think, I know he will.”

“So Siren, I think you should forgive Seth and give him another chance.”

Siren raises her eyebrow at Renee, “Why would I do that?”

“Cause you’re in love with him.”

“And you know that how Renee?” Siren says smiling.

“I see the way you look at him, even now. We all see it.”

Siren sighs, biting her bottom lip. “Be that as it may, I don’t trust him anymore.” She doesn’t bothering denying it, she has never held back her emotions. “You should mind your own business Ms. Nosey.” Siren chuckles. “And I think, you should go ask out Dean.”

She smirks as Renee goes red in the face, she knew her friend had the hots for Dean ever since he had debuted in WWE. Her attention turns to the door where she sees Seth walk through it, she quickly stands up. “Excuse me ladies, that’s my cue to leave. I’ll see you later.”

She walks past Seth glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. “Nice match.”

“Thanks.” He said with a sigh, watching her walk past him.

Siren changes out of John’s shirt into her Shield gear, she heads to the gorilla position to wait for Dean. As she stretching her shoulders she sees Seth walk up beside her. He’s changed out of his ring gear into a nice black suit, his shirt unbuttoned at the top, his hair wet and slicked back.

“Nice suit.” She tells him as he watches her stretch. “You look good.”

“Thank you. You look beautiful, as always.” He says giving her his new co*cky grin he had adapted, his attitude acting like nothing was wrong between them.

She scoffed, shaking her head, oh how she missed the old Seth Rollins. “Too bad your newfound attitude, makes you so ugly.”

Seth’s grin dropped as he slipped out of his character. “Tasha?” He said softly.

Siren knew if she looked into his eyes, she would cave, so she avoided his eyes looking straight ahead. “You should go, before Dean gets here.”

Sighing Seth nodded to the tech guy to cue his music as he prepared to head down the ring for commentary. Glancing back at Siren he grinned, “Keep hating me. I’m not giving up.”

As he disappeared through the curtain Siren smiled, in truth, that was exactly what she had hoped he’d say. She turned with a smile as Dean walked up beside her, “Douchbag is out there on commentary.”

Dean grinned, “Sweet. Looks like I get dinner and dessert tonight.”

She laughed as the two knocked fists before Dean’s music came on and they stepped out onto the stage, the crowd roaring in response. They headed down to the ring where Kane was awaiting them.

Siren stood outside the ring cheering on Dean as he and Kane started the match. Out of the corner of her left eye she kept watch on Seth making sure he didn’t interfere.

As Dean dropped Kane with a DDT from the second rope she saw Seth stand up, moving over she stopped beside the steel steps glaring at him. “Don’t do it if you know what’s good for you, Seth.”

Seth thinking he had distracted Dean was surprised when Dean tugged down on the top rope and sent Kane flying over him and onto the floor. Dean then bounced off of the ropes and launched himself through the opposite side nailing Kane with a suicide dive.

Dean got to his feet and climbed up onto the announcer’s table, tackling Seth and raining punches down on the man. He then got back to his feet and charged Kane who dropped him with a big uppercut to the jaw.

Siren looked down at Seth who was still sitting on the floor, he glared up at her and she shrugged. “I tried to warn you.”

Inside the ring Kane plants Dean with a choke-slam for the win. Siren slams her hands down on the apron in anger, but then she sees Seth heading towards the ring. “Don’t do this, Seth.” She warns him, knowing the further he goes down this road, the harder it’s going to be to come back from it. He ignores her warning as he bounces off of the ropes and delivers a curb stomp to Dean’s head.

During the commercial break Siren helps Dean out of the ring, slinging his arm around her shoulder’s she waves off the trainers as they try to help. “I’ve got him.”

She helps Dean back to the trainer’s room, after making sure he wouldn’t leave the room without getting checked out, she headed up to the upper level to meet Roman for his match.

“Dean okay?”

“Pissed off, but he’s fine.” She smiles before knocking fists with him as his music starts and they descend down through the crowd.

They jump over the barricade, Siren takes her place ringside as Roman climbs the turnbuckle and salutes the fans. They are joined shortly afterwards by Sheamus and John. Siren stands close to the corner where Roman stands as first Del Rio then Cesaro come out, followed by Orton and Bray.

For the first time in awhile Siren actually tunes out of the match slightly, her mind is solely focused on Seth. Knowing that is going to get her in trouble she shakes her head, clearing it as she comes back to the match to find Roman finally in for the first time since the bell rang. She watches him clear the ring of Wyatt and Orton before nailing Del Rio with a spear and covering him for the win.

“1! 2! 3! Yes!” She claps for her team, cheering them along with the crowd. Smackdown goes off the air as Roman, John and Sheamus knock fists.

After changing and going back to the hotel to pick up their things, Tasha, Jon and Joe head to the airport to catch their flight to Washington D.C. for Monday Night Raw.

Chapter 8: Don't Let Them Take Your Heart

Chapter Text

Waking up the next morning Tasha finds that for the first time, she is the first one awake. Gently moving Dean’s arm off of her stomach she gets out of bed and pulls on a pair of leggings and a t-shirt. She pulls on her black Ugg boots and shrugs on her jacket, grabbing her wallet she heads out to grab some coffee and breakfast for them all.

When she gets back she finds Jon and Joe rousing themselves from bed. “Morning, sleeping beauties.” She smiled holding up the coffee and paper bag. “I’ve got breakfast.”

The two men walk over taking their coffee and food from her, each one giving her a kiss on the forehead. They all sit down and eat together while watching a show on the TV. Afterwards they get dressed, grab their bags as they are driving to another town that night and head out for the arena.

Once at the arena the three wave to the fans as they walk inside, finding their locker room and setting down their things. Just as Tasha was pulling out her clothes for the night there was a knock on the door.

“Come in.” She yelled. Turning she found the CEO of their company standing in the doorway. “Mr. McMahon. It’s good to see you.”

“Oh please Tasha, don’t start being politically correct on me now. We’ve known each other far too long to be so formal.” He smiled before giving her a hug. “How are you doing?”

“I’m doing good. Thank you. How are you and Linda?”

“Oh, we’re fine. She said to tell you hello.”

“How sweet. Please give her my best.”

“Absolutely.”

“So, what brings you to Raw? Are you making an appearance tonight?” She knew Vince had not been to a show in quite a while, he had so much to take care of at WWE Headquarters.

“Actually no, I came here to speak to you.”

“About what?” She said feeling her nerves start to rustle, usually when the boss wanted to talk, it was never a good thing.

“Nothing bad, I assure you.” Vince chuckled seeing her apprehension. “Will you follow me outside, please?”

“Of course.” She glanced over to Joe and Jon who were just as confused as she was.

“Oh Jon, Joe, please come with us. After all this will effect you two as well.” He said cryptically as the other three followed him out of the room, down the halls and out into the parking garage.

“Now Tasha, I know you put in a request for a motorhome to travel in, correct?”

“Yes sir.” Vince gives her a look and she smiles. “I mean Vince. I did.”

“And what did corporate tell you?”

“They said that what I wanted could not be accommodated.”

“So what did you do?”

Tasha started to feel like a little kid about to be scolded by her father. “I designed my own and paid for it myself.”

Vince stopped walking and turned, crossing his arms over his chest. “Corporate wouldn’t give you what you wanted. So you went around them and got what you wanted, with your own money.”

“Yes Vince.” Tasha said hanging her head.

Surprisingly to them all Vince laughed. “That’s what I love about you. Instead of settling for something you didn’t want and having the company pay for it, you spent your own hard earned money to get what you wanted. You are always surprising me, Tasha. So I am here to tell you that not only is your motor-coach approved, but I wanted to personally deliver it myself.” He motioned behind Tasha, who turned around and gasped as she saw the motor-coach that she had designed and bought sitting behind her.

“Oh my God. No way.” She turned with a huge smile, jumping and hugging her boss. “Thank you, Vince!”

The elder man laughed hugging her back. “You are very welcome honey. Now, do we get a tour?”

“Yes, absolutely.” She bounded over to the rig with the three men behind her.

“So, what’s the difference between this and a motorhome?” Jon asked as they inspected the outside of it which was white with red, black and gray graphics down both sides.

“Well this is something I have wanted since I was a kid. My family raced dirt bikes, a friend of ours had one of these Concept Haulers and ever since I saw it, I wanted one. It’s not much different from a motorhome, except for this being a truck chassis with a garage in the back. It has a hydraulic lift gate on the back to load bikes, and it also has a rack on the top, you lift the rails up and you can chill out up there.”

Tasha opened the door and stepped inside squealing like a little kid as she saw her creation come to life. “So I love black, so that’s the theme in here. Black leather couches and booths, also black carpet and blinds. Okay, so up here we have the cab with two very comfy captain chairs with shock absorbers. There’s a loft bed above the cab with a small flat screen TV, and also a 42” flat screen in the corner by the door. Over here on my right we have the couch that folds out into a full size bed and the dining area which can be made into a bed as well. Over on my left is the kitchen with a sink, stove, fridge and freezer. I love granite, so all of the counters and shower are all black granite.”

She walked towards the back opening a sliding door. “This is the bathroom, shower on your left, sink and toilet on your right.” She opened another sliding door in front of her. “And this is the master bedroom with a king size bed and of course a flat screen TV.” She stepped past the foot of the bed and opened another door. “And this is the garage. That hatch up there to my right leads to the roof where the rack is. That door rolls up and the lift gate lowers with the controls on the wall over there.”

They all walk back outside of the vehicle where she points out the polished chrome panels down the length of both side of the coach. “Those are all storage areas, so no need to worry about running out of room. Now all I have to do is find a driver, not that I would mind having to drive this myself.” She smiled.

“That won’t be necessary, Tasha.” Vince said smiling. “Daryl, come here please.”

An older gentlemen wearing a black suit with a white shirt stepped over from the other side of the coach. He had salt and pepper colored hair and seemed to be in very good shape for his age.

“This is Daryl and he will be your driver. Daryl this is the owner of this beautiful rig, Ms. Tasha Rene’.” Vince said as the two shook hands.

“Pleased to meet you, Daryl.”

“And you as well miss.”

“And this is Joe Anoa’i and Jon Good, they’ll be traveling with her.”

The guys all shook hands before Vince spoke again. “Daryl is a former Navy Seal, so I have no doubts that you all are in safe hands. So, why don’t you all head back inside and get ready for the show and I will get Daryl acclimated to working for WWE.”

“Okay. Thank you again, Vince. I very much appreciate all of this.” Tasha said looking lovingly at her new rig.

“You have earned it honey. Enjoy your night.”

The three then headed back into the venue, Tasha practically skipping towards the doors as Jon and Joe chuckled behind her.

As Monday Night Raw kicked off Tasha became Siren, which wasn’t much of a switch. She always joked with the guys saying, “What would people think if they knew that Tasha and Siren were one in the same?”

According to Joe and Jon, people would be terrified.

The show started with Stephanie calling Vickie out to the ring to address the incident from last Monday. Siren and Roman traded smirks as Vickie walked down to the ring. Vickie proceeded to tell Stephanie that it was Siren and Roman Reigns that had put something in her drink.

“We’ve been ratted out, Rome.” Siren said laughing.

Stephanie goes on to make a match for that night between Vickie and herself, for Vickie to keep her job.

“Oh snap.” Siren laughed. “This ought to be interesting.”

About 40 minutes later the group again sits in the locker room as Triple H heads to the ring to announce the entrants into the WWE contract ladder match alongside Seth.

“It’s funny that I can come to a place like Washington D.C. where officials are elected year after year that have no idea what they’re doing and they make the country worse and worse and yet I am still the bad guy. When all I really do is just do what is best for business. That’s not just some empty catchphrase, it is the truth, it is at the root of everything I do. It is why this Sunday at the Money In The Bank pay-per-view there will not only be a championship ladder match, there will also be a traditional Money In The Bank contract ladder match. A match in which the winner will climb a ladder, retrieve a briefcase and inside that briefcase a contract, a contract that allows the owner a shot at being the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, any place, anywhere, anytime inside of a WWE ring and it is good for one full year. It virtually guarantees the winner of that case, the winner of that contract, it guarantees them the ability to write their own future. This past Wednesday in my interview with Michael Cole on WWE.com, I told the world that the first entry in that ladder match would be none other than Seth Rollins.

And I’m here tonight to tell you the rest of the lineup for that match, and before you think that I make my decisions based on favoritism, let me remind you that everybody in this match is in it because—and you can say it with me, it’s best for business.”

The pictures of the competing men come up across the titan-tron. “Up first is a former United States, Intercontinental and tag team champion. A man who has made a highlight reel of himself in ladder matches, Kofi Kingston. Up next is a former Money In The Bank ladder match winner who parlayed that win into a World Heavyweight Championship, the Real American, Jack Swagger. Up next is a man that many of you think I just don’t appreciate the talent of but I’m here to tell you for that very reason he is in this match, Dolph Ziggler. Up next is a man that can fly and if need be go to the extreme, Rob Van Dam. And just in case you thought that was it, well then, I love doing this, I’ve got some bad news for you, right? Bad News Barrett, ladies and gentlemen.”

He pauses a moment to let the choices sink in to everyone before he continues. “Now, any of these men, any of them, you can make the argument that they would be the favorite to climb that ladder and retrieve that contract but if I was asked who my favorite would be, if I was asked who I would believe would win that match and there is only one man that I can tell you, one man is who I think will win this, that man is Rob Van… no, no, I’m sorry, I can’t even say it with a straight face, it’s so funny. No, there’s one man who I believe will win this. Hell, I’ll go so far to say I know he’ll win this, he is a specialist, a technician, a ring general like no other, and he is the future of the WWE, Seth Rollins.”

Siren smiles as Seth’s music cues up and he walks out onto the stage. “Well, at least we agree on one thing.” She admires his new t-shirt as he takes the mic from Triple H.

“Awe, come on, you guys. You’re not over it yet?” Seth says as the crowd chants “you sold out”.

“Really? It’s been three weeks since that happened, give me a break. You really haven’t moved on yet? Well that’s too bad, cause I’m over it. I’ve moved on and if you guys love Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns and Siren as much as you say you do. Yeah. Then you should be thanking me, every waking second because I am responsible for all of their success and don’t you forget it. I took The Shield as high as we could go and then I dropped the dead weight. And you can call me a sellout all you want for it, Roman Reigns can scowl and grunt all he wants and Dean Ambrose can get all twitchy and spuddery and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah…”

Siren covers her mouth to hide her laugh as she watches Seth make fun of her friends. She couldn’t help herself, it was one thing she liked about him, his ability to make her laugh. Even at the most inappropriate times.

“It’s not gonna change a thing. I created The Shield, I have every right to destroy The Shield. And it’s no secret, it’s no secret that The Shield got me this far… but this Sunday I and I alone will climb the ladder, I and I alone will grab that contract. You can call me a sellout all you want but after this Sunday you’ll be calling me Mr. Money--”

Siren smirks as RVD comes out to interrupt Seth and Triple H. He tells the crowd that he doesn’t think that the two in the ring take him seriously.

“Oh, no, no, Rob, I take you very seriously.” Seth tells him. “In fact I’d take you more seriously if this was 2005.”

Rob laughs as Seth smirks thinking he schooled the veteran, but what Rob comes back with has the whole crowd laughing. “Oh, right, because that’s when you were asking mom and dad to stay up late to watch me on TV because you wanted to be a wrestler.”

Siren laughs, she sees the smirk on Seth’s face because she knows that what Rob said had a hint of truth to it.

“You might’ve forgot about this but I happen to be a former Money In The Bank winner. Actually, I’m a former WWE Champion. And, dude, I know for a fact that that man standing beside you totally remembers when I crushed his trachea at the first Elimination Chamber Match, what?” Rob smiles as Triple H scowls, he’s getting under both Triple H and Seth’s skin. The crowd starts chanting RVD. “Good times. But Hunter, as you’re always saying yourself time and time again it’s lame to brag about the past. So I’ll say this, let’s live in the present, we got this Money In The Bank pay-per-view on Sunday, how about if I beat your new Golden Boy right now.”

Siren can see Seth fuming, he turns to Hunter and tells him, “Give me a piece of him, right now.”

Hunter smirks and raises his mic, placing a hand on Seth’s shoulder. “Great, let’s get a referee out here then and let’s get this done.”

Siren watches the monitor intently, she knows this should be a good match between the two men. But this wasn’t just a match between two competitors, this was old school versus new school. And as much as she hated to, she was betting on Seth winning.

In the early goings of the match Rob had Seth dead to rights several times, but as everyone always did, Rob underestimated Seth’s skills. Ron delivered a devastating DDT to Seth, and surprisingly to everyone Seth stood back up avoiding a Five-Star Frog Splash from Rob. He then delivered a curb stomp, but just as he went to pin RVD, an unexpected man jumped into the ring and started to beat down Rollins.

Siren couldn’t help but cheer as Dean slid into the ring and started to lay a heavy beat down on Seth. “That’s my Lunatic.” She said laughing as she knocked fists with Roman who was laughing as well as they watched.

Dean knocked Seth out of the ring and started throwing him around the announcer’s area. Finally several referee’s got in between the two and Dean backed off. But as soon as they thought they had him under control, Dean shoved past them, climbed up on the announcer’s table and leapt off tackling Seth to the floor once again. The referee’s managed to pull them apart again, Dean climbed into the ring and started down Seth as he retreated up the ramp.

Dean grabbed a mic from one of the tech’s and delivered his message to Seth. “They might as well, go ahead and put me in that Money In The Bank ladder match right now, huh? Because of they don’t, I’m still gonna show up in Boston anyway, I’m still gonna bash Seth Rollins face in and I’m still gonna grab that briefcase and walk out the door with it, I will screw up the entire pay-per-view.” He yells before throwing the mic down to the canvas.

He then picks it back up still having more to say. “I’m coming to Money In The Bank regardless and I ain’t coming to play nice.” He again throws the mic down as his theme hits.

In the back Siren smirks over to Roman. “He’s gonna get us all fired.”

As they come back from the commercial break the cameras show Triple H and Seth in the office talking about the ambush by Dean Ambrose.

“This is the best way to approach this. You know what I’m saying?” Triple H says.

Seth shakes his head as he removes his gloves. “No, no, there’s no—there’s no other way. You heard what he said out there. I don’t wanna be this close from grabbing that contract and have him come out of nowhere and ruin it for me. He’s gonna screw me over every chance he gets with—” Seth sighs about to say something he knew could be career ending for him. “You got to put Dean Ambrose in this match. You got to put Dean Ambrose in this contract ladder match with me, please, you’ve got to.”

“You want him where you can’t control, you want him in that?”

“Look, I know it sounds crazy. I controlled Dean Ambrose for two years in The Shield. I need him where I can see him. You called me a ring general out there for a reason. I need to be able to have eyes on Dean Ambrose at all times, please.”

“I get that.”

“Please and… besides, I wanna see the look on Dean Ambrose’s face when I’m the one standing on that ladder with the contract in my hands, crushing his dreams.”

“If this blows up in your face, it’s gonna be on you.” Triple H warns him.

“I got this.” Seth growls. “Give me Dean Ambrose. I got it.”

Triple H laughs, slapping Seth on the back. “I love your confidence, man. You want Ambrose in that ladder match?”

“Give him to me.”

“You got him. He’s in.”

Siren shakes her head, sighing she walks out of the locker room heading for catering to grab a drink. After grabbing a water she started back for the locker room, however she bumped into Seth on the way.

“Sorry.” She said lightly before side stepping him to continue on her way.

“Siren.”

She stopped and looked back over her shoulder. “I hope you know what you’re doing, Seth. Despite what you think, Dean didn’t want in the match to win the contract. He’s in it to hurt you.”

“You think I can win?” He asked honestly, he needed her support.

She gave him a small smile, “I know you can, but not in one piece.” With that said she walked off down the hall to the locker room.

She sat down just in time to watch Vickie’s match against Stephanie. A wide smile broke across her face as Eddie’s theme music came on. She crossed her heart and blew a kiss to the heaven’s as Vickie walked down the ramp.

But instead of facing Stephanie, the Princess sent Alicia Fox, Rosa and Layla down to get Vickie. Instead of a match in the ring, it was a pudding match, a large blow up pool had been set up by the stage and filled with what Stephanie said was raw sewage, but they all knew it was chocolate pudding. But still it was gross.

Vickie ended up throwing all three women into the pool, but Stephanie got the best of her, kicking Vickie into the pool and effectively firing her. As Stephanie began singing, “na, na, na, na, goodbye”, she didn’t see the seething look on Vickie’s face. However as Vickie turned around Stephanie faltered in her singing. She eyed the pool behind her, and the extremely pissed off Guerrero in front of her and the crowd chanting “yes!”.

“Vickie, you need to consider your retirement.”

But her reasoning fell on deaf ears as Vickie grabbed Stephanie by the hair and with a large smile, Vickie threw Stephanie into the pool. She walked away up the ramp, pausing at the top she shook her shoulders just as Eddie used to do. Pointing towards the ceiling Vickie looked up saying, “I love you, Eddie.” She then gave a kiss and a salute to the crowd before walking out to her husband’s music.

As they got ready for the handicap match to end the night, Siren spotted Vickie walking towards the back door. “Vickie!” Siren hollered to the woman as she jogged down the hall towards her.

The two women just stood for a moment staring at one another, before they both smiled. Vickie embraced Siren, the younger woman returning the hug. “Bye Vick.”

“Bye Tash.” Vickie whispered.

As they stepped back Siren smiled, “Eddie would be proud of you.”

Vickie smiled back, she took Siren’s hand in her own, looking caringly into the younger woman’s eyes. “Eddie, would be so proud of you. You have surpassed every challenge that has been set before you. There’s nothing you can’t do.” She laid her hand on the side of Siren’s face, her tone serious. “Don’t let this company take away the most important thing.”

“What’s that?” Siren asked honestly not knowing what she was telling her.

“Your heart baby.” Vickie smiled before kissing her cheek and opening the back door. She paused turning back to Siren. “When the time comes, you’re the only one that will be able to save him.”

Siren watched her friend go, turning around she walked slowly back towards the curtain. Her mind was now focused on Seth, was Vickie right? Could Seth be saved? And why would she need to save him, he had the backing of the bosses. She then realized that she had answered her own question. The bosses only backed you until they found somebody better, and then they would turn on you. “Your heart.” She knew what Vickie was saying, Seth was her heart, and she wouldn’t allow this company to take him from her.

She paused by the interview area where Renee was interviewing John Cena, so she stopped to see what he had to say.

“John, how do you feel headed into tonight’s handicap match main event and also the championship match ladder match this Sunday?”

“Oh, Renee, you need to listen up and listen good because on Sunday you will hear that voice say, “We have a new WWE World Heavyweight Champion.” So, as for tonight, all that means is that those I fight with tonight on Sunday become my enemies. This Sunday, seven men fight for one price and never before in WWE have so many superstars been put in one ladder match to crown our champion. This match on Sunday will be brutal, chances are people will be hurt. Chance are careers will be on the line, chances are you will see moments that will last forever in WWE history. But one thing is certain, there is one guarantee, and that guarantee is this Sunday at Money In The Bank we will see a new WWE World Heavyweight Champion. So, the time for talk is over, it’s time to pick him. It’s time for you to put your Money In The Bank and decide which one of the magnificent seven walks in to Boston as a superstar and walks out a champion. Well, Boston is the home of the green monster and green is the color of money. And my money says that the champ is here. And you can bank on that.”

Siren smiles as John’s music hits and he walks past her, giving her a wink before he walks through the curtain to the roar of the crowd. She then heads up to the balcony, stopping beside Roman as Sheamus heads to the ring. The two smile before knocking fists as their music hits and they descend down through the crowd.

Siren stands ringside as the other team makes their way to the ring and the match gets underway with John starting it out for their team against Orton. It was amusing to Siren to see the two best friends going at it hard. Despite what the fans sometimes thought, most of the superstars were good friends backstage and they managed to keep their personal lives apart from their professional. But in some cases, like The Shield, the professional choices impact the personal lives.

The team of four, consisting of Del Rio, Bray, Orton and Cesaro control the majority of the match, managing to keep each opponent isolated from their corner. The match ended with all seven men in the ring as a melee breaks out. Sheamus levels Cesaro with a Brogue Kick and pins him for the win.

Suddenly the arena erupts as Kane makes his way down to the ring, Sheamus the only man standing making him the only target. Kane takes out everyone in path with choke slams, not caring who it is. Just then Triple H’s music comes on and the boss comes out onto the stage stopping beside Randy who is standing on the top of the stage.

“Ladies and gentlemen, the eighth participant in the championship ladder match, the Demon Kane.”

Siren ducks as Kane explodes the tops of the turnbuckles with his hell fire, the heat causing her to back up from the ring. But she smiles as Kane is speared to the mat by Roman who had climbed back into the ring. She slides into the ring and stands beside him raising his hand into the air, while pointing up at the belts hanging above the ring.

Chapter 9: Ladders Are Not My Friend

Chapter Text

I know it's warmer where you are
And it's safer by your side
But right now I can't be what you want
Just give it time

And if you and I
Can make it through the night
And if you and I
Can keep our love alive, we'll find

We can meet in the middle
Bodies and souls collide
Dance in the moonlight
When all the stars align
For you and I, for you and I, oh

I know it's cold when we're apart
And I hate to feel this die
But you can't give me what I want
Just give it time

And if you and I
Can make it through the night
And if you and I
Can keep our love alive, we'll find

We can meet in the middle
Bodies and souls collide
Dance in the moonlight
When all the stars align
For you and I, for you and I, oh

But for now we stay so far
'Til our lonely limbs collide
I can't keep you in these arms
So I keep you in my mind

But for now we stay so far
'Til our lonely limbs collide
I can't keep you in these arms
So I keep you in my mind

(Reaching out, can’t feel you now)

Can we meet in the middle?
Bodies and souls collide
Dance in the moonlight
When all the stars align
For you and I, for you and I, oh

Tuesday’s Main Event emanates from Pittsburgh, PA, with Dolph kicking off the show talking about the ladder match.

Siren walked through the backstage area, she was excited because her daughter would be with her for the summer starting on Sunday at Money In The Bank. Her family would be there as well to watch the show.

Seeing Seth standing by the curtain getting ready for his match she nodded to him, which he returned with a smile. As much as she wanted to hate him like Joe and Jon, she couldn’t. When it came down to it, she understood why he had done it. She had been around WWE long enough to know that sometimes to be the good guy, you had to first be the bad guy, and there was no guy more hated right now than Seth Rollins.

She kept replaying Vickie’s words in her head, Seth was indeed her heart, but she knew she couldn’t be with him, at least not right now. If she did, it would be the biggest disrespect to Joe and Jon, and she was not about to add to their pain and frustration. Things between the four would die down eventually, she just had to hope that when it did, Seth still felt the same way about her when that day came.

She walked into the locker room, not seeing Roman or Dean anywhere she sat down on the couch and flipped on the monitor to watch Seth’s match. The match was a 3-on-3 tag match, Dolph, Kofi and RVD versus Jack Swagger, Barrett and Rollins.

She could see the intensity in Seth as the match got underway, he had been training hard in preparation for the ladder match that Sunday. Seth won the match, planting Kofi with a curb stomp for the win. But she noticed Seth’s bloodied nose as he headed back up the ramp to the back.

Deciding to see if he was alright, like a friend should do, she walked to the trainer’s room. Knocking lightly on the door she smiled at the trainer who opened it. “Is Seth okay?”

The trainer nodded, “He’s fine. Nothing broken. Do you wanna talk to him?”

“No that’s okay. Just let him know I came by to see if he was okay.”

“Will do, Siren.”

“Thanks.”

She turned and walked away, as she entered the locker room she found Roman and Dean sitting on the couch. “Hey guys.”

“Hey. Where were you?” Jon asked.

“Just down at the trainer’s.”

“You okay?” Joe questioned with a concerned look.

“Yeah. Just a little knot in my shoulder.”

Siren smoothed out her dress as she stood out in the balcony corridor with Roman. She felt silly wearing such a nice outfit to walk out to the ring, but wardrobe suggested it would be nice for the fans to see her dolled up, out of her Shield outfit. She finally agreed as she wasn’t in a fighting mood that night, so why wear her ring gear. But just in case something went down she pulled on a pair of black shorts under her dress and opted for a pair of black wedge ankle boots, instead of high-heels.

Seth sat in his locker room watching the monitor, he was waiting for Roman’s interview. Honestly he didn’t care what Roman had to say, he really just wanted to see Siren.

He saw Renee walk down and step into the ring with her mic. “Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome one of the competitors in the Money In The Bank championship ladder match, lead by his manager Siren, Roman Reigns.”

Seth heard the crowd exclaim as The Shield music rang out, he kinda missed having that kind of ovation. But his sadness turned to awe as he saw Siren step out onto the staircase. She was wearing a black sleeveless dress, the front had three strips of fabric across her chest giving glimpses of her skin, the hem stopped at her mid thigh and she was wearing black ankle boots. Her long brown hair was down, the ends curled and her makeup was a dark smoky eye. He had never seen her come to the ring like that, and how he wished he was the one walking beside her right then and not Roman.

He watched as she and Roman descended the stairs, knocking fists with the crowd as they went. When they got to the barricade Roman, like the gentleman he was, picked Siren up bridal style and deposited her on the other side of the wall.

She smiled her thanks as Roman climbed over the wall and joined her on the steps. Roman then held the ropes open for her and she stepped inside where they joined Renee. “Roman, the table is set. This Sunday at the Money In The Bank pay-per-view, in the biggest match ever, someone is gonna grab a piece of history and walk away the new, undisputed WWE World Heavyweight Champion.”

Roman lifts his mic, “I’ma get to that in a minute. I have to be straight up with you right now, I’m a wanted man in these parts. The Authority, they got a huge bullseye right here on my chest. And standing out here in the middle of this ring, it feels like a trap. With all due respect, I’d feel a lot better if you took off your high heels because if something goes down you’re gonna need to run really fast.”

Renee uneasily leans down and slips off her boots, then Roman turns to Siren. “You too, Babygirl.”

Siren sighs, but she smiles as she leans down and unzips the boots, slipping them off of her feet, leaving both women barefoot.

“Now, regarding the Money In The Bank championship ladder match, I’ve said it before, I don’t care who’s in it. Sheamus, Cesaro, Alberto Del Rio, Bray Wyatt, and even John Cena.” He gives a pointed look to Siren, who holds up her hands with a smile, “Why do you look at me?”

“When we were with The Shield, we ran this yard. Nothing changes for the big dog. I still run this yard and when I win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, I take my rightful place at the head of the table. Believe that.”

“Roman, it seems that you have overlooked a certain superstar, Randy Orton.”

Roman laughs, “How could ever do that? Randy Orton, the most pampered, spoiled little brat baby this company’s ever seen. For years now everybody’s been watching his back: Evolution, even The Shield and now The Authority. I don’t care who watches his back. I’m not here to hold his hand. I’m not here to wipe his ass, I’m here to kick it!”

“Now what about the eighth participant that Triple H added last night, the Demon Kane.”

“They say Kane’s a demon. He’s got this reputation of power, he’s diabolical and everybody’s scared of him. Renee, do I look like everybody?” He shakes his head with a smirk. “I assess and attack. I’ve assessed Kane and I’m ready to attack. That’s my code, that’s what I stand for. I assess and attack. Assess and attack.”

“Roman, Roman, Roman—” Their eyes turn to the titan-tron where Triple H is on the screen. “You assess and you attack. That’s awesome. Sounds like you want everybody to believe in Roman Reigns. You want everybody in the world to believe in Roman Reigns. But I know a man that believes in nothing. You’re gonna get a chance to know him. You’re gonna get a chance to know him real well, because Roman Reigns you are gonna be facing him this Friday night on Smackdown. You will face the demon Kane. And Roman, trust me, he believes in nothing. And maybe, just maybe, you should get to know him right now.”

Siren turns to the blonde, “Renee, get out of the ring. Go.”

“You get out of the ring, too.” Roman says looking at Siren.

“No, I’m staying.”

“Babygirl, please.” Roman asks giving her his puppy dog eyes.

She sighs, “Fine. But if he didn’t come alone, I’m coming back in.”

Roman nods as she grabs her shoes and climbs out of the ring, his attention turns back to the big red monster as he walks down the ramp. Kane climbs into the ring, the two men staring one another down. The two start trading punches until Kane grabs Roman by the throat looking for a choke slam. But Roman maneuvers out of it and hits Kane with a right hand knocking him back against the ropes. Roman rushes him and knocks him over the ropes to the floor.

Kane raises his arms and brings them down, setting off an explosion of fire on each of the turnbuckles. But his plan to intimidate the big dog backfires as Roman doesn’t so much as flinch.

Roman and Siren walk backstage to their locker room, picking up their bags they head out to Tasha’s rig to travel back to the hotel. They are met at the coach by Jon and Renee, the latter smiling at them as they approach.

“Hey Renee, you joining us on our trip back to the hotel?” Tasha asks as she opens the door.

“Yeah, Jon invited me. Is that okay, Tash?”

“Of course it is. The more the merrier, Renee.” She said walking inside with Renee and the two men in tow.

“This is beautiful, Tasha.” Renee exclaimed as she looked around.

“Thank you.” She says stepping up front where Daryl was waiting in the driver’s seat. “We’re all ready boss.”

Daryl turned around smirking at her, “Isn’t that what I’m supposed to call you?”

“Not if you wanna keep your teeth.” She smirked as the older man laughed.

“Alright then Ms. Tash, let’s head out.”

The group sat around laughing and talking, munching on snacks and drinking beer.

When they arrived at the hotel the group parted ways, with Jon and Renee heading into the hotel with Daryl. Tasha turned to Joe who was pulling out the bed inside of the couch. “You staying here, Lee?”

“Yeah, Babygirl. I’m getting tired of hotel beds, this is way more comfortable.”

“Understandable. Well, goodnight big man. I’ll see you in the morning.” She leaned down kissing his cheek.

“Night, Babygirl.”

The next morning Joe and Tasha headed out to the gym, they met up with Jon and Renee there. After a workout the group went out to grab some breakfast, before heading back to the arena to get ready for the show.

After attending the meeting and the others getting their scripts for the night, the group minus Renee walked to their locker room. They each got dressed in their gear as the show got started on the monitor.

The show kicked off with Triple H, Randy Orton and Seth Rollins in the ring. Triple H was smirking, which of course was not good news for anyone.

“Welcome to Smackdown. You know, in this business, people sometimes refer to things in eras. There’s a golden era, the rock and wrestling era, the attitude era, the ruthless aggression era. Today, I’ve heard it called the reality era but I think more accurately, it will be called The Authority era. Because The Authority is constantly making history. Take this Sunday for example. At the Money In The Bank pay-per-view, history will be made when for the first time ever, eight men will compete in a ladder match. And I guarantee you that at the end of that match, we will crown a brand new WWE World Heavyweight Champion. And that man will be the brand new face of the WWE.” He finishes looking right at Randy.

“But that’s not all, at the Money In The Bank pay-per-view, you don’t only get that, no, no, no, no, there’s much, much more. You also get a traditional Money In The Bank contract ladder match in which one man will climb a ladder and retrieve a contract that allows him to create his own opportunities.” He smirks as he rests his arm on Seth’s shoulder.

“Now, if I was a gambling man, I’d say that when Sunday is over, you’re looking at a pretty solid group right here. I would be willing to say that the brand new WWE World Heavyweight Champion and brand new face of the WWE will be none other than Randy Orton. And standing by his side with a briefcase and contract in hand allowing him a championship match anywhere, any place, any time will be Seth Rollins. And whether you like it or not, ladies and gentlemen, that, that is what’s best for business.”

“Hunter, you’re exactly right. That is what’s best for business.” Randy brags, he’s supremely confident that he’s going to walk out champion on Sunday. “This Sunday at the Money In The Bank pay-per-view, I will ascend that ladder and not only be the Viper, and not only be the Apex Predator, I will be the WWE World Heavyweight Champion and once again, the face of the WWE.”

“That’s right.” Seth says giving Randy a sideways glance. “Also on Sunday at the Money In The Bank pay-per-view, I will climb the ladder, I will defeat six other superstars including Dean Ambrose and I will forge my own destiny when I secure a contract that guarantees me a WWE World Heavyweight Championship match anytime, anywhere. And in case, things don’t work out like Hunter said, we always got a plan b.”

“Oh this is gonna be all bad.” Siren says to Roman and Dean who are sitting beside her. Judging from the look on Randy’s face, if there’s a plan b, he’s not in on what it is.

“Now wait a minute, wait a minute, Mr. Plan B, please pray tell what exactly do you think is gonna go wrong?”

“Hey, take it easy, Randy. I wasn’t—I didn’t mean that, no, no, no, no, no. I mean it’s not unthinkable that you might not get the job done again, you know.”

“I’m sensing dissention among The Authority ranks, boys.” Siren says smirking.

“Seth, that’s not unthinkable. What’s not unthinkable is that without your Shield guys standing by your side that I don’t whip your ass.”

Triple H steps in between the two as Seth begins unbuttoning his suit jacket. “Hey, you—all right, all right.” He smirks, obviously an idea had just come into his mind as he places a hand across Seth’s chest and shoves him back from Randy. “Okay. I got to do this in front of everybody. All right. I understand sometimes, there might be some, some trust issues. Randy, do you know why you should trust Seth? Seth, do you know why you should trust Randy? Because I do, that’s why. Because I trust him, that’s why you trust him. And you wanna know the reality of it for both of you? The reality of it whether you like it or not is there’s one constant in this whole equation, one constant that isn’t gonna change and that is The Authority, that is Steph, that is me. It is not gonna change. So here’s the thing, you can either survive against The Authority or you can thieve with The Authority. So while trust right now might be a little bit of a bitter taste in your mouths, adapt or perish, right? This is the future, this is the present, this is the future, this is the plan and like I said, this is best for business, all right? Now, we’ll move on because where you see Seth Rollins lately, you see one man, Dean Ambrose.”

Dean goes to get up off of the couch and Siren grabs his arm, hauling him back down. “Ah, ah, ah, sit your ass down.”

“And you can be excited all you want because in just a moment, you’re gonna see Dean Ambrose. That’s the good news. Unfortunately, for all of you and I just got to—I got to say, I love doing this, I’ve got some bad news for you.”

Siren waits until they go to commercial before she gets up motioning to Dean. “All right, now you can go f*ck sh*t up.”

“Yes!” Dean whoops before he jets out the door, Siren following with a smile and a shake of her head.

“Lunatic. But you gotta love him.”

She meets up with Dean at the gorilla position, she notices that neither Triple H, Randy or Seth have come backstage yet. She figures they must have cut through the back on the side of the stage to avoid Dean, well they proved they at least had some sort of sense between the three.

Siren smirks as Dean’s theme hits and the two walk out onto the stage. As Dean climbs into the ring, Siren takes her place ringside to cheer him on.

Halfway through the match Barrett knocks Dean to the canvas, Siren slams her hand down on it, willing him to his feet. “Come on, Dean! Get up!”

Dean hits Barrett with a vicious clothesline and delivers “Dirty Deeds” for the win. But as Siren climbs into the ring and hugs him, another superstar’s music hits and they both see Jack Swagger walk out onto the stage with Zeb Colter in tow.

Dean stands in the ring begging Swagger to come in there and fight, Dean’s still fired up. But instead Swagger levels Barrett with a clothesline before tossing him around the outside. Just as he prepares to lock in his ankle lock, Dean flies through the ring ropes and takes them both out. He then grabs one of the small ladders and drives it into Swagger’s gut, then he slams it down onto Swagger’s back. Dean grabs Swagger and heaves him up into the ring where Sired still stands, leaning amusedly against one of the turnbuckles.

Swagger picks Dean up over his shoulder as he rushes him and tosses him back first over the ropes by the announcer’s table. He turns his back on Dean, which is a bad idea, as the Lunatic slides back into the ring and takes him down, raining punches down on his face. Dean knocks Swagger over the ropes onto the floor, he rolls out of the ring in pursuit, grabbing Swagger and slamming him into the barricade, flipping him into the time keeper’s area. He then grabs Swagger by the back of the neck and slams his head off of the announcer’s table.

Before Siren can warn Dean however, Seth comes through the crowd and shoves Dean back first into the steel ring steps. Seth then punches Dean several times in the head before picking him up and shoving him back into the ring. Siren leans down to check on Dean, she can see Seth on the outside removing his jacket and knows he’s not done yet. He climbs up onto the apron rolling up his sleeves, before he gets into the ring.

“Move.” He tells her.

“No.”

“Move, Siren.”

“No! Do not do this, Seth.” She states. “You want him, you’re going through me. Do you really want to hurt me?”

“No. But I will move you.” He grabs her by the hair, carefully so as not to hurt her and tosses her out of the ring towards Zeb and Swagger. “Hold her. Or I will make your life hell.”

Siren screams in anger as Jack stands up, wrapping his arms around her, pinning her to his chest. “Let me go! Swagger! I swear to god I will kill you!”

In the ring Seth is screaming at Dean. “You think you’re gonna ruin this for me? You think you’re gonna ruin this for me, huh? I got eyes on you all the time.”

“Dean!” Siren screams as she watches Seth bounce off of the ropes and deliver a vicious curb stomp to her brother.

“You will not ruin this for me. I created my own opportunities. My time!”

Siren fumes as Seth turns back to her, “Don’t let her go until I’m backstage.” He then gets out of the ring and walks back up the ramp.

Swagger then lets her go, she slides into the ring kneeling down beside Dean. “Easy, Dean. Don’t move.” The trainer’s run down to the ring, together with Siren they help Dean backstage to the trainer’s room.

“Damnit!” Siren screams as the door shuts, she turns kicking over a box that was sitting on the floor.

“Hey love, you okay?”

Siren turns to find Paige standing before her, her Diva’s Championship belt hanging over her shoulder.

“No, Paige, I’m not. I can’t do this anymore.” Siren says defeated as she slides down the wall behind her.

Paige kneels down in front of her friend, she hated seeing her so distraught these days. “Look, I’ve got my match right now, but after it’s over you and me are gonna talk, okay?”

Siren nodded meekly as Paige hugged her, lightly kissing her head. “Hang in there, okay?”

True to her word Paige returned right after her match, she found Siren still sitting in the same spot. “Come on, love. Let’s go talk.” She took Siren’s hand and helped her up.

The two walked outside to Tasha’s coach as they would have more privacy in there. They sat down on the couch and Paige turned towards her friend, she looked so confused and lost, it killed Paige to see her that way.

“So what did you mean, you can’t do this anymore?”

Tasha looked up with tears in her eyes, “I can’t hate him. Colby. I can’t do this every night.”

“I have watched you for years, you have never had a problem playing your role. Why is Seth Rollins any different?”

“Because I love him.” Tasha admitted.

“I knew you did.” Paige said with a smile. “We could all see it. So why don’t you tell him?”

Tasha shook her head, “I can’t. It would kill Lee and Jon. I can’t do that to them.”

“Honey, if Joe and Jon are truly your friends, if they really love you like they say, they’ll accept it for you. They don’t have to forgive Colby, but they could at least tolerate him for you.”

“I don’t think they could.”

“Just talk to them. Sometimes the ones we love, others think aren’t good enough for us. But that doesn’t mean they should stop you from following your heart. Just promise me you’ll think about it. I hate seeing you like this. I want my bubbly, laughing, always happy bestie back.”

Tasha laughed, that was why she loved Paige, she was her best girlfriend and she always knew what to say despite her only being 19. “How are you so smart about relationships at only 19?”

Paige nudged her shoulder with a smile, “I had a good teacher.”

After going back inside Siren headed up to the balcony with Roman to get set for his match against Kane. Knowing that her mind needs to be on the match, Siren pushes Seth from her mind, she would deal with that issue later.

As their music hits the two begin their descent down the stairs towards the ring, hopping over the barricade and pausing by the ring steps. Siren knocks fists with Roman before he climbs into the ring ready to fight Kane.

Throughout the match Siren keeps a vigilant eye on the surrounding crowd and ramp, she just knew there would be outside interference. It was inevitable, she just didn’t know who it would be.

Just as she thought, as soon as Roman locked and loaded delivering his superman punch to Kane, he backed into the corner ready to deliver a spear when the interference came. Randy ran down the ramp and began his assault on Roman, the referee called for the bell giving the win to Roman via disqualification. Both Randy and Kane continued their beating on Roman, with Kane delivering a choke slam planting Roman on the mat.

Siren watched Kane climb out of the ring, he grabbed the tallest ladder he could find and shoved it back into the ring. Sensing the danger she ran around and tried to pull Roman from the ring out of harms way, but as Kane picked up the ladder he swung it towards her and nailed her in the face. Siren fell back to the floor, the blow causing her vision to go fuzzy. She didn’t know what was going on in the ring, but she could hear the crowd buzzing. As her vision cleared she looked into the ring and screamed in terror.

“Rome!”

Her scream roused Roman, who was set dead to rights by Randy, ready to deliver a punt, which had put several superstars out of action over the years. As Randy rushed him, Roman popped up delivering a spear that knocked Randy backwards a good two feet. Roman then delivered another spear to Kane as the monster tried to charge him. Roman picks up the titles that Randy had taken down and holds them up high as the crowd goes wild. He holds them high looking around the ring, he can’t find her. Suddenly his eyes fall on her and instantly he drops the belts and slides out of the ring coming to her side.

“Jesus Christ Babygirl.” He says as he sees the blood covering her face. “What happened?”

“Ladder.” Was all he heard her say.

A look of fury came over his face as he stared at the two men in the ring, but before he could go inflict more damage on them, Siren laid her hand on his arm. “Roman. Don’t. Get me outta here. Please.”

As much as Roman wanted to beat the two men to death, his first priority was Siren. He leaned down, picking her up bridal style and carried her to the back.

As he walked through the backstage area they were approached by Paige and Renee who were both concerned for their friend. The two women followed them to the trainer’s room where Roman laid Siren down on one of the beds.

Even though the cameras were off, Joe was still in Roman mode. Feeling his anger rising he left Tasha in the care of the trainer’s, knowing that Paige and Renee would look after her. He stalked out of the room intent on finding Orton and Kane, and beating them to death. But as he rounded a corner he found someone he wished he hadn’t right then. Seth Rollins.

“What happened?”

“Your little buddies are what happened.” Joe spit out, venom dripping from his words.

“Is she okay?” Colby asked concerned, knowing he was practically signing his death warrant by speaking to the man.

“What do you care, man?” Joe snapped, his anger and resentment towards Seth Rollins still fresh.

“Look, I know you’re pissed at me and you have every right to be. What I did was f*cked up and I know that. But you know as well as I do, if you don’t play ball with the bosses, you might as well pack your sh*t and leave. I’m just doing what I gotta do to keep living the dream we all had growing up. I know you and Jon will never forgive me, but I just needed you to know that I am sorry. Despite what you guys might think, I do still care, especially about her. That won’t ever change.” Colby sighed, running his hands through his hair in frustration, this wasn’t how he wanted this to go down. “Look, will you just tell her I’m sorry and I hope she’s okay.”

Colby turned to walk away, but Joe’s voice paused him. “Go tell her yourself. She’s in the trainer’s room.” As much as it pained Joe to speak civilly to Colby, he did apologize, and it was genuine, he knew that from all the years they had spent together. And deep down Joe had hope that one day they could all be friends again.

“Okay, thanks.” Colby said with a nod as he headed off down the hall to the trainer’s room. Once there he knocked lightly on the door before he entered. Sticking just his head in he found Paige and Renee smiling at him. “Hey, is she okay?”

Paige nodded, “They’re gonna send her for some x-rays, just in case, but she should be fine. Come in.”

Colby stepped into the room, closing the door behind him. He approached the bed Tasha laid on as Paige and Renee stood up.

“We’ll check on you later, love.” Paige said before she and Renee took their leave, smiling at the couple behind them.

Tasha nodded to her friends, still in and out of it she didn’t notice that Colby was in the room until he laid his hand on hers. “Hey beautiful, how you feeling?”

She looked over, shocked to see him sitting beside her. “Like I got hit in the face with a ladder.” She joked.

But despite her humor Colby frowned, “I’m so sorry Tash.”

“Hey, it’s okay, Colby. sh*t happens.”

The trainer walked up before Colby could say anything. “Okay Siren, you’re gonna need to go to the hospital for some x-rays. Do you need a ride there?”

“I’ll take her.” Colby offered.

“Okay, here’s the paperwork for the x-rays, just give it to the front desk.”

Colby nodded as he stood up, placing his arm around her back to help her to her feet. As they exited the trainer’s room they were met by Joe who had Tasha’s bag in his hand.

“She’s gotta go get x-rays, I offered to take her.” Colby said hesitantly, not sure if Joe was going to allow that.

But Joe only nodded, “Okay. Her rig is outside waiting, it’ll take you guys there. I’m gonna ride to Boston with Jon and Renee. Take care of her.”

Colby nodded, picking Tasha up bridal style, he took her bag from Joe, who leaned forward and kissed her forehead. “Love you, Babygirl. I’ll check on you later, okay?”

“Okay Lee. Love you too.” She said.

With that Colby walked outside to Tasha’s new rig where he was met by who he assumed was her driver. He nodded to the man, “She’s gotta go to the hospital for some x-rays.”

“Okay, I’ll take you there. I’m Daryl, her driver.”

“Colby. Her friend.” He said shaking the man’s hand.

Daryl nodded, knowing all about him from Tasha, Joe and Jon, so he was surprised that it was him that was attending to her. He opened the door and Colby carried Tasha inside, gently setting her down on the couch.

As they drove to the hospital Colby looked around the rig. “This is nice.”

“Thanks.” Tasha smiled.

Colby kept a watchful eye on her nose as they rode along, the trainer’s had stopped the bleeding, but he knew it could start again. He could see the area around her eyes already darkening, he knew she was going to have two nasty black eyes in the morning.

When they arrived at the hospital despite arguing from Tasha that she could walk, Colby lifted her up into his arms and carried her inside. The nurses were already waiting for her, as they had been contacted by WWE personnel. They took her back for x-rays while Colby sat in the waiting room. Half an hour later one of the nurses came to get him.

“She’s going to be fine. It’s only a small fracture, it should heal in a couple of weeks. She’s going to have one hell of a headache and two very black eyes.”

The nurse pointed him to Tasha’s room where she was resting. Colby entered seeing Tasha sitting up in the bed, she smiled as he walked in.

“Hey. Good news, it’s just fractured. You’ll be fine in a couple of weeks.”

Tasha nodded as he sat down in the chair beside her bed. “Thanks, Cole. For being here.”

Colby smiled, “I’ve missed that nickname. You’re the only one who uses it.”

The two sat there silently, waiting for the doctor to release her. After a few minutes Colby sighed. “Tasha I’m sorry. For everything.”

She shook her head, “I told you, you don’t have to apologize. I know what this business is like, I’ve been here for thirteen years. In order to stay relevant, you gotta change. Sometimes you gotta do things you don’t want to do, like play ball with the bosses. Sometimes you’re the good guy, and sometimes you’re bad guy. It’s just how things work around there. And let’s be honest, you do make a really good bad guy.”

They both smiled as Colby shook his head. “I just wish it could’ve went down another way. I miss my brother’s… and you.”

“I’m still here.” She smiled with a shrug.

Half an hour later they were loading up onto the rig, Tasha turned to Colby. “You gonna ride to Boston with me?”

Colby nodded, “I promised Joe I’d take care of you, and that’s what I’m gonna do.”

Tasha nodded as she stepped inside the rig with Colby behind her. “Let’s head out D. We gotta long drive.”

“You got it Ms. T.” Daryl smiled before drawing the curtain closed that separated him from the coach and starting the rig, pulling out onto the road.

In the back Tasha turned to Colby as he sat down on the couch. “I’m gonna go change.”

Colby nodded as she headed into her bedroom, he took the time to look around, admiring her taste in the design of the rig. A few minutes later she came back out dressed in a pair of black sweats and a white Divas tank top.

“I was gonna lay down and watch a movie, you wanna join me?”

“Yeah sure.” Colby sat standing up and walking to the back of the coach where her bedroom was. He took off his sneakers as he laid down on the bed beside her. Propping himself up with some pillows he waited while Tasha picked out a movie and turned on the TV. Expecting her to lie down next to him, he was surprised as she lifted up his arm and scooted up next to him, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as she laid on his chest.

Throughout the movie Colby kept stealing glances at her, his heart clenched as he thought about what could have been, before he walked out on her. But he was determined to make her his, even if he had to fight Joe and Jon to make that happen. Looking down he saw that Tasha had fallen asleep, he gently reached over and tugged her fuzzy blanket over the two of them. Fighting off sleep Colby cherished the time he had with Tasha, knowing that when they reached Boston, Jon would not be as civil as Joe had been.

Chapter 10: My Little Girl

Chapter Text

And he was correct. As soon as they arrived at the arena where Money In The Bank was being held, Joe and Jon were waiting in the parking lot outside of the rig.

Tasha and Colby had woken up about two hours before hand, they had gotten dressed and Colby had fixed them a small breakfast. As they pulled into the parking lot Tasha spied Jon and Joe awaiting her. She turned with a sad smile to Colby, “I’ll go out first and take them into the arena.”

Colby nodded with a sigh. “I’m sorry it has to be this way, Tasha.”

Tasha shook her head, “I told you, Colby, stop apologizing. We have no control over The Authority and what they choose to make us do. All we can do now, is try to fix what’s broken. Do you still consider them your brother’s?”

“Yeah, I do.”

Tasha smiled, “Then we take it one day at a time. Things will get better. We just have to be patient.”

Colby scoffed, “Patience isn’t one of my virtues.”

“Don’t I know it.” She grinned giving him a wink as she opened the door and stepped out.

“So where’s the traitor?” Jon snarked as they started walking towards the arena.

Tasha rolled her eyes, looking over at Joe with raised eyebrows. “You told him?”

Joe held up his hands in defense, “I had to. He wanted to know why I wasn’t with you.”

“You could have lied.” She stated.

“We don’t lie to each other. We’re family.” Jon snapped.

“Sometimes Jon, a little white lie, hurts less than the truth.” Tasha snapped back before she walked ahead of them into the arena.

Colby watched his three former friends walking across the parking lot, well two now that he had Tasha back. But he was afraid of how long it would last, he was positive that Jon would try his hardest to change both hers and Joe’s slowly changing minds.

“They still care about you, ya know kid.”

Colby turned to Daryl who was still sitting in the driver’s seat. “How do you know?” He asked softly.

“They travel together, I drive, they talk. Mostly about all of the old times ya’ll shared together. They’re mad at you son, but they don’t hate ya. Like Tasha says, give it time, ya’ll be hanging out like old times in no time. She’s a smart lady.”

“Yeah, she is.” Colby said watching Tasha walk off from Joe and Jon disappearing into the arena.

“You love her don’t you?” Daryl said with a smirk, he already knew the answer by the look in Colby’s eyes.

“Yeah, I think I do.”

“Then don’t give up. A woman like her don’t come around but once in a lifetime.”

Tasha was upset with Jon and Joe as she walked into the arena. She understood their anger with Colby, but honestly she didn’t know how long they were going to hold that grudge.

After checking in with Stephanie and Hunter who had tried to ban her from ringside due to her nose, she walked to the interviewer’s area to do an interview with Renee. It was no secret that she had had her issues with Hunter and Stephanie over the years. But when it came down to it, no matter how ruthless they seemed, they really did care about their superstars.

Tasha smiled at Renee as she walked onto the interview set, the blonde getting up to give her a hug. “You look good, considering…” Renee said with a giggle as she motioned to Tasha’s eyes.

The brunette chuckled, “Yeah. Hunter and Steph told me no makeup on Sunday, they wanna sell the injury.”

Renee nodded as the two took their chairs and the interview began. “Welcome to WWE.com exclusive, I’m Renee Young. My guest tonight is someone who has been at the epicenter of what is shaping up to be one of the most heated rivalries of all time. She is the former Alpha of The Shield, Siren.”

“Hi, Renee. Thank you for having me.” Siren smiled as she looked at Renee, careful not to stare at the cameras around them.

“Thank you for coming. I know you’re not feeling 100% right now, I’ll make this quick so you can get some rest. So, first of all I wanted to ask you about Seth Rollins. We have heard over the last couple of weeks since his betrayal of The Shield, Roman and Dean’s feelings, but you haven’t really had a chance to say how it made you feel.”

“Honestly, Renee, it broke my heart. Seth was the one I was closest too. We did everything together. Traveled, went sightseeing, went to dinner, went to the gym. Everything. I feel like not only did we lose a valuable member of our group, but I lost my best friend.”

“So, a lot of fans have been asking if you guys would ever forgive him. What do you say to that?”

“I don’t know about Roman and Dean, they’re still pretty upset. Me, however, I’ve already forgiven him. Everyone in this business knows you’ll get a lot farther if you play ball with The Authority. Seth has aspirations to be World Heavyweight Champion. And with The Authority by his side, that’ll happen for him, I have no doubts. To the fans, have I forgiven him yes, will I forget what he did, no.”

“Okay. So one last question. Monday night on RAW, we saw you get hit in the face with a ladder by Kane. What was the diagnosis from the doctor’s and how are you feeling?”

“Well, I have a hairline fracture in the bridge of my nose. They said it should heal in a couple of weeks. Until then I’m gonna have two extremely black eyes.”

“So are you still gonna be ringside for Roman and Dean’s matches on Sunday night at Money In The Bank?”

“Yes of course. Nothing is gonna keep me from backing up my guys.”

“Well, you heard it here first, we will see Siren ringside on Sunday. Thank you so much for coming by, Siren. And for you fans remember Money In The Bank starts at 7pm eastern time on Sunday and is available on the WWE network.”

Tasha bids Renee goodbye and starts heading for the locker room, but her cell phone ringing pauses her. She takes it out of her back pocket and smiles as she sees her mother’s picture on the screen.

“Hey mama.”

“Hey sweetheart. I just wanted you to know that we’ll be landing in Boston in half an hour.”

“Okay great. I can’t wait to see you all.”

“Same here. Your daughter has been talking nonstop the whole flight about getting to see her mommy.”

Tasha sighs with a smile. “I miss her so much. I’m so glad I’m gonna have her with me for a few months.”

“Yeah. It’ll be nice for you both. I just hope it doesn’t inconvenience you with all the traveling and hotel rooms.”

“Not at all. She’s never an inconvenience to me.”

“Okay, well we’ll see you shortly honey.”

“Okay mama. See you soon. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Tasha hung up her cell phone and forgetting finding Joe and Jon she walks out to her rig. Climbing inside she finds Daryl lounging on the couch.

“Hey D. My family is landing in half an hour.”

“Well then.” He said climbing to his feet. “We better get to the airport then.”

“Okay.” She smiled. “Do you mind if I ride shotgun with you?”

“I’d be delighted Ms. T.” He said motioning to the other captain’s chair.

Tasha moved up front sitting down in the leather chair and strapping on her seat belt. The two made idle chat about her family as they drove through town. They arrived at the airport ten minutes before her family’s plane was set to land. Tasha placed her black Oakley sunglasses onto her face, pulled her hair back into a ponytail and tugged on her Shield ball cap.

While a few fans might recognize her, the simple disguise usually managed to fool most of them. Placing her cell phone into her back pocket she walked into the airport. Of course she was recognized by several fans, she gave them a genuine smile, sighing several autographs and posing for pictures. Tasha knew what it was like to be a fan, to meet someone you watched and looked up to. While most of the Superstars got irritated at being approached, especially after a long flight or if they were tired, Tasha never did.

She understood that without fans, the WWE wouldn’t exist, the fans made them who they were. The fans were the ones that bought the tickets, bought the merchandise, made their own signs and spent their hard earned money traveling the world just to see them perform. What kind of role model would she be, if she ignored the people that made it possible for her to do what she did. Not just in the ring, but Hollywood as well.

Tasha’s favorite thing to do besides Tribute To the Troops, was meeting her fans. Whether it be at meet and greets, or Comic Cons and all of the other conventions that she was booked at. It kept her humble to see all of the people that she inspired on a daily basis while living her dream.

After saying goodbye to her fans, she headed to the boards, finding her family’s flight information she walked to the gate their plane was set to arrive to.

Ten minutes later she was bouncing with excitement as the passengers started to trickle into the waiting area. Her smile brightened the room as she heard a little voice exclaim. “Momma!”

Tasha kneeled down as her 3 year old daughter Kailynn rushed out of the tunnel and into her waiting arms. “Hi baby! Oh, I missed you so much.”

“I missed you too, mommy.”

The two parted, Tasha stood up to hug her mom, dad, sister and future brother-in-law. After picking up her daughter they went to claim their bags and then headed out front to the waiting zone.

“So, did we get a limo again?” Her little sister Taylor asked.

Tasha shook her head with a smile. “Nope. We’re riding in that.” She pointed to the Concept Hauler parked to their left, Daryl was standing outside waiting for them.

“Is that yours?” Her sister asked excitedly.

“Yep, all mine.” Tasha said proudly, “Let’s go.”

The group approached the rig and Tasha introduced her driver. “Everybody, this is Daryl, my wonderful driver. Daryl this is my mother Teresa, my dad Jim, my sister Taylor and her boyfriend Kenny. And this is my daughter Kailynn.”

The group shook hands before Daryl opened the door and showed them inside, before he returned to the driver’s seat and began their drive back to the hotel. Even though Tasha had more than enough room, she figured her family would be more comfortable in the hotel rooms.

As they drove her family gushed over the rig, saying how nice it was and how proud of her they were. When they arrived at the hotel Tasha shooed Daryl off to go have some fun, as she didn’t have to be back at the arena until Sunday afternoon for the show. She got her family checked in and then settled into their rooms. After much pleading from her daughter, Tasha agreed that they could all go down to the pool and relax.

So after changing into their bathing suits, the group grabbed a few towels and rode the elevator down to the ground floor. As there were mostly WWE personal in this hotel Tasha didn’t have to worry about fans right then. She loved her fans and knew she would not be where she was without them, but it was still nice to just be able to hang out with her family without distractions.

As Tasha was splashing around in the shallow end with Kailynn she heard her name being called from behind her. “Hey, Tash.”

She turned to find her best girlfriends Renee, Paige and Trinity walking towards the pool donned in their favorite swimsuits. “Hey ladies. Come on in. The water’s nice and the drinks are fresh.” She said holding up her beer bottle with a smile.

The three women got their drinks from the bar, they were then reintroduced to Tasha’s family. They took the three seats beside Tasha’s family and started chatting amiably together with her family.

About an hour later there was a deep chuckle from the side of the pool, Tasha knew that velvety voice anywhere. She turned smiling up at Joe and Jon.

“Looks like we’re missing out on all of the fun, Jon.”

“Na.” Jon said shaking his head. “It ain’t fun till we’ve arrived.” He laughed before he ran and cannonballed into the pool beside Tasha.

Tasha spent several hours sitting on a chair watching Joe and Jon play in the pool with Kailynn. The two were like Uncles to the little girl and she adored them. A pang in her heart reminded her that there was one missing. And she dreaded when Kailynn realized his absence.

The day ended with Tasha and her family having dinner with Joe, Jon and the three Divas. After which they all headed back to the hotel for a good night’s rest.

Saturday was spent sightseeing, as Tasha took her family to all of the amazing spots she had found. As they were looking for a place to eat lunch Tasha got a call on her cell. She answered it and after a few minutes she hung up with a smile. “How do you guys feel about barbeque?”

An hour later they were standing in the front yard of a house Tasha had spent quite a lot of time at. She smiled as a man walked out of the house and Kailynn was the first to notice him.

“John!” She ran to him and he gathered her up into a bear hug.

“Hi, munchkin. I missed you.”

Tasha smiled as she watched John and her daughter talking. While John wasn’t sure about ever having kids, it couldn’t be denied that he was great with her daughter. John set Kailynn down and hugged Tasha.

“I’m glad you came.”

“Thanks for the offer, J.”

John Cena smirked at his best friend, he turned from her hugging her family. It had been quite a few years since he had seen them. He then motioned Tasha to the house. “Come on, mom’s dying to see you.”

Tasha smiled as she entered the house and was immediately embraced by John’s mother, Carol. “Oh, honey. It’s so good to see you. I’ve missed you very much.”

“I’ve missed you too, mom.”

Even after John and Tasha had gotten a divorce, Tasha was still considered a part of the Cena family. She even still had her engagement ring that she wore on the ring finger of her right hand. She had tried to give it back after they had divorced, but Carol insisted that she keep it. It was a white gold band with a purple diamond shaped like a tear drop and flanked by two triangle diamonds on the sides. It had belonged to John’s great grandmother and had been passed down to his mother. Since she had given birth to five boys, the ring went to the first of her sons to get engaged, which had been John. Tasha became the daughter that Carol had always wanted, and as such she would have been offended if Tasha had given the ring back.

The two families had a wonderful barbeque, followed by a game of their favorite pastime, whiffle-ball.

As the day turned to night the two families sat around a fire pit in the front yard, laughing and talking about old times. Knowing John and Tasha both had to be up early for Sunday, John bid Tasha and her family goodbye as they drove back to the hotel.

Chapter 11: Money In the Bank

Chapter Text

Sunday morning dawned with irritation for Tasha as she looked in the bathroom mirror. Her eyes were both a dark shade of black by now, and despite hearing Stephanie and Hunter’s voices in her head, she fought with herself to not grab her foundation makeup.

Not giving into her temptation she grabbed her duffel bag containing her clothes for that evening and walked out into the living area where her daughter was watching cartoons.

“You ready to go monkey?” Tasha asked, using her nickname for her daughter.

Kailynn smiled up at her before jumping to her feet. “Yeah!”

The two grabbed their jackets and walked out of the room, heading down to the lobby to meet up with her family. After gathering up her family members they walked out of the hotel and climbed into the rig, then Daryl drove them back to the arena.

As they pulled into the parking garage, Tasha gave out everyone’s VIP passes that allowed them backstage with her. As they walked through the backstage area the family was greeted by the superstars and divas that they had previously met. They arrived at one of the locker rooms and Tasha knocked on the door before she opened it. As they stepped through Kailynn was the first to notice the two men inside.

“Uncle Joe! Uncle Jon!” The little girl ran into the room launching herself into the muscled arms of Joe, who laughed loudly as he picked her up.

“Hey little one.”

Joe then passed her off to Jon who gave her a hug and kiss on her forehead, before he set her back down.

Tasha saw Kailynn glancing around the room and knew exactly who she was looking for. She had hoped that Kailynn hadn’t noticed their missing member, but as she always told people, her daughter was incredibly smart for a three year old.

“Momma where’s Cole?”

She had trouble pronouncing Colby, so she always referred to him as Cole. Tasha sighed, kneeling down she smiled at her daughter. “Honey, Colby isn’t part of our team anymore.”

“Can we go see him? Please.”

Despite her reluctance, Tasha couldn’t deny her daughter’s smiling face. She stood up and held out her hand, Kailynn slipping her tiny one into her mother’s. “We’ll be right back.”

Tasha lead her daughter down the hallways until she found Colby’s locker room. Knocking on the door she waited for him to open it.

Colby smiled as he opened the door to find Tasha standing on the other side. “Hey.”

Tasha smiled in return, nodding her head down to her side. “She wanted to see you.”

Colby’s eyes drifted downwards where he found Kailynn smiling up at him. “Hi pumpkin.”

Kailynn let go of her mother’s hand and ran forward hugging Colby’s leg. “Hi Cole!”

Tasha stood in the doorway watching the two as Kailynn started rambling on telling Colby all about pre-school at her daycare. She turned as she heard her name being called by one of the tech’s.

“Stephanie and Hunter would like to see you.”

Tasha nodded, “Okay. I’ll be right there.” She turned back to the two inside the locker room who were now looking over Kailynn’s coloring books she had pulled out of her backpack. “Do you mind watching her for a few minutes?”

Colby shook his head, “No I don’t mind at all.”

When Tasha returned to the locker room she opened the door to find Colby and her daughter laying on the floor coloring in a book. She quickly snapped a photo of the two, she then smiled as she crossed her arms and leaned against the door frame. “Hey monkey.” The two on the floor looked up at her. “It’s almost time for the show, we gotta get you to your seats.”

“Okay momma.” Kailynn gathered up her things and put them back into her backpack. “By Cole.” She said giving him a hug.

“Bye sweetie.”

Tasha took her daughter’s hand, turning back she smiled at Colby. “Thanks for watching her.”

“Anytime.”

“See you out there.”

Tasha stood backstage stretching her muscles out watching the opening sequence on the monitors. She smiled as she watched Joe’s cousin’s Jimmy and Jey Uso doing their signature entrance as they headed to the ring to defend their tag team titles. She had avoided going back to the locker room, she was still upset with Jon and the way he was acting towards Colby.

The match was intense, but Jimmy and Jey proved why they are the champs as they defeated the Wyatt’s to retain their titles. Tasha waved to Paige and Naomi as they walked towards the gorilla position, they were set to compete next for the Diva’s Championship. “Have fun, ladies.”

Tasha groaned as they again relived the night Seth turned on The Shield, but despite herself she actually watched it. She then smirked as they replayed the events from RAW, when Dean attacked Seth.

She turned towards the man standing beside her, she was set to stand by him as he did his promo.

The cameras started rolling and Siren came out to play as she stood beside Dean with her arms crossed over her chest, a feral grin gracing her face.

“Seth Rollins, you have no idea how badly—I wanna grab you by your tie, by the lapels of that shiny new suit and just rip you apart. But climbing up that ladder and grabbing that briefcase tonight means everything because in that briefcase is a contract for a WWE title match. So the question is, do I climb up that ladder and grab that briefcase, or do I use that ladder and smash your face in? Is it case or face? Case or face? Case… or face?”

He turns to look at Siren who grins wide and shrugs her shoulders, “Why not both?”

Dean nods in agreement, “Seth Rollins, you think of yourself as a master strategist, but you made a big mistake when you asked your daddy, Triple H, to put me in this match tonight, because when I walk out of Boston with that briefcase and a contract for a WWE Championship match, Seth, daddy’s gonna be mad at you.”

Siren smirked as the cameras cut off and the crew took their leave. She turned to find Dean still standing behind her. “What’s up?”

Dean scratched the back on his neck and sighed. “I’m sorry. I know you were closer to him than anyone. I just—I can’t forgive him yet.”

“I understand that. I don’t expect you to. But don’t take it out on me, please.”

Dean nodded, he pulled her in for a hug and kissed the top of her head. “You ready to have some fun tonight?”

“Hell yes.”

The two took their position behind the curtain as they awaited Dean’s entrance music. Seth entered the match first, followed by RVD, Swagger, Ziggler, and Kofi. Then it was Dean and Siren who entered the arena to a huge ovation from the crowd.

“From Cincinnati, Ohio, weighing in at 225 pounds, being lead by Siren, Dean Ambrose.”

Siren smirked as she followed Dean down to the ring, her eyes falling on Seth, but his attention was quickly averted as Dean slid into the ring and immediately attacked Seth. The two brawled, rolling out of the ring onto the floor in front of the announcer’s table. Dean threw Seth over the barrier into the timekeeper’s area and followed him over still raining punches down on the man.

As the men in the ring started the match, Siren kept her eyes on Dean and Seth as they continued to beat on one another. She turned and winked to her family who were seated behind her on the right side of the ring as you walked down to it. Her daughter eagerly waved back, smiling and hollering to no one in particular, “That’s my mommy!” It swelled Tasha’s heart to know that her daughter was proud of her, even more to know that she was providing a wonderful life for her daughter as well as her family.

She had already saved enough money for her daughter to go to whatever college she wanted. She had bought her father a new truck, paid off both her mother’s and father’s Harley’s, as well as her sister’s new car. And she was secretly building her parent’s a new house on a piece of property adjacent to her own in Nevada. She couldn’t wait for them to see it completed.

The fight between Dean and Seth then moved into the ring where Dean slammed Seth’s face into a ladder. He then laid a ladder down on the turnbuckle rope and gave Seth a suplex onto it. Seth rolled out of the ring clutching his back and Siren had to stop herself from going over to check on him. But he got back up and into the ring, nailing both Dolph and Kofi in the head with a ladder, before he got knocked to the canvas by RVD.

Rob then sets out to punish Seth by slamming his back into a ladder multiple times. He then placed Seth up on top of a ladder and delivered his “Rolling Thunder”, landing on top of Seth on the ladder. Siren saw Seth roll out of the ring clutching both his back and ribs.

Minutes later Dean rushed back into the ring, Seth is already up on the ladder, Dean climbs up the opposite side. He grabs Seth by the pants, and wraps Seth’s arm around his neck. Siren knows what he’s about to do and she cringes as she watches Dean deliver a superplex to Seth off the top of the ladder. Seth’s body hits the canvas with a resounding thud, both men feeling the aftereffects of the blow. Dean gets hit twice with another ladder by Dolph and Swagger, he rolls out of the ring and Siren moves to his side to check on him.

Again Dean and Seth climb to the top of a ladder, throwing haymakers at one another until Seth is knocked down off of the ladder. Siren rushes over to Dean after he delivers a DDT to Swagger who had pulled him down off of the ladder as he tried to grab the briefcase.

“Pop it back in.” Dean yells to the trainer who sits in the ring beside him. His left shoulder had been dislocated after the DDT. The doctor’s knowing he’s in trouble, sends him to the back, taking him out of the match.

Back in the ring Seth sees his opportunity and climbs up the ladder, reaching for the briefcase. Siren stays ringside wanting to see the completion of the match. She watches in horror as Seth is dropped off the top of the ladder by Kofi, his body bounces off of another ladder that was perched on the top rope. But knowing she has to hate him, she keeps her stone face on, but inside she is worried about his wellbeing.

She is relived as Seth climbs back into the ring, albeit a little shaky on his feet. He holds a steel chair in his hand, an object that has now become synonymous with him. He swings it at Dolph who is at the top of ladder, the man drops to the canvas where Seth hits him in the back with chair.

She stands outside the ring as Seth climbs the ladder, knowing she has to play up her character, she prepares to jump into the ring to intercede….

When the crowd goes crazy as Dean runs back down the ramp and slides into the ring. He picks up the chair Seth had discarded and hits Seth in the back with it knocking him from the ladder. He then nails Seth repeatedly with the chair, giving vindication to them all after what Seth had done to them.

Siren watches Dean cradling his left arm, she knows it has popped out of place again. He shoves Seth out of the ring and begins to climb the ladder, Siren below cheering him on. But just as Dean reaches the top of the ladder and reaches out for the briefcase, the turnbuckles erupt with fire and Kane makes his way down the ramp. He grabs Dean off of the ladder and delivers a vicious choke slam to him. He then picks Dean up and administers a tombstone pile driver to the man.

Seth climbs back into the ring and favoring his left arm, he climbs the ladder and retrieves the briefcase. He smirks down at Siren as he clutches the briefcase. She in turn rolls her eyes at him and walks over to check on Dean. She cusses as Triple H and Stephanie come out to congratulate Seth as he stares at her from the top of the ramp.

Siren helps Dean back to the trainer’s office, after making sure he’s taken care of she heads out to find Roman. Along the way she finds Seth, unlike she figured, he wasn’t surrounded by people celebrating and boasting how great he was. He was sitting on a crate in a dark corner, the briefcase sitting beside him.

“Hey.” She said lightly not wanting to startle him. She waited a moment for him to look up at her, surprised that it was her standing beside him. “Congrats. I knew you could do it.”

“Yeah.” He said softly, before he scoffed. “You know, you were the only one who believed I could do it. Even Hunter and Stephanie had their doubts.”

She shrugged, smiling. “I know you. I know how good you are. I never bet against you.”

“That means a lot to me.”

She nods at him before she turns to walk away, but she pauses as he calls her name. “Tash.” He waits until she looks over her shoulder at him. “Thank you.”

She gives him a smile and a wink before she heads off to find Roman and get ready for the main event match. She walks up taking her place beside him as they watch Hunter and Stephanie walk out to announcer’s table.

“You ready Big Dog?”

“Let’s do this.” He smirks.

Sheamus is introduced first followed by Bray Wyatt, Del Rio, Cesaro, Cena and Orton. Finally it’s their turn as Roman’s music hits and Siren leads him out of the tunnel and down through the crowd to the ring. They hop over the barricade and knock fists before Roman climbs into the ring. Finally Kane makes his way to the ring and the battle begins.

Throughout the match Siren keeps a close eye on Hunter and Stephanie knowing that The Authority always has a plan b and she knows that she and Roman are not a part of that.

As the match winds down Kane and Orton have effectively cleared the ring of all superstars. Randy begins his climb up the ladder to retrieve the briefcase, but he is stopped by Roman who has recovered and slid back into the ring. Roman manages to bust Randy’s forehead open, blood runs down his face as the two men brawl on the side of the ladder.

Before Roman can gain the upper hand, Kane delivers a choke slam knocking him out of the match. Kane holds the ladder for Randy ensuring his win, but one man ruins those plans.

Siren cheers as John gives an AA to Kane, then picking up Randy he delivers another AA planting Randy on top of Kane. She screams out in pure joy as John climbs the ladder and retrieves the belts from the hook. Knowing it will get her in trouble, but she could care less, she climbs into the ring and jumps into John’s arms hugging him.

“Congrats J. You deserve it.”

“Thanks T. Couldn’t have done it without you behind me.”

The two turn to Hunter and Stephanie who are furious at the outcome of the match. John holds up the title belts and Siren raises his other hand as they both celebrate with the crowd cheering them.

Chapter 12: A Beautiful Lie

Chapter Text

The arena was buzzing with excitement when Monday Night RAW kicked off in Hartford, Connecticut. It was the night after Money In The Bank and you could feel the electricity in the air, both inside the arena with the WWE Universe and throughout the backstage area.

Of course, everyone backstage knew that they were in for a hell of a night when Triple H and Stephanie headed out to the ring to kick off the show.

Siren stood backstage beside Roman, Dean and John watching on a monitor, as they awaited the address of The Authority. Of course the WWE Universe showed their distain for the power couple with loud resounding boos.

“Wow. What—what an amazing homecoming.” Stephanie stated. “I mean, I—I’m sure you all are well aware that I was actually born in the city of Hartford. Yes, we have that in common. I know you all feel so privileged. But truthfully, we feel privileged to be out here tonight, celebrating last night’s pay-per-view, Money In The Bank.”

Siren started laughing as the crowd started chanting “CM Punk”, they were loud enough that Stephanie had to raise her voice just to be heard over them.

“We started the night off with Daniel Bryan. Now, unfortunately, Daniel Bryan, you know, I know you all are excited, yes, yes. But, his recovery is gonna take a little bit longer than everyone had hoped. And that’s unfortunate. But we’re in the business of making history, not living in the past. And last night, Seth Rollins did just that when he defeated six other competitors in one of the most exhilarating matches I have ever seen, winning the Money In The Bank contract, virtually guaranteeing he will become the WWE World Heavyweight Champion.”

“Absolutely, Steph. Like I have said over and over, Seth Rollins is the future of the WWE. But that wasn’t the only historic thing that happened last night. No. Because for the first time ever, the WWE World Heavyweight Championship was decided in an 8-man ladder match. The man that won that match, well, Steph and I have always known, just like everybody else, that he is an a-plus player. Last night, that man made history by becoming an unbelievable 15-time World Champion. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome, right now, the brand new WWE World Heavyweight Champion, John Cena.”

Siren turns to John with a smirk, “You sure about this?”

“We’re a team, T.” John smirked back before he walked out the curtain to the roar of the crowd, the titles hung around his neck.

John paused on the top of the stage, smirking he held up a finger to the crowd, before he pointed to the opening he had just came out of. Siren strutted out onto the stage, the crowd cheering as she stopped next to John, taking his hand and raising it high into the air. She had on her usual black leather pants and boots, and a custom green tank top with the number 15 on the front of it.

The two saluted the crowd before they walked down the ramp and climbed into the ring with Triple H and Stephanie. Surprisingly Stephanie handed them both a microphone, they both uneasily accepted them.

“John…” Stephanie started to speak, but John cut her off.

“Uh-uh. Before I say somethin’, it sounds like they want to say somethin’. But you had referenced Daniel Bryan. Yeah, yeah. Daniel Bryan was there last night, and he said that when he is back, he’s gonna be better than ever. So, I just want to tell anybody who listens right now, and Daniel, I know you’re listening too, I know that they will not give you an opportunity, but will I give you an opportunity when you get back to regain the championships you never lost?”

John and Siren put their hands in the air alongside the fans. “Yes! Yes! Yes!”

“I hope to see you soon.”

“So what’s on your mind, bosses?” Siren says smirking, she can see the irritation in Stephanie and Hunter’s faces that she is out there with John and it only serves to make her grin wider.

“That was very special.” Stephanie says as the crowd continues to chant. “Um, but I have a question for everyone here. How many of you are gamers? Because John Cena, to commemorate your 15^th WWE World Heavyweight Championship, we are proud to announce that you are going to be featured on the cover of the latest installment in the video game 2k franchise, WWE 2k15.”

A large banner drops from above the ring showing John on the cover of the new game as his theme music plays. Siren rolls her eyes as Stephanie dances and sings to John’s theme, John mirroring her annoyance as he looks over to her.

“It looks beautiful doesn’t it?” Stephanie says. “We are especially proud of this. Congratulations, John. This is—this is just amazing.”

“Okay, uh, first of all, thanks. And to believe it or not, to be on the cover of 2k15 is a great honor. But this ain’t right. This ain’t right at all. You guys are being way, way too nice, way, way too soon. Because we were there at Money In The Bank last night…” John said motioning between him and Siren. “…and second that match ended, we saw a different look on this pair of faces.”

“Somethin’ that looked kinda like this.” Siren said smirking as she raised her hand to the titan-tron, a still frame of Triple H and Stephanie looking on in agony when John won.

“Look, that picture was taken out of context.” Stephanie said quickly, trying to weasel their way out of it. “We are very concerned for Randy Orton, who got 12 staples…”

“Oh, no, no, no, no, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You were real concerned with Randy Orton, cause you got him in your back pocket. He’s your little soldier. You can control him. You were real concerned with Kane, cause you got him in your back pocket. Seth Rollins is in your back pocket. The reason that’s real and them smiles is phony is cause you know you don’t control me. And right now, whether you like it or you don’t, the champ is here!”

“Okay, okay, okay. Chill homey, okay?” Triple H says, making fun of the way John talks, which causes Siren to scowl. “Cause I know we’s close to West Newbury. You’s be droppin’ your r’s and stuff, all comin’ off thuggin’ and stuff. But chill, man.”

“If you want me to drop the r, I will. I’ll also whip your ass right here in front of everybody and shoot down to 95 and kick you all the way to New Hampshire.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, easy, Doctor of Thuganomics. Chill your roll a little bit and let’s back up. I think you’ve gotten in wrong here, John we don’t got no problem with you. We’ve never had a problem with you. I don’t have a problem with you being on the cover of 2k15. I don’t have a problem with you being on the cover of magazines and makin’ movies and being a big superstar. Hell, it truly doesn’t even bother me that you’re the champion, as long—as long as you do it with some respect. Because you know as well as I do, all of this can go away like that, right? And you know as well as I do, and you’ve known this since day one, you can do things around here the easy way, or you can do it the hard way.”

“Well, if the easy way is runnin’ around as your little stooge, you can forget about it. I’ll do things the way I always do. I’ll do it the hard way.”

“You know what, John? Honestly, I would’ve been disappointed if you’d have said anything else. Hard way is your choice? Then hard way it shall be. So, at Battleground, you will defend your newly won WWE World Heavyweight Championship in a fatal 4-way match.”

“Wait, a fatal 4-way match?” Stephanie asks, as she smirks at Siren. “You mean, where John Cena faces three other competitors, and doesn’t even have to get pinned to lose those titles?”

“That’s the one, Steph. That is the very one.”

“That’s great.” John says.

“That sounds like the hard way, for sure.” Stephanie laughs.

“Who’s in it?” John and Siren ask.

“You want to know who’s in it? It’s funny that you should say, “who’s in it?” Cause two of the guys that are in it, you’re gonna face tonight. It’ll be the Viper, Randy Orton, and the Demon, Kane. But don’t worry, John. You’ll have your good luck charm Siren, by your side and hell, I’ll even give you a partner against those two men. Your partner will be the fourth man you fight against to keep those championships: Roman Reigns. Enjoy your moment, John. Enjoy all of this. Goes by fast.”

After looking over at Siren who gives him a reassuring nod, John raises his mic. “Congratulations, boss. You did it. And at Battleground, if I keep this, well, I damn sure earned it. That’s almost as—almost as tough or as embarrassing as swimming in a pool of crap.” Siren and the crowd laugh as Stephanie scowls. “I mean, that’s almost as bad as somebody pushing you into a pool of crap. That’s almost as horrible as you swimming in a pool of crap.”

John’s music cues up as he and Siren leave the ring and make their way back up the ramp, but they are stopped by Triple H.

“Hey, John, Siren. Just want to make sure you understand. At Battleground, you’re in a fatal 4-way, and if you survive that, don’t worry. There’s always a plan b.”

Siren rolls her eyes, she knows who’s already walking out before his music ever hits. Seth walks out, standing right beside Siren, he holds up his briefcase staring at it. He throws a wink at her over his shoulder. Siren lunges for him but she is stopped by John’s arms around her waist before she can get her hands on him. Seth laughs before he walks down the ramp towards the ring for his match.

Siren and John head backstage, while John goes back to his locker room, Siren stayed behind to watch Seth’s match on the monitor. She shook her head as Triple H and Stephanie fawned over Seth and his briefcase. She knew in her heart that this arrangement would end badly for Seth, but she hoped that she was wrong for once.

She saw Rob targeting Seth’s lower back, with every hit Seth cringes even more. Rob takes control of the match, until Seth begins targeting Rob’s right leg. Seth hits a curb stomp off of the second rope to win the match, but Siren can see the pain on his face due to his back.

Renee climbs into the ring to interview Seth about his win at Money In The Bank. “Seth Rollins, last night, when you won…”

Seth of course interrupts her. “Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Look, if you’re gonna introduce me lady, do it right. It’s Mr. Money In The Bank, Seth Rollins, to you, toots.”

Siren can’t help but laugh as he calls Renee “toots”. As much of a dick as Seth Rollins was, he was one of the most charismatic superstars Siren had ever seen.

The crowd boos Seth and he chuckles, “Hey, what, what, what? You guys, you think it’s arrogance, right? It ain’t arrogance when you can back it up. So, in my opinion, y’all just bitter that I was right and you were wrong. Cause you realize, this here is my golden ticket. This here is a contract. I get a shot at the WWE World Heavyweight Championship anytime, anywhere. And if last night is any evidence…”

“Seth…”

“I always get what I want.”

“Seth…” Seth looks up to find Dean and Siren on the titan-tron. “Listen, puppet boy. From one scumbag to another, you don’t really think this is over, do ya? You don’t really think you won last night, do you? You didn’t win. In fact, your plan A failed miserably and your daddy, Triple H, had to bail you out with his plan B, sending Uncle Kane down to knock me off that ladder. You know, I’m not even upset about what happened at Money In The Bank, because it might be more fun this way. Every time you even think about cashing in that contract, I’m gonna be there. I’m gonna haunt you. So, go ahead and make all the plans you want, cause that briefcase you’re holding doesn’t have a contract inside. It’s loaded with TNT, and every time you try and cash it in, it’s gonna blow up in your face, Seth! Believe that.”

Siren smirks at Seth, waving to him as the camera cuts to black. She turns to Dean and laughs, knocking fists with him. “He’s gonna hate life.”

“I thought you were over being mad at him?” Dean asked curiously.

“Oh, I’m over being mad at Colby.” She said, an evil grin growing on her face. “But Seth Rollins… that war has only just started.”

The highlight of the night was Chris Jericho making his return to RAW, which he impacted by giving a Codebreaker to The Miz. But then he was attacked viciously by The Wyatt Family.

Siren high-fived Paige as she headed out to the ring to talk about her win at Money In The Bank. She was interrupted however by AJ who made her return to competition after her honeymoon with Punk. She goaded Paige into a title match which she won after rolling Paige up in a small package. Siren felt bad as Paige laid in the ring after losing her title.

She waited by the curtain for her friend, as Paige came back and saw her standing there she opened her arms and gave her friend a hug. Knowing exactly how she felt, Siren just hugged her friend tight.

Siren then headed up to the corridor to join Roman for his match with John, versus Kane and Randy Orton.

She smirked as she lead Roman down the stairs to the ring, high-fiving the crowd as they went. Standing by cautiously watching the ramp, Siren kept one eye on the match as it got underway and one eye on the ramp. She knew Seth was back there, just waiting for his opportunity to cash in his contract on John.

She winced as Roman and Randy went head-to-head, Randy still seething about the 12 staples he got in his head, after Roman busted him open at Money In The Bank. She yelled loudly for Roman, trying to will him over to their corner to tag John in. Roman and Randy took their fight up the ramp and into the backstage area. Siren remained ringside as Kane continued his beat down of John. Kane was disqualified from the match when he hit John with the steel ring steps.

As Kane delivered a tombstone pile-driver to John, she awaited the music she knew was coming. As Seth’s music hit she turned to the ramp to see him running towards her with a referee. She prepared to intercede when Triple H pointed towards her, daring her to interfere. Gritting her teeth she stood her ground as Seth slid into the ring, shoving his briefcase to the referee.

The refs, refusing to start the match due to John’s indisposed nature were shoved out of the ring by Triple H as he threatened them. Siren smirked up at Seth as he fumed in the ring, she knew something he didn’t.

“What the hell are you smirking at? I’m about to take those titles from your boy.”

Siren chuckled, “No, you’re not, Seth.” She pointed over her shoulder as the crowd roared, Dean came running down the ramp and slid into the ring tackling Seth. Dean chased Seth to the backstage area where their fight continued.

Back in the ring Siren knelt by John as Kane and Triple H climbed into the ring. Kane held a steel chair in his hands, Siren held her ground refusing to move. Before Kane could swing the chair at her, Roman slid back into the ring and speared Kane off of his feet. Roman stared down Triple H until he climbed down off of the apron and walked to the back.

Siren stood up beside Roman, “Thanks big dog.”

“Anytime Babygirl. I got your back.” Roman smirked as he hugged her to his side.

Tasha walked to her rig, her family, Joe, Jon and Renee in tow. They were heading back to the hotel for a good night’s rest. The next morning Tasha bid her family goodbye as she dropped them off at the airport. Her daughter was staying with her for the rest of the summer, and would return home to Nevada when school started in August.

The group then began their road trip to New Jersey for Main Event, where Renee would be interviewing Roman and Siren.

Tasha hadn’t seen Colby at all since Monday night, which was odd as he was usually always around her. She chatted with Renee as they drove, Jon and Joe playing a board game with Kailynn on the couch. When they arrived at the arena, Tasha lead Kailynn through the back to the locker room. Jon offered to watch her while she was out in the ring with Joe.

“Fine, but no shenanigans, Jon.” Tasha said giving a small glare to the lunatic.

“Who me?” He said innocently holding up his hands.

“Yeah, you.” She laughed.

But as she joined Joe they were informed that their interview had been pushed, apparently Triple H and Stephanie had decided to give their spot to Cesaro and Paul Heyman. Tasha shook her head as she and Joe headed back to the locker room.

“Whelp, that was a waste of time.” Tasha said as she entered and flopped down on the couch.

“Why?” Jon asked.

“Cause our promo got bumped for Cesaro and the loudmouth rat-tail.” Joe said as he picked up his bag. “So what do say we head out and grab some lunch?”

“Sounds good to me.” Tasha said as she picked up her daughter’s things and together the four of them walk back out to the rig.

After lunch the group hung out in the rig watching movies until they decided to call it a night. Jon bid them goodbye as he went back to the hotel with Renee.

Tasha and Joe woke up the next morning ready for the 4^th of July edition of Smackdown, they met up with Jon at the gym. Renee tended to Kailynn whilst the three did their morning workout. Afterwards they went back to the arena to prepare for the night’s show.

After learning their parts for the night, the three did an autograph signing and a few interviews. They then got dressed and sat on the couch as the show opened.

Siren smirked as Seth’s music came on, he walked out to the ring looking even more irritated than he had on Monday night. Despite the smirk on his face, Siren knew he was ticked off at herself, Roman and Dean. She watched as he looked at his briefcase, he looked good in his black suit and shirt, but she had hoped that with The Shield now over, he would let that damn blonde grow out of his hair. She really couldn’t stand it, she always joked with him that he looked like Cruella de Ville and that he should be carrying around a Dalmatian.

“Last Monday on RAW, I was seconds away from chasing in my Money In The Bank contract on John Cena. John, I’ve got a message for you. You got lucky on Monday night. You got lucky, but the clock is still ticking, because, what was it, not even 24 hours into your 15^th reign as champion? And you were flat on your back, unconscious in the center of this ring. Now, that doesn’t bode too well for you, John, because on a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero. And what that means is, sooner rather than later, I will cash in this contract and become the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion. Look at this face. Look at this face. Look at it real hard and get used to it, because soon, this will be the new face of the WWE.”

“Honey, stay here with Lee okay.” Siren said before she and Dean ran out of the room.

Together they stepped out onto the stage being met with a huge ovation from the crowd. Siren smirked at Seth as he glared at them both from the ring.

“You’re delusional, Rollins. You’re talkin’ crazy.” Dean said which made Siren laugh, that sounded so funny coming from the Lunatic Fringe himself. “You really think you’re gonna get your hands on those titles? No. No, not while we’re around. We warned you.” Dean chuckled motioning between Siren and himself. “No matter where you are, no matter what you do, no matter how much of a plan you and your sugar daddy, Triple H, concoct, I’m gonna be there every time. I mean, hey, how did your little championship coronation play out for you last Monday?”

A clip of Monday Night played on the screen, Siren and Dean chuckling as they watched Seth getting pummeled by Dean.

“Watch that footage. Watch that footage, and watch it over and over and over again, because that’s your life for the next year.”

Siren raised her mic and the crowd cheered, “You think that briefcase is a blessing, Seth?” She pouted her lips and shook her head. “No. That briefcase is a curse, because it’s every excuse we need to ruin your life, to ruin your future and for Dean here to ruin that precious face of WWE.”

“Yeah, Siren? You think I care?” Seth said, clearing irritated by her words. “You think I care if you show that video over and over and over? Look, I know you both better than anybody, and I know you don’t have what it takes to keep that up for a year. You got lucky on Monday night. You can’t keep that up for a year, and you can’t stop me from cashing in this contract and becoming the next WWE World Heavyweight Champion.”

As Seth speaks Dean and Siren start walking towards the ring. “Of course I can. I’ll start right now.” Dean says before he tosses down the mic and takes off his leather jacket. He slides into the ring, ducking to avoid being hit with the briefcase and tackles Seth to the canvas as the two start brawling. But suddenly backup arrives in the form of Randy Orton, he and Seth begin to stomp away on Dean.

Jumping up onto the apron Siren swings a leg through the ropes determined to interfere, but she is stopped by familiar music booming throughout the arena. Roman comes to his friend’s aide as he runs down the ramp and slides into the ring. The two rush Roman, but he powers out as both he and Dean take the fight to Seth and Randy.

As the two men scurry up the ramp like scalded dogs, Siren steps into the ring and joins her brother’s, just as Triple H’s music hits and he comes out onto the stage.

“Alright. I think you three have made your point. So now, let me make my point, and my point is the only one that matters. Dean Ambrose, you want a fight? Well, tonight, you will get a fight when you face The Viper, Randy Orton. And Roman, since you like to stick your nose in everybody’s business, you interfere in that match tonight, and you are out of the fatal 4-way match at the Battleground pay-per-view for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Good luck, boys.”

As the three men walk off stage Siren smirks to her brother’s, “Hey, he forgot about one little thing.”

“What’s that?” Dean says.

She grins, “He said Roman couldn’t interfere, he never said anything about me.” The two men grin alongside her as she holds out her fist and they join her.

Heading backstage Siren turns to Roman, “Where’d you leave my daughter?”

“With Renee.”

Siren nods before she walks down the hall to the women’s locker room. Knocking on the door she opened it to find her daughter on the back of one Nikki Bella. Siren smirked before she spoke, “Honey, what are you doing to Nikki?”

“She’s giving me a piggyback ride momma.”

“Oh my gosh, Tasha, your daughter is so cute.” Nikki gushed as she carried the small girl around the room.

“Thanks.” Siren said uneasily, she and Nikki had never gotten along. Mostly due to the fact that Siren had been married to John and Nikki was jealous that John wouldn’t marry her. She was glad to know that Nikki could put aside their animosity while her daughter was present, and that her daughter seemed to be in good hands with the divas.

“If you want us girl’s to watch her for the rest of the night we will.” Nikki’s twin sister Brie said. She and Siren had always been good friend’s, despite Nikki being her sister.

“You guys don’t mind?” Siren asked.

“Not at all. She’s great.” Renee said. “You have enough to worry about tonight, let us worry about her.”

“Okay. Thank you girls.” She kissed her daughter’s cheek. “Behave for the girls okay. Mommy will come get you later.”

“Okay, momma. Bye.” Her daughter said thoroughly enjoying herself with the divas.

Siren left the room, heading back to the locker room when she bumped into Seth. Before she could smile at him, she saw the camera crew over his right shoulder and her face took on an annoyed look. “Can I help you, Rollins?”

“No, it’s me that’s going to help you.”

“Really?” She said crossing her arms over her chest. “And how exactly are you going to do that?”

“By offering you a job.”

“I have a job.”

“What? Managing Dean and Roman? Come on, how long do you think that’s gonna last? I’m offering you a chance to manage the future WWE World Heavyweight Champion, Seth Rollins.”

Siren broke into laughter, after a good minute she held up her hands while trying to control her laughter. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. You’re crazier than, Dean.” Her smile dropped and a stern look took its place. “You think that I would turn my back on them for you? For the guy who stabbed all of us, his brother’s, his family, in the back? You are out of your mind. I would never do that to them. And you want to know the one reason why, Seth?” She moved forward getting right up in his face. “I’m not you.”

Siren walked off leaving a fuming Seth behind her, she paused at the edge of the interview area where Roman was being interviewed.

“Please welcome my guest as this time, Roman Reigns. Roman, what’s your reaction to what Triple H said to you earlier on tonight, that you’ll be removed from the championship fatal 4-way match at the Battleground pay-per-view if you interfere in tonight’s main event between Randy Orton and Dean Ambrose?”

“Triple H is gonna do what he’s got to do to protect his baby boy, Randy Orton, and I get that. But what you need to get is I know Dean Ambrose, and I know he’s gonna be just fine tonight. I’d never do anything to jeopardize my spot in the fatal 4-way match at the Battleground pay-per-view. I’m gonna have to go through The Authority’s chosen one, Randy Orton, the demon Kane, and Mr. Never Give Up John Cena, but make no mistake. I’m walking out of the Battle ground pay-per-view WWE World Heavyweight Champion. Believe that.”

Siren smiles as Roman joins her, “Where’s monkey?”

“Hanging out with the divas, she’s getting piggyback rides from Nikki.”

Roman raises his eyebrow, “Really? And you’re okay with that?”

“Yeah. As long as she doesn’t say anything bad about me in front of Kailynn, I don’t mind her spending time with her.”

Siren is sitting in the makeup chair later that night when Roman approaches her. “Hey, have you seen, Dean? His match is next and I can’t find him anywhere.”

“I got this.” Siren said holding up a finger, before she screamed at the top of her lungs. “Roman Reigns sucks!”

Roman looks at her quizzically before seconds later the door bursts open and Dean runs in brandishing a kendo stick and looking pissed off. “Who said my brother sucks!?”

Siren laughs, “There he is.”

Dean and Siren knock fists as they stand behind the curtain, Seth had already walked out to the ring after glaring at Siren as he walked past.

“What did you say to him?” Dean asked seeing Seth’s glare aimed at her and not him.

“The truth.”

She took a deep breath as Randy made his way towards the ring, as Dean’s music went off she put on a smirk as she followed Dean out onto the ramp.

As they made their way to the ring she saw Seth clutching his briefcase and a devious plan started forming in her head. She took her place ringside as the match got started, watching Seth out of the corner of her eye, knowing full well he was gonna get involved at some point.

She cheers as Dean manages to ram Orton into the turnbuckle creating some space for him to recover. She frowns as he slides over towards her sitting on the edge of the ring.

“It’s out of place.” He says pointing to his arm.

“Okay.” She nods grabbing his wrist in her hand and placing her other one on his shoulder. “Breath out. 1… 2….” Yank. She pulls his arm setting his shoulder back into place.

“Thanks darlin’.” He smirks before he rolls back into the ring and gets up to find Randy charging him.

The two trade blows in the center of the ring as Dean takes control of the match. Siren jumps out of the way as Randy is tossed out of the ring at her feet, then Dean follows with a suicide dive. As he gets up he smirks over at her, she shakes her head with a smile.

“I got your back.” She says.

Nodding at her Dean then rounds the ring before he runs over and jumps across the announcer’s table and tackles Seth to the floor. After beating down Seth, Dean rolls back into the ring to finish off Randy. He tosses Randy to the floor in front of the announcer’s table, as he bounces off of the ropes ready to deliver another suicide dive, Seth nails him in his injured shoulder with the briefcase.

As Siren moves over to check on Dean, Randy grabs her by the arm and shoves her backwards. She slams her back and head off of the barricade, slumping to the floor. Seth picks up Dean and shoves him back into the ring where Randy gives him an RKO. Seth then rips off the protective bandage on Dean’s shoulder. Seth climbs to the top of the turnbuckle as Randy holds Dean down. Siren crawls over to the ring, shoving herself to her feet she holds onto the ring for support.

“Dean!”

She rolls into the ring just as Roman runs down the ramp to help them. He shoves Seth off of the turnbuckle sending him crashing to the canvas where he rolls out of the ring. Randy gets up off of Dean, as soon as he does Siren moves over and shoves Dean out of the ring to the floor. From the floor she watches Roman deliver a superman punch to Randy. As he prepares to hit him with a spear Seth pulls Randy out of the ring.

Roman helps Siren get Dean back into the ring, where they stand and stare down Seth and Randy.

As they get backstage Tasha shoves Jon to the trainer’s office demanding that he get his shoulder looked at. She then went to change into her street clothes before going to collect her daughter from the divas locker room. As she walked into the room she found her daughter asleep on Nikki. She smiled as the woman stood up and handed her daughter over to her.

“You’re really good with kids, Nikki.” Tasha said giving the woman a smile. “For what it’s worth, I think you’d make a great mom.”

Nikki gave her a genuine smile as she turned to head for the door. “Nikki.” She waited for the woman to look at her. “Anytime you wanna spend time with her you’re welcome too.”

“Thank you.” Nikki said smiling.

“I’ll see you girls later. Renee, Jon’s waiting for you in the trainer’s room.”

The blonde nodded as Tasha walked out of the room heading for the parking lot. Along the way she ran into Colby who seemed as though he was waiting for her.

“How’s Jon?” He asked quietly seeing that Kailynn was asleep.

“How do you think he is?” She fired back.

Colby sighed, “Will you tell him I’m sorry, and I hope he’s okay.”

“Do you really think he’s gonna care, Colby?”

“I’m trying, Tash.”

She scoffed, “Yeah, you’re doing a bang up job of that.”

Colby watched her walk away, he sighed rubbing a hand over his face. Trying to get back in his friend’s good graces was never going to happen as long as they were working for WWE. It seemed that no matter how much he tried, things were just destined to blow up in his face.

Chapter 13: Bad Decisions

Chapter Text

As Monday night rolled around for RAW Siren walked into the arena in Montreal, Canada with her daughter. Not more than a minute later Nikki and Brie were snatching up Kailynn and running down the hall laughing.

“We’ll take good care of her.”

Siren shook her head with a smile as she continued on to the locker room she shared with Roman and Dean. She had never imagined that she would feel safe with anyone taking care of her daughter besides herself, Joe, Jon and Renee. And yet here she was watching the Bella twins kidnap her daughter and run away laughing, and she didn’t feel any sense of dread.

As she changed into her show gear she watched the opening of the show. They were replaying last Monday when John nearly lost his titles to Seth Rollins. After she was dressed she joined Roman behind the curtain, smiling up at him she asked, “You ready to have some fun?”

“Always Babygirl.” He smirked down at her before they knocked fists, their normal ritual, before going out to the ring.

Standing in the ring the crowd went nuts for the duo as both Roman and Siren grabbed a microphone. Roman couldn’t help but smile as the WWE Universe chanted his name.

“Unlike some people, when I come down to this ring, I come with a point. Triple H is saying he put me in the fatal 4-way match at the Battleground pay-per-view because it’s best for business. Maybe he thinks I can neutralize John Cena which I can.”

Again he looks pointedly at Siren when he talks about John, she raises her mic with a laugh. “Why do you always look at me when you talk about John?”

Roman just smirks as he raises his mic again. “Maybe he thinks Kane can neutralize me, but he can’t. And if all that happens, there’s Randy Orton. He’s walking out of there with the title, but he won’t. I access and attack. And I’ve accessed this situation a thousand times, I can tell you it’s not gonna happen. And I understand that I’m a wanted man around here, but I got a hair trigger.”

The crowd starts chanting Cena Sucks and Roman smirks as he looks at Siren. “When Roman Reigns is in the house, you’re damn right Cena Sucks.”

The crowd cheers, Roman smirks at Siren as she secretly rubs her face with her middle finger, flipping him off, but she was smiling as she did it.

“And I don’t care if The Authority is here or not, what they got to say, it’s irrelevant. What Randy Orton wants is irrelevant because he’s just a pawn in this game. Me? No, I’m not a pawn. I’m just the next WWE World Heavyweight Champion, believe that.”

Suddenly the stage erupts into flames as Kane walks out onto the stage, but he remains up there, not saying anything, just staring them down.

Roman licks his lips before he speaks, “So, with their absence, are you standing in for The Authority now? Are you no longer the devil’s favorite demon? Because lately, it just looks like you’re Triple H’s lap dog. Naw, naw, let me correct myself. Lately, it looks like you’re just Randy Orton’s bitch.”

That did it. Kane started walking down to the ring, but Roman wasn’t gonna wait for him, he climbed out of the ring and took the fight to Kane. Roman and Kane took the brawl into the audience, fighting through the aisles before Kane tossed Roman back into the ring area. As they got back into the ring several officials came out to try and separate the two men.

But nothing could keep these two men apart, as they broke free and went after one another again. But Roman dealt the final blow with a superman punch to Kane, that sent the demon retreating up the ramp.

Walking backstage Siren high fived Roman’s cousins, Jimmy and Jey as they were headed out for a tag team match against Harper and Rowan.

“Well don’t you look as pretty as a picture.”

Siren turned around to find none other than Bret “The Hitman” Hart standing behind her smiling. She smiled as she hugged the older man. “How you doing, Bret?”

“I’m doing good honey. How about you?”

She shrugged her shoulders, “14 years and still here, can’t complain.”

“And I see you’re still getting into trouble like always.” He said nodding down the hall where Seth stood leaning against the wall watching her.

“What can I say, trouble is my middle name.”

“Ain’t that the truth.” He smiled before he bid her goodbye.

Looking down the hall Siren saw Seth nod to her, rolling her eyes she turned around and walked down the hall away from him. She got back to her locker room to see Kane and Randy on the monitor, chatting about what went down earlier with Roman.

“Other than the nerve that Roman Reigns had, to come out there and put his hands on you of all people. Listen, I hope that you know, if anything else would’ve happened out there, if he would’ve done one more thing to you, I would’ve been out there by your side lickety-split. I have your back, Kane, just like I know you’re gonna have my back at Battleground.”

“That’s right, Randy. One way or another, the WWE World Heavyweight Championship is coming back to The Authority.”

And then the annoying loudmouth had to enter. “That’s what I like to see, boys, a little solidarity, huh huh?” Seth walked in carrying his briefcase. “And you know, with The Authority not here tonight, it’s, it’s extra important that we have each other’s backs. And that’s why I’ve been thinking whether it’s you or you that wins that fatal 4-way at Battleground, I promise you, I’ll think twice before cashing this in.”

Seth cackles as he leaves the room, Randy crosses his arms over his chest, his jaw clenching. “I don’t know about you, but I am really starting to hate that kid.”

Kane turns to Randy, “Not nearly as much as I am starting to hate you.”

Siren meets up with Dean backstage, his shoulder taped up, she shakes her head as he stretches his arm. “You’re gonna end up crippled.”

“But it’ll be fun along the way.” He smirks at her making her smile and shake her head.

Dean’s music hits and the two make their way out to the ring amid cheers from the WWE Universe. Randy gives Siren a wink as she takes her place ringside, she rolls her eyes and gags as she avoids his stare.

The match gets underway and Dean immediately begins targeting Randy’s shoulders, determined to give him some of the pain he has. The two battle for nearly 13 minutes before Dean has had enough. He throws Randy out of the ring and slams him into the barricade. While Randy’s down Dean grabs a stack of steel chairs and throws them into the ring. Thinking Siren is going to scold him, he’s surprised when he looks her way, she just smiles and leans against the barricade with her arms crossed.

While she should be warning him against it, she can’t help but want to see Orton punished for her own personal reasons and enjoyment. But her enjoyment is postponed when Randy gets the upper hand on Dean by shoving him into the steel ring post nailing his injured shoulder. Randy then picks Dean up and throws him over the barricade into the timekeepers area. He then delivers a DDT to Dean off of the top of the barricade.

Randy rolls back into the ring ass the referee starts his ten count. Not allowing this to end in a DQ, Siren runs over and struggles to lift Dean to his feet, but he’s practically dead weight at this point.

“Dean, come on!” She wraps her arms under his and uses all of her strength to lift him to his knees. “I can’t get you back in there on my own, you gotta help me out! Now, get up. Ambrose! Now!”

Hearing Siren screaming at him, Dean shoves himself to his feet, with her help he rolls back into the ring to break the ten count.

Randy is livid, his anger turns towards Siren, he points a stern finger at her. “This is your fault, Siren. What I do now is all on you.”

Dean tries twice to pin Randy, but a well placed RKO ends the match as Randy pins Dean for the win. As he celebrates, Randy grins over at Siren who is looking at him with pure hatred. And he knows it has nothing to do with the match.

Siren helps Dean to the back trainer’s office, needing to cool off she heads down to the interview’s area to watch John.

“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, John Cena.” Renee smiles as John steps up beside her, the titles slug around his neck. “John, with Randy Orton having a strong showing tonight against Dean Ambrose, just a surmounting pressure on you headed into Battleground with your championship on the line. But tonight, you’ll be facing a man who has a target on your back, Mr. Money In The Bank, Seth Rollins.”

“A man with a target on my back. Renee, I wear a 40 pound medallion of gold and diamonds that makes me officially the biggest target in the WWE. I have a briefcase over my head. I have a match at Battleground where I don’t have to lose to lose. And on top of that, I got to keep my head on a swivel because I don’t know where the next threat is coming from. But that’s what this is about. You hear a lot of people say a lot of times what is best for business. This is a symbol of handling business. And hate it or love it, ever since I’ve been in the WWE, I handled business.”

Siren smirks as Roman steps up opposite John, crashing his interview. “Good luck in your match tonight, John.”

“Hey, strong words out there, Roman. I don’t need luck tonight, homes.”

Roman nods with a smirk, “You’re gonna need a ton of it when you face me in the fatal 4-way match, homes.” With that said Roman leaves, John watching him walk away.

A half hour later Siren is standing in John’s locker room with him, she’s got on her green Cena shirt. After his interview John had asked her if she was going to accompany him to the ring. She had agreed, now the two stood in the locker room getting ready.

“Hey, are you sure about this? I mean, you’re not exactly 100%, Siren.” John said looking concerned.

“I’ll be fine. An injury has never stopped me, you know that first hand.” She smiled at him.

John nodded, “Yeah, I know all too well.”

However Siren’s smile quickly turns to a scowl as Seth Rollins walks into the room. She immediately cuts him off, putting herself between him and John.

“Whoa, whoa. Easy, Siren. I just came to have a word with John.” He chuckled placing his hand on her shoulder.

“Don’t touch me, you traitorous skunk.” She snapped throwing his hand off of her as the crowd laughed.

“Why would you come at me like that?” Seth said turning his attention to John. “Just because we got a match tonight doesn’t mean we can’t have a civilized conversation. We’re adults here, right?”

“Two of us are.” Siren snarked earning her a glare from Seth. “One’s just a spoiled little daddy’s boy.”

Gritting his teeth Seth rolled his neck feeling the tension in his shoulders. “I know you don’t trust me. And last week, I did consider cashing in my contract, but that was last week. Tonight’s not about that. Tonight’s about who is the best. And when I beat you, greatest WWE Champion of all time, the measuring stick, and I prove that I’m the best maybe then I’ll cash in my contract. Or God forbid you get hurt out there and an opportunity presents itself, maybe then I’ll cash in my Money In The Bank contract. Regardless, John, your days are numbered because if it’s not me, maybe it’ll be Kane.”

“Maybe.” John nods.

“And if it’s not Kane, maybe it’ll be Randy Orton.”

“Maybe. Yeah. Civilized. This is—this is good. One of the most civilized ways possible. Let me say I think you’re full of crap. Thank you for an extremely backhanded compliment. Allow me to give you a real one, you’re good, Seth. You’re damn good. And now I know what The Authority sees in you. Let’s take a second to think though. All those days that you were dressing underneath the arena with The Shield, fighting, scrapping for every opportunity, times have changed. And I’m not talking about your futuristic jumpsuit. I mean you walk around now like you signed a big contract with a briefcase, it literally guarantees him an opportunity to be champion. No. Because the only guarantee you got is tonight you have a match with a champion. Which mean I guarantee you’re in for the fight of your life, savvy.”

Seth glares at the both of them. “See you out there.”

Siren and John step out onto the stage, the crowd already going wild. With a salute the two run down and slide into the ring, John holding up his belts with pride. Siren’s smile drops again as Seth makes his way out to the ring.

The two battle back and forth, each one nearly gaining a pin-fall over the other. John manages to hit Seth with the Five-Knuckle shuffle, but when he lifts him up for the AA Seth lands on his feet. Quickly moving into a drop toe-hold John gets Seth to the mat and locks in the STFU.

Siren stands in front of Seth smirking as he reaches for the ropes, desperate to break the hold. Seth nearly reaches the ropes, but John drags him back to the center of the ring and locks in the STFU again. But before Seth can tap out, Kane walks down to the ring to intervene on Seth’s behalf.

Seth rolls out of the ring landing at Siren’s feet, as she goes to jump up onto the apron to aide John, Seth grabs her foot holding her back. Next thing she knows, her head is bouncing off of the ring apron, her nose painfully cracking once again. She hits the ground beside Seth, holding her nose as blood drips through her fingers onto the padded floor below.

In the ring Randy Orton and Kane beat down on John, but his saving grace comes with Roman’s music as the big dog makes his way to the ring. He hits first Kane and then Randy with a Superman punch, but Seth grabs his briefcase and nails Roman in the back with it, knocking him from the ring. Roman lands on the floor beside Siren who is still clutching her bleeding nose.

Seth hits John in the head with the briefcase knocking him out cold. Again he goes to cash in his contract on John, but before the match can begin, Dean runs down the ramp and tackles Seth to the ground. As Seth and Dean battle back up the ramp to the backstage area, Randy slithers back into the ring, stalking John. But summoning what strength he has left, John picks Randy up and hits him with the AA. But before he can celebrate Kane slides back into the ring and sets John up for the choke slam. But Kane’s plan backfires as Roman gets in the ring and spears Kane.

Siren rolls into the ring still holding her nose as Roman raises John’s hand up in the air, the crowd boos. The two stare at one another, John contemplating why Roman would help him. John then raises Roman’s hand with a nod to the crowd who cheers. Roman wanting to cement a point again raises John’s hand, the crowd again boos.

John nods with a smile, “I get it.”

The two continue doing it, loving the banter and reaction from the crowd. Siren rolls her eyes at the two, “Okay, boys. As much fun as I know you’re having, can we please go backstage before all of the blood in my body runs out?”

The two take one look at Siren, her face covered in blood from her nose down, her right hand also covered as she pinches the bridge of her nose trying to stem the flow. They nod quickly as they both help her out of the ring and escort her backstage.

Once through the curtain they hear yelling coming from their right, they walk over to find Dean up in Seth’s face the tension between them ready to detonate.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Siren yells running over and shoving her way in between the two men. “What the hell’s going on here?”

“You see that you sonofabitch!” Dean shouts in Seth’s face, pointing to Siren’s bloody face. “That’s your fault.”

“Bitch, shouldn’t have gotten in the way.” Seth snarked in reply.

Siren rolled her eyes, she knew that this was simply Seth Rollins the character so being called a bitch by him didn’t bother her. What did was what Dean said following.

“She was trying to protect a friend, something you would know nothing about. You told her you still care, maybe not about all of us, but at least her. So tell me, Seth, why’d you let Orton hit her?”

Siren is thrown, she thought for sure it had been Seth that had pushed her into the ring apron. “What’s he talking about, Seth?” Seth doesn’t answer, he just keeps his eyes locked on Dean. “Answer me, Rollins.”

Again he avoids her eyes. Dean snorts, seeing as Seth doesn’t have the balls to tell her what really happened. “I’ll tell you what happened, Siren. He saw Randy coming at you and he held you there. He let Randy smash your face into that ring, and he didn’t even bat an eye about doing it.” Dean scoffs before he takes a step back from Seth, his gaze turning to Siren. “You still wanna forgive him?”

Dean, Roman and John walk away as Siren looks up at Seth. “Is that true? Did you hold me there and let Randy hit me?” Instead of looking up at her and answering, Seth merely looked to the floor, in turn giving her the answer he wouldn’t say. “Wow, you bastard. I would’ve expected that from Seth Rollins, but not Colby Lopez.” Seth thought she was just going to walk away from him, so he was shocked when her bloody hand connected with the side of his face.

He watched her storm off down the hall, his hand touching his stinging cheek that was now marred with her blood. Blood he was responsible for. But the only thought that crossed his mind was not only had Seth Rollins lost her, but now Colby Lopez had too.

Tasha made her way to the women’s locker room to retrieve her daughter, after seeing the trainer’s about her nose and changing into her street clothes. Luckily her nose hadn’t gotten any worse, but it had added on several weeks before it would be fully healed.

As she knocked on the locker room door she could hear laughing coming from inside. When the door opened she found the majority of the divas laid out on the floor in a circle, her daughter in between Nikki and Brie as they all colored in books. She smiled at the sight, pulling out her phone she snapped a picture for Kailynn’s scrapbook. They had designed one scrapbook every summer that she spent on the road with her mom, filled with photos of Kailynn with the divas and superstars. So far they had 3 books that they had created together. Tasha figured it would be nice to have them, so that one day Kailynn could pull them out and reminisce about.

“Hey monkey, ready to go?”

Her daughter looked up with a big smile, “Yep, I’m ready momma. We were coloring.”

“I can see that. Where’d all those coloring books come from?” Tasha mused as she glanced around at the books that each diva was collecting.

“Brie and I bought them last week. We figured since she loves to color that we would color with her. It’s so relaxing. I actually do it in the hotel when I’m stressed out. Did you know they made coloring books for adults?” Nikki smiled brightly as she stood up.

Tasha nodded smiling, “Yeah, I did, I have a few of them. It is relaxing, I do the same when I’m stressed too.”

As Kailynn stood up she grabbed her backpack, “K momma, I’m all ready.”

“Okay sweetie. Say bye to the girls, you’ll see them on Thursday.”

Kailynn made her rounds, hugging all of the divas in turn. She then took her mom’s hand and started out the door. Turning back she waved to the girls, “Bye. See you soon.”

The divas all waved at her and Tasha as they shut the door and started walking out to the rig.

Chapter 14: The Road to Battleground

Chapter Text

Tasha spent the next 2 days off spending time with her daughter and allowing her nose to heal up some. When they entered the arena for Smackdown in Ottawa, she was feeling better than she had in several weeks. However now the pain that was once in her nose, had now gravitated to her heart. She couldn’t believe that Colby had allowed her to get hurt, even more so he had been a part of it. She didn’t know if she could forgive him for that. Just when she thought things were getting better.

As she changed into her ring gear she grew more angry, every time she looked in the mirror at herself the anger grew. After dropping her daughter off with the divas as usual, she walked through the halls looking for Jon and Joe.

Everyone that she passed moved out of her way, literally climbing the walls to avoid her path, less they be subjected to her wrath and anger. It was apparent to them all that Siren was here, and she was not in a good mood.

As she met up with Roman at the top of the stairs he could tell she was in a bad mood, so he didn’t bother to say anything to her.

She nodded at him as their music hit and they made their way down the stairs to the ring. Siren returned the glare given to her by Lana as she and Roman got into the ring. She grabbed two mics and handed Roman one of them. Siren and Roman couldn’t help but smirk as the crowd starting chanting Roman’s name.

“I’m sure you’d love to stare at me all night and listen to them, but I’m a businessman and I don’t have a lot of time. I’m gonna get straight to the point. You think this is your ring? This is my ring. You think you can crush me? You actually think you can beat me tonight? You better think again, buddy. Well, I see you getting anxious, yeah, I see that. You better remember I got a hair trigger and you make one false move, I’m putting my fist across your face so fast, boy.”

Lana laughs before raising her mic, “Typical crass behavior of an American swine. You should be careful what you wish for, Mr. Reigns.”

Siren and Roman both smirk as the Shield woman raises her mic, “You’re telling him to be careful? You’re telling Roman Reigns to be careful?”

Roman shakes his head, “You must not know how this operation goes down. I assess and I attack. And I’ve assessed this situation, the only thing we’re missing is a referee, so if we get one down here right now, as soon as he rings the bell, I’m gonna attack and I’m gonna put you on your Putin-kissing-ass, boy.” Roman tosses his mic over his shoulder as Siren laughs at the off put look on Rusev’s face.

A referee slides into the ring backing the two men away from one another. He tells Lana to get out of the ring so the two can have their match.

But Lana refuses, “No. Not on his terms.” She shoves Rusev out of the ring, making him seems like a puss* for backing down to a fight.

Siren decides to throw a little gasoline on the fire, “Yeah, that’s right, Rusev. Obey your owner like a good little puppy.” The crowd laughs as the two walk back up the ramp, but Siren isn’t done yet. “You know Lana, I always knew you had Rusev on a short leash, but I didn’t know you had him on a choke chain too.” She smirks as Lana screams at her in Russian, it was so much fun getting under people’s skin and oh, how she was so good at it.

Siren came backstage with Roman to see Lana waiting for her, the two women glared at one another for a moment before they both smiled.

“That was a good line. You almost had me laughing.” Lana laughed.

“I have my funny moments.” Siren smiled back. “I’ll see you out there later.”

The two women bid one another goodbye, Siren continued down the hall to the boys’ locker room. She saw Seth down the hallway coming her way, she knew by the look on his face that he wanted to talk to her. She shook her head in a warning to him before she slipped into the locker room and shut the door behind her. She wasn’t ready to talk to him about what had happened on Monday, nor was she ready to forgive him, and honestly, she wasn’t sure that she could.

The night slipped by quickly and soon it was time for the main event. Siren stood up on the concourse beside Roman, her mood still hadn’t improved from earlier.

Her attitude was on full display as she lead Roman down the stairs to the ring. Jumping over the barricade she knocked fists with Roman before he climbed up into the ring.

Taking a stand on the opposite side of the ring from Lana, Siren watched as the match got underway. The match was brutal and aggressive as the two behemoths went at each other. Nearing the end of the match Roman hits Rusev with the Superman punch, then he sets up across the ring for the spear. But interference comes from the outside of the ring as Randy Orton runs out and grabs Roman’s head, snapping his neck off of the top rope.

Rusev grabs Roman and whips him across the ring going for a clothesline, but Roman ducks under his arm and hits Randy with a Superman punch, knocking him off of the ring apron. Roman turns back to deal with Rusev, but he’s hit in the mouth by a super-kick. As Rusev moves to lock Roman in the Accolade, Lana calls him off, ordering him to the back. As Rusev climbs out of the ring, Siren rolls in to check on Roman. She looks up at Lana who gives her a small nod that only the two women notice, in return Siren nods back.

However the danger is not gone as Siren sees Randy climbing up the ring steps. She stands up putting herself between Randy and Roman.

Randy smirks at her as he gets into the ring, “You gonna make me hurt you, Siren?”

Siren crosses her arms over her chest, “Why not, you’ve done it before, Randy. Shouldn’t be hard for you.”

Randy quickly reaches out and grabs onto Siren’s wrist, she counters by grabbing onto his inner arm with the hand he was holding, trapping his hand with her free one she twists his arm and drops him to his knees. Twisting his arm more she flips him onto his back, but she doesn’t count on his quick recovery as he brings up his legs and kicks her in the chest. She tumbles back over Roman, landing on her back, lying on the canvas clutching her chest that feels like it’s caving in.

She looks over to see Randy drop to the mat, preparing to hit the RKO on Roman who is struggling to get to his feet. Not wanting to wait for Roman to rise, Randy grabs him by his hair and lifts him to his feet immediately hitting him the RKO, planting Roman beside Siren on the canvas.

Monday Night RAW in Richmond, Virginia, rolled around with both Superstars and crew members climbing the walls to avoid Siren’s path of destruction.

John Cena opened up the show, this time without Siren by his side which disappointed the fans.

“Well, now that we know the main event for tonight, the only thing left, Richmond, Virginia, the champ is here! A feisty, feisty crowd tonight. I mean, you guys are ready for RAW. And it is because we are only six days away from Battleground. And I need to say this right now so you all know that I told you so. If you have not yet signed up for the WWE Network, the free preview ends at midnight, so go and sign up now. The reason I say so is because of this.”

John holds up the title hanging over his left shoulder. “Because quite frankly, in six short days, at Battleground, the champ my not be here. You see, The Authority has put me in a fatal 4-way match, where I will square off with Kane, Randy Orton and Roman Reigns. And this Sunday, in that fatal 4-way match, the rules are simple. The first superstar to get a pinfall or submission is declared the champion. So basically, I don’t even have to get pinned to lose this championship.”

Roman’s music booms throughout the arena, all eyes turn to concourse where the Big Dog stands with his manager. Siren smirks as she and Roman descend the stairs, she can sense the irritation in John’s face. The two climb up in the ring, Siren hands a mic to Roman as they both stare down John.

“Well, Richmond, Virginia, is chanting your name, so let me introduce you: Roman Reigns.” The crowd goes wild screaming for Roman. “Ironically enough, you’re my partner tonight. And then, we face off on Sunday. I want to say thank you for what you both did last week. I was in a bad way, and you two bailed me out. So thanks for that. And, uh, cute little stunt at the end of the RAW. I saw your… your message was loud and clear. You are not to be ignored. And this Sunday, it is every man for himself, and I understand that. But Roman, we have to make it to Sunday. And I understand you don’t trust anybody, but you have been screwed over by The Authority. And hell, The Authority, they ain’t sending me no Christmas card…”

“Get to the damn point, John.” Roman says interrupting Cena.

“Say what?” John says looking sideways at Roman, the look on his face making Siren bite her lip so that she doesn’t smile.

“You heard me.”

“All right. All I’m sayin’ is this. We should handle The Authority tonight. And if you want, we get Kane and Orton out of the way, six days at Battleground… then, well, we see if you’re as good as you think you are.”

Roman laughs and Siren knows that’s a bad sign as she smiles shaking her head at John. “I think you’re right. We should get rid of Orton and Kane. And then, it’s just me and you, John. And maybe we’re gonna see if you’re really as good as you think you are.”

“You know, I see that look in your eye.”

Suddenly the two are interrupted by the Lunatic himself appearing on the titan-tron. “Guys, guys, guys. I—I understand the whole, uh, testosterone-driven competitiveness that’s goin’ on right now. But enough of this prettiest-girl-at-the-dance argument routine you got goin’ on, okay? Cause we ain’t dancin’ tonight, boys. We’re fightin’. We got a six-man tag against Kane, Randy Orton and Triple H’s little bag boy, Seth Rollins. Now, The Authority always has a plan. But tonight, I got a plan of my own. And it’s called operation screw The Authority. And it starts when you two stop arguing, we get together, and we kick their asses.”

About that time Kane and Seth step up behind Dean, Siren knows sh*t is about to go horribly wrong. She drops her mic and rolls out of the ring, running for the back, she doesn’t even bother to see if Roman or John is following her, she has to get to Dean.

The two men then jump Dean, Randy coming into the frame to help them as they throw Dean into a wall. Not worrying about self preservation, Dean gets to his feet and launches himself at the three men.

“Is that all you guys got?” Dean says as he lies beaten on the floor, egging the men on.

Seth then jumps up on one of the crates, he eyes Dean, looking for a curb-stomp as the man struggles to get to his feet. But before he can deliver it, Siren runs in, jumping up on the platform beside Dean she nails Seth in the mouth with a super-kick, knocking him off of the crate. Turning quickly she launches herself onto Randy, wrapping her legs around his neck and delivering a hurricanrana onto the floor. She springs to her feet and nails Kane with a kick to the stomach, doubling the man over. But as she backs up to nail him with a knee to the head, her arms are grabbed and twisted behind her painfully.

Randy stands behind her, his strong arms holding her in place. She seethes as Seth gets to his feet, glaring at her he climbs back up on the crate, looking down at Dean who is still doubled over.

“You do this Rollins, and it’s over.” Siren tells him, she doesn’t care that the cameras are still rolling. “There is no coming back.”

She sees a flicker in Seth’s face, he pauses, but as his attention turns to something behind the camera men, she sees the flicker disappear. Looking behind the camera crew she sees the reason for it, Triple H and Stephanie stand in the shadows, smiles on their faces. She closes her eyes refusing to watch Seth travel further down a one-way road. All she hears is Seth’s yell and the sickening crunch that follows as Dean’s head connects with the wooden platform underneath him.

Randy lets her go and she falls to the floor, opening her eyes she crawls over to Dean.

She moves back sitting on the floor as the trainers come to Dean’s aide. She watches as they help him off of the floor, taking him to the trainer’s room for evaluation. She looks up to find Roman and John standing in front of her, Roman holding his hand out to help her up. She shakes her head, swatting his hand away as she stands up.

“You okay?” Roman asks her.

Fire lights in her eyes as she glares up at Roman, “Maybe you should be asking Dean that question. Where the hell were you two? You should’ve been right behind me. But, no, you two are all about self preservation, right? It’s all about Cena and Reigns. Well, how about this, since you two obviously don’t need any help, I’ll go to the hospital with Ambrose, you two are on your own tonight. Good luck.” She snaps sarcastically before shoving past them and walking away.

Siren meets up with Renee as the trainers load Dean into an ambulance to take him to the hospital for further evaluation. Of course the blonde is freaking out, so Siren consoles her friend. Placing her hands on Renee’s shoulder to calm her down. “Renee, relax, he’s gonna be fine. A few bumps and bruises, a small cut on his chin, that’s it. He’s gonna be okay. Don’t worry?”

Renee nods, she hugs Siren tight. “Thank you. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” She pulls back looking Siren in the eyes. “I know we’re not close, I’m just Dean’s girlfriend, but…”

Siren shakes her head, “No, Renee. You are not just Dean’s girlfriend. You are my friend. We are friends, no matter what.”

Renee smiles as she hugs Siren again before the brunette climbs into the ambulance with Dean. “I’ll call you later with an update, okay?”

“Okay.” Renee says with a nod as the door shut and ambulance pulls out of the building.

In the locker room John approaches Roman, “Okay. So, Ambrose is out, Siren has left, which means now it’s just you and me against Kane, Orton and Rollins tonight. This was an obvious setup by The Authority. You get that right?”

“Yeah, I get it.” Roman says staring down at his hand. He knew Siren was right. Dean was supposed to be his brother and she was like a little sister to him, and he had let them both down.

“Damn it, Roman! Stand up!” John yells, Roman obliges standing up in front of the champ. “I understand that you wanna be WWE World Heavyweight Champion. You should. But you have to trust me. Neither one of us is gonna walk out champion on Sunday if we don’t get on the same page tonight.”

“Nobody knows the numbers game like me.” Roman tells him. “They took out one of us, but by the end of the night, we take three of them. Believe that.”

Tasha sits in the hospital room beside Jon, the doctors had already checked him out and cleared him with a minor concussion. She didn’t bother to turn on RAW, she honestly didn’t care if Cena and Reigns had lost or won. She couldn’t believe how selfish people were becoming lately, only concerned with themselves. She was the opposite. She knew that one day her career with the WWE would be over, and the only things she would have were her family and friends. So until that day came, the people she cared about took precedence over her job.

After Renee showed up to take care of Jon, Tasha bid them both goodnight and went downstairs where Daryl was waiting with her rig. She sat in the back where her daughter was watching a movie on the TV, as they drive to Fayetteville, North Carolina for Smackdown. After getting her daughter to bed, Tasha sat up most of the night wondering how her friendship with Colby had taken such a dark turn. And as mad as she was at him, she missed him, but could their friendship survive the toll that their job was putting on it.

Chapter 15: Always Be My Baby

Chapter Text

Thursday morning she got her and Kailynn ready, walking into the arena Kailynn tugged on her hand as she saw Nikki and Bri standing down the hall. Tasha nodded, kissing her daughter’s forehead before the little girl ran down the hall to the twins. Waving at the three Tasha headed down another adjacent hallway to the locker room. “So much for a summer with mom.” She chuckled as she entered the room, finding Jon and Joe already inside getting ready.

The tension was palpable in the room, Tasha diligently got dressed for the night, forgoing her full Shield attire. She kept the leather pants and boots, but instead of her full upper corset she opted for a black deep V-neck tank top that stopped just below her belly button and a black leather under-bust corset, leaving the skin of her lower abdomen and hips showing.

Shaking off the tension in the room she followed Jon to the gorilla area where they waited for Dean’s music to cue. When it did they both slipped into character and headed out onto the stage.

The crowd roared as Lillian introduced them and they made their way into the ring each taking a mic from the crew members.

“All I heard for the last two years, Seth Rollins is the smart one. Seth is The Architect of The Shield. Look at the big brain on Seth. And Seth is smart. Seth is smart enough to know that he couldn’t beat me down by himself on Monday night, so he had his buddies, Randy Orton and Kane, two more Authority goons, help him out. And sure, they put me in the hospital. Despite the help from my girl here. Thank you for that by the way.”

Dean said motioning to Siren, who smiled as he pulled her in and kissed the top of her head.

“But if you thought for one second that your little three on one attack was gonna keep me from being here tonight, and more importantly, keep me from destroying you Sunday at Battleground, then genius, you aren’t as smart as you think you are. So, I’ll ask you this one more time. Is that all you got? Is that all The Authority’s got? That’s not a rhetorical question. I plan to find out. So, let’s not wait till Sunday. Get out here, and let’s do this right now.”

Siren hears a chuckling coming from the big screen, she doesn’t have to turn to know it’s Seth, his annoying cackle is one of a kind. She turns to the screen along with Dean.

“Ambrose, Ambrose, Ambrose. God, you just don’t get it, do ya? You’re so talented, but you just can’t seem to figure it out. Without me, you are nothing. Without me, you are just some babbling, out-of-control lunatic, destined for an insane asylum. And Siren, you are just another pretty face for the crowd to stare at.”

Siren scoffs looking over at Dean who shakes his head in disagreement. She then raises her mic and smiles. “Awe, Seth you think I’m pretty?” She says sarcastically before rolling her eyes as the crowd laughs at her antics.

Seth grits his teeth as he continues talking. “And I’ll give you both this, you got guts. But clearly, after Monday, you’ve got more guts than brains. I mean, think about it. The first time ever, Shield vs. Shield, Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins.”

“Hold it.” Siren says shaking her head. “Get it right, two-face. Shield vs. ex-Shield.”

Seth sighs, it is apparent that Siren is getting on his nerves. “That is a huge box office draw, and there is nothing—nothing in this world I would love more than to come down to that ring and curb-stomp your face into the mat again. But, unfortunately, I can’t do that. Tweaked my knee on Monday, and I’m not medically cleared, so sorry, man, it’s just—it’s not gonna happen tonight. I apologize. Can’t do it.”

“Well, it looks to me like you’re scared.” Dean says. “And you should be scared, I’d be scared, too. But, Seth, it’s time to face your fears. Make daddy proud, come out here and take your beating like a man.”

“Oh, real clever, real clever. You go back to the daddy line. You think you’re so tough, Ambrose. All these tough words for such a tough guy. Like you always got something to prove. You know what, I’ll give you a chance tonight to prove how tough you are cause I—I just talked to Triple H, and he wanted me to let you know that tonight you’ve got a match. Not against me, against him.”

The camera pans over to Seth’s right to show Kane standing there, he raises his arms up. Siren knowing what is about to happen grabs Dean by the back of his jacket and jerks him back away from the turnbuckles as they explode into fire.

Walking into the back Siren tells Dean she needs to go clear her head, she takes off down the hall opposite him. Running her fingers through her hair she sighs, how the hell did she go from trying to fix the four’s friendship, to wanting to murder Colby in his sleep. Not paying attention where she is walking she shrieks as she is lifted up into the air by someone and placed on their shoulder. “What the f—” She looks down to see a pair of muscular legs in a pair of tight gray jeans. She then chuckles when she realizes who it is, bracing her elbow on the person’s back she places her chin in her hand. “Hi Chris. Nice to see you too.”

Chris Jericho laughs as he continues walking down the hall hollering to different superstars as he passes by. “Free shots. Any takers?”

Siren smirks, “Anybody takes him up on that offer, I will find you and I will introduce you intimately to a kendo stick.”

Chris again laughs as he then sets Siren back on the floor, smiling brightly at her as she gives him a hug.

“You got balls for days, Irvine, you know that?” Siren says as she pulls back smiling at her friend.

“So I’ve been told.” Chris laughs. “But apparently nobody else around here does since they wouldn’t take up my offer.”

“That’s because they know me, and they’re not suicidal.”

“Good point, you are kinda scary when you’re mad.” Chris chuckles crossing his arms. “Is that why Rollins is looking at you out of the corner of his eye right now?”

Siren turns her head to the left, seeing Seth indeed gazing at her out of his peripheral in catering. “Pretty much. He’s waiting to see what retaliation against him will be for allowing Orton to smash my face into the ring apron.”

“Ouch.” Chris said wincing. “I’ve been on the receiving end of your retaliation. I wish him luck.”

Siren laughs, “Yeah, he’s gonna need it.”

Chris bids Siren goodbye, he’s got to go get ready for his match against Luke Harper. Siren grabs a water from the fridge, glancing over she sees Seth looking at her, she smirks giving him a wink before she walks out of catering.

After checking on Chris who was ambushed by the Wyatt family, but the Uso’s came down to back him up, she headed to the curtain to meet up with Dean.

“You ready, lunatic?” She asked him with a smirk.

“Hell yes.”

“You know, I think we ought to make that your new gimmick. What do you think about Dean Ambrose, the Lunatic Fringe?”

“I like it.” Dean nods.

“We could incorporate it into the new design I pitched creative for the Ambrose Asylum.”

“You pitched creative something for me?” Dean questioned.

“Yeah.” Siren bit her lip, not sure if he was mad or not. “Are you okay with that?”

Dean nodded with a smile, “Yeah, you are my manager, right?”

“Cool. Let’s do this.” She grinned as they headed out to the ring.

They replayed the footage of Dean being attacked, only serving to make Dean angrier.

Dean immediately went on the attack of Kane, not giving his injured body any care. The two battled fiercely in and out of the ring, delivering punches, kicks and clotheslines to one another. Nearing the end of the match both men were on the ground outside of the ring. Siren was lying down on the other side by the announcers table having been hit by a missed suicide dive by Dean. He was aiming for Kane, who grabbed her and shoved her into Dean’s flight path. She waved him off as he knelt to check on her, yelling at him to go finished the match.

Siren laid there trying to catch her breath, she heard the roar of the crowd and could only assume that Seth had come down to the ring. Lying on her side she grinned as she saw something sticking out from under the ring apron.

The referee had started his ten count and was nearing 8, when none other than Seth Rollins ran down the ramp and nailed Dean in the back with his briefcase.

He then ripped off his jacket and began stomping on Dean repeatedly. Together Seth and Kane picked up the steel ring steps and carried them into the ring. But as Seth approached Dean he was picked up and knocked off of his feet by the lunatic who started wailing rights and lefts at his former friend. However Kane got ahold of Dean and picked him up, delivering a choke-slam onto the mat.

Kane then picked Dean up and positioned him on top of the steps, Seth approached determined to deliver another curb-stomp to Ambrose. He bounced off of the ring ropes, jumping into the air he slammed Dean’s head into the steel steps, the sound reverberating throughout the arena.

Both men stood in the ring gloating, but they had made one fatal mistake, they had turned their backs on Siren. They realized their grave mistake as something hard made contact with their backs. Blinding pain filled them both as they fell to the mat, writhing in pain. But the torment didn’t stop there, the hard object cracked against both of them again and again, until they had no choice but to roll out of the ring and retreat up the ramp.

Once Kane and Seth had found their bearings they looked down to the ring where Siren stood tall on the turnbuckle, a kendo stick raised triumphantly in her right hand as the crowd went wild.

Having put their differences to the side and chalking it up to mistakes, Jon, Joe, Renee, Tasha and Kailynn ride in the rig down to Tampa, Florida where Battleground was being held. Just like every other time the group was in town, they stayed at Joe’s house. Galina was more than excited when they all showed up out front. She had cooked them an amazing meal, they could smell it from the front porch and it made their mouth’s water as they entered the house.

Of course as soon as they were finished with dinner, the little ones, Jojo and Kailynn disappeared into the bedroom. The adults could hear them laughing downstairs and it made them smile.

The group got settled into their guest rooms, changing into comfier clothes before meeting up on the back deck. Sitting around the small fire pit, they drank and laughed, sharing stories and jokes. After putting the girls to bed, Galina and Joe said their goodnights and went to bed as well.

“It’s far too early to go to bed, I don’t know about you guys, but I’m dying to have some fun.” Renee said looking at Jon and Tasha.

“I’m down.” Jon said, looking over at Tasha. “What do ya say darlin’?”

“Why not.” She said smiling before she and Renee disappeared upstairs to get ready.

Jon whistled as the two came back downstairs, “Man, am I one lucky man tonight, two beautiful women.”

Tasha shook her head at him, while Renee gave him a kiss. “Alright, love birds, let’s go.”

The trio walked into the bar, they had chosen a small one with hopes that they wouldn’t have to worry about being seen by too many fans. Tasha realized it was a good choice as they saw half of their co-workers in there as they arrived. “Apparently, the entire roster had the same idea that we did.” Tasha said laughing as she waved at Nikki and Brie who were at the bar with their men, John and Daniel.

After an hour of drinking and chatting Tasha sat down at a table with Jon and Renee. She was laughing so hard that her stomach started to hurt, the cause was a very drunken Big E, Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods singing a Britney Spears song on the stage. When they finished they were met with cheers from their fellow superstars.

“Tash, you gotta get up there.” Renee said smiling.

“No, I don’t.”

“Yeah, you do. Come on, you have a great voice.” The blonde argued.

“Come on, darlin’, she’s right. Get up there. Don’t make me make a scene.” Jon threatened giving her a knowing grin.

Tasha sighed, knowing full well that Jon would make a huge scene if she didn’t. Looking around the bar her eyes stopped on someone sitting in a booth at the back of the bar alone. “Fine. I’ll do it.”

“Okay everyone, give it up for Siren.” The DJ announced, the superstars cheering, they always made Tasha sing when they were out somewhere.

Colby’s head snapped up from his beer bottle, he saw her walking up onto the stage. She looked beautiful dressed in a pair of black skinny jeans, a red scoop neck tank top and black ankle boots. Her long hair was down in waves and her makeup was a dark smoky eye with red lipstick.

“Um, hey guys, I really hate you all for this, I just want you to know that.” Everyone laughed, she said the same thing every time they got her up on stage. “This song has a personal meaning to me lately. So, here goes.”

I know I'm probably better off on my own

Than loving a man who

Didn't know what he had when he had it

And I see the permanent damage you did to me

Never again, I just

Wish I could forget when it was magic

I wish it wasn't 4 AM, standing in the mirror

Saying to myself, you know you had to do it

I know, the bravest thing I ever did was

Run

Sometimes, in the middle of the night, I can feel you again

But I just miss you, and I just wish you were a better man

And I know why we had to say goodbye like the back of my hand

And I just miss you, and I just wish you were a better man

A better man

I know I'm probably better off all alone

Than needing a man who could

Change his mind at any given minute

And it's always on your terms

I'm hanging on every careless word

Hoping it might turn sweet again

Like it was in the beginning

But your jealousy, I can hear it now

You're talking down to me like I'd always be around

You push my love away like it's some kind of loaded gun

Boy, you never thought I'd run

Sometimes, in the middle of the night, I can feel you again

And I just miss you, and I just wish you were a better man

And I know why we had to say goodbye like the back of my hand

And I just miss you, and I just wish you were a better man

A better man

A better man

I hold onto this pride because these days it's all I have

And I gave to you my best and we both know you can't say that

You can't say that

I wish you were a better man

I wonder what we would've become

If you were a better man

We might still be in love

If you were a better man

You would've been the one

If you were a better man

Yeah, yeah

Sometimes, in the middle of the night, I can feel you again

And I just miss you, and I just wish you were a better man

And I know why we had to say goodbye like the back of my hand

And I just miss you, and I just wish you were a better man

We might still be in love if you were a better man

Better man

Colby’s heart ached more after that song than it ever had before, if he wasn’t sitting in a dark booth his co-workers would have seen the tears that had escaped his eyes and tracked down his cheeks. She had held his gaze for the entire song, singing the words directly to him, and he had felt the passion behind them. He knew he had to do something soon, he knew that he could be a better man, he just had to make Tasha see it.

When the trio got back to Joe’s house, Jon and Renee headed up to bed, Tasha however stayed out on the deck drinking a glass of wine. Earlier she had posted a photo of the fire pit to her Instagram, with the caption, ‘A relaxing night with family, only one person missing #hopefulreunion’.

Anybody who knew her would know she was talking about Colby, even the man himself. And after her song at the bar earlier, which she had sung directly to him, she wasn’t surprised when her phone rang, and it was the man himself. Swiping the call to answer, she brought the phone to her ear. “Hey stranger.”

Colby’s voice floated back over the line to her. “Hey.”

“How are you doing?”

“Okay. Still sporting some nice bruises from your ambush.” He chuckled.

Tasha smiled, “I’m sorry. I probably hit you a little harder than I should’ve.”

“Don’t apologize. I had it coming.”

“Colby, we’ve been over this. You don’t have a choice.”

“We all have a choice, Tash. You told me that. Just so happens, I made the wrong one.” They both were silent for a moment before Colby sighed. “I got what you telling me earlier with your song, and I know I can be a better man. But, I don’t know how to fix this, Tash, and I’m starting to think that maybe we can’t.”

Tasha bit her lip with a sigh, “I was thinking the same thing. But I’m not ready to give up.”

“You aren’t?” He asked curiously.

“No, I’m not. I have seen too much loss in this company. I have lost friendships, a marriage and several great guys that I loved. I have let them take so much from me, but I refuse to let them take my heart.”

“Your heart?”

“It was something that Vickie said to me before she left. She said not to let this company take away the most important thing, my heart. She was meaning you.”

“Me?” To say that Colby was shocked was an understatement.

“Yes you, you dork.” Tasha laughed. “Colby, you can’t be that dense. You know that you and I were closer than normal. Have you forgotten Paris?”

“No, I could never forget Paris.” He said quickly, before he chuckled. “You know that picture I took of us is my background.”

Now it was Tasha’s turn to be shocked, “Really?”

“Yep. Has been since that day.”

Tasha could feel her eyes welling up with tears, no matter how hard she tried to fight it, she was in love with Colby. “I don’t want to do this anymore, Colby. I can’t keep arguing with my heart.”

“What do you want?”

“You. And me. I want us together, but I have no idea how to make it work. And I don’t want it to start and then end, I couldn’t handle losing you again.”

Colby let out a deep breath, he was so relieved to hear those words come out of her mouth. He now knew that she felt the same way as he did. “I don’t know what to do either, sweetheart, but I know I want the same thing.”

“So what do we do?” Tasha asked, she honestly had no idea where to start.

“I guess with Joe and Jon. I don’t want to betray them again.”

“Me neither. I’ll talk to them first, see what happens and we’ll go from there.”

“Okay.”

“Colby, you know this a 100% thing, right? I want all of you, to myself. It’s all, or nothing.”

He knew she was referring to his past exploits with his ex-girlfriends, but he knew without a shadow of a doubt, that he would never need to look at another woman, so long as he had her. He smiled, “I’ve always been all yours, baby.”

Chapter 16: Love Is A Battleground

Chapter Text

On Sunday, the group walked into the arena together for Battleground. Tasha dropped Kailynn off with the divas as always, the girls excited to have her there with them.

Returning to the locker room Tasha changed into her gear before joining the boys on the couch. First up was Joe’s cousins Jimmy and Jey Uso vs. Luke Harper and Eric Rowan. The Uso’s won a hard fought match, after hitting Harper with a double Samoan splash from the top rope.

Up next was Paige vs. AJ for the Divas Championship, which AJ retained after hitting Paige with the Shining Wizard drop kick.

Next up was Rusev with Lana vs. Jack Swagger with Zeb Colter. Rusev gets the win via count out after he slammed Jack Swagger into the ring post knocking him out.

Siren stood behind the curtain with Dean, their match was up next. Smirking she held something up beside her and Dean could only laugh and shake his head. Seth was already out in the ring awaiting them and Siren knew he was pissed because Dean had attacked him earlier on in the night. Surely he would only be more angered by what she held in her hand.

It was true that Dean had been thrown out of the building by Triple H, but being as Siren was very good friends with WWE security and techs, she had managed to get him back into the venue without Triple H or Seth Rollins being aware.

“Since my opponent has so very irresponsibly been ejected from the building—I have come out here to accept my victory via forfeit. I want to be announced, I want to be announced as the winner and I want my hand raised. Do you understand that? You understand that? He’s not coming out here. Let’s do it right now. Announce me as the winner.” Seth snapped as he threw down the microphone.

Just after the announcement that Seth won, his music was interrupted by another’s theme, the arena going pitch black as a hauntingly beautiful voice came on.

“A Siren’s song can summon a tempest, a storm of mythical scale, that even the bravest of men cannot escape.”

Ah, ah, ah, ahhhh.

Ah, ah, ah, ahhhh.

The black stage is lit up by a blinding white light as heavy rock music begins to play.

I told you once, I told you twice, you didn’t play very nice

Asked you aboard, you pulled a sword, you took kindness for weakness

I think that I deserve a little more respect than that boy

That’s not the way you greet a Siren

You’re gonna learn your lesson

Oh, just who do you think you are?

You’ve gone to far

Sink or swim man overboard

Believe me it’s a lesson you can not afford

We’ll really give you something to remember

When you play with fire you are sure to burn

Sink or swim man overboard

It’s war!

Blue and red pyro shoots off as Siren steps out onto the stage, smiling she holds up a mic, her right hand still holding something behind her back. “Hey Sethy. Miss me?” Her answer is simply a glare from the man which only serves to make her smile wider as she sees him trying to hold back a grin. So, she turns her attention to the WWE Universe. “I don’t know about you guys, but my new entrance theme is aaaaamazing!” The crowd screams in response and she nods. “I know right. So cool.”

“What do you want, Siren?” Seth snarks bringing her attention back to him.

“Well, being as you won your match tonight, regardless of the fact that it was by forfeit, I thought that I would bring you a little gift.” She smirked as he looked at her quizzically. “Now, I know what you’re thinking, Seth. Why would I of all people, bring you a gift. Well, the simple answer is, this particular gift, is going to bring me, so much more joy than you.”

Siren pulls her hand from behind her back, clenched in her fist is the kendo stick she used on him and Kane Thursday night during Smackdown. “Like it? I call it my “Seth be good stick.”

“You wouldn’t dare.” Seth seethed, even though he was trying not to laugh.

“Oh, yes, Seth. I would. I know you didn’t think you’d be walking out of Battleground without a fight, did you?” She tossed down her mic and ran to the ring, sliding under the ropes she saw Seth roll out the other side and run over by the ramp. She stood up smiling, Seth was puzzled, why was she smiling about him escaping? Siren picked up the mic he had discarded, bringing it to her lips.

“Oh, Seth, you thought I was talking about fighting me? No. Him.” She grinned wide as she pointed behind Seth, who turned in time to be tackled by Dean Ambrose.

Dean grabs Seth and slams him back first off of the barricades, he then tosses him out into the crowd. He stalks Seth through the audience until he is thrown back over the barricade by Seth. He gets up and grabs Seth who is standing on top of the barricade and slams him down onto the Spanish announce table. Dean pummels Seth with left and rights before security comes down to pull him off of Rollins.

He manages to get loose from security and jumps across the announce tables to tackle Seth once again. This time security grabs both men and separates them, until they get loose and go after one another again. This time Triple H comes down to help subdue Ambrose, security manages to grab Dean, carrying him towards the ramp.

In the ring Siren still stands, she sees Seth look up at her and she shakes her head. “Letting daddy fight your battles for you again, huh, Seth?”

Her words have the desired effect on Seth, lighting a fire under him as he runs over and jumps on Ambrose, knocking the security guards away. The guards then break up into two groups, one subduing Rollins and the other carrying Dean up the ramp towards the back. But again Seth gets loose and races up the ramp, tackling Dean and the guards to the floor.

Finally the guards manage to get Dean backstage, Triple H and Seth walk over and stand on the ramp. Down in the ring Siren leans on the kendo stick, smirking up at the two. As they walk backstage she waves her fingers at Seth who gives her an icy glare. Siren turns to the crowd, holding up the stick the Universe cheers for her. Giving a small bow she then rolls out of the ring and heads to the back, high-fiving fans as she goes.

Backstage she returns to the locker room where Roman shakes his head at her while smiling. “You two are gonna get us all fired.”

Siren shrugs with a smile, “But it’s gonna be so much fun till then, Rome.”

She sits down on the couch beside him to watch Chris’ match against Bray Wyatt. Feeling tension in her shoulder she rotates it trying to get the soreness out. Swinging that kendo stick at people uses muscles you never knew you had.

Roman sees her prodding at her shoulder, moving his left leg, he picks her up and deposits her on the couch in between his legs. “Damn Babygirl, you are full of stress knots.” He remarks, then proceeds to massage the knots out of her shoulders and neck.

“You have no idea.” She says quietly so that he doesn’t hear her.

Chris manages to secure the win against Bray with a codebreaker.

Outside the arena Seth, still in his wrestling gear is walking with two security guys towards his car, when he shakes his head and stops. He turns back to the two guards, “Guys look. Thank you. I don’t need security alright, I’m fine. I got this. Thank you very much. You’re done. Get out of here. Thank you.”

The guards leave him and he starts walking to his rental car, when he pauses, an uneasy feeling washing over him. Looking around Seth begins to get paranoid as he feels like someone is watching him. And he’s right. The trunk on the car behind him pops open and Dean quietly climbs out of it holding a tire iron. Running up he tries to clock Seth with it, but the two-tone haired man ducks avoiding the hit. Seth tries to run away to the car, but Dean grabs him slamming him first off of the car door, then off of the ambulance parked next to it.

Seth tries to climb over a fence, but Dean grabs him by the waist and throws him down onto the hood of the car. Seth manages to kick Dean off of the other side of the car, giving him a chance to climb into the car and drive away to avoid Dean’s wrath.

Back inside Siren and Roman laugh as they watch Dean beat up on Seth. Next up is the Intercontinental championship match, the winner ending up being The Miz, which no one was excited about.

Getting up to prepare for their fatal 4-way championship match, Siren smiles at Roman. “Thanks, Rome.”

“Anytime Babygirl. You’ve done it for me tons of times.”

The two split up, Roman going up to the balcony while Siren waits behind the curtain. Being as she has two clients in the match, she didn’t want to pick sides and walk down with just one of them. Randy Orton is introduced first, followed by Kane.

Again Siren’s theme plays as she walks out on to the stage, waving to the fans she raises her microphone. “Ladies and Gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to my clients. First, he is the Big Dog, Roman Reigns!”

Roman descends the stairs, climbing into the ring he stands and nods to Siren.

“And last, but definitely not least, he is the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, John Cena!” Siren smiles as he comes out behind her, saluting the fans the two run down to the ring, John holding the titles high.

As expected the match against the four is brutal, Siren stands outside of the ring wincing as John and Roman are hit repeatedly. By the end of the match all four men are spent, their energy depleted. Kane sets Roman up for a choke-slam, but the big man avoids it, instead hitting him with a spear. He goes to pin Kane, only for Randy to break up the count and hit Roman with an RKO. John then slides back into the ring picking up Randy and delivering an AA to Randy on top of Kane. John then pins Kane for the win, retaining the titles.

Siren climbs in the ring holding up John’s arm, “Congrats, J. You earned it.”

“Thanks, T.” John smiled back.

As John left the ring Siren climbed down and walked over to Roman who was sitting on the floor in front of the announcer’s table. “Hell of a job, Rome.” She held her hand out to him.

“I tried.” Roman said, taking her hand and helping himself to his feet.

After gathering their things, the group returned back to Joe’s house where again Galina had dinner awaiting them. Since it was late Joe and Tasha put the girls to bed, before everyone headed to bed as well. However Tasha found that she couldn’t sleep, after an hour of tossing and turning she got up. Pulling on a pair of sweats and her Shield sweatshirt she quietly made her way downstairs and poured herself a glass of wine. Opening the back door she sat down in one of the deck chairs, enjoying the view of the moon reflecting off of the water.

Pulling her phone out of her pocket she swiped open the screen, scrolling through her contacts she found Colby’s number and pressed send. Holding the phone up to her ear she hoped that she wasn’t waking him up. After three rings Colby’s tired voice came over the line and Tasha cursed.

“Hey baby.”

“Hey. I’m sorry to wake you.”

“I wasn’t sleeping.” He admitted. “I’ve been staring at the ceiling, debating to call you, but I didn’t want to wake you up.”

Tasha chuckled, “Two of a kind, aren’t we?”

“Yeah, I guess we are. Tonight was fun. I had to try so hard not to laugh when you brought out your “Seth be good stick”, that was a good one.” He laughed.

“Thanks. I could tell you were trying not to laugh. Sorry.”

“Don’t be. I miss bantering with you.” He sighed.

Tasha frowned, she could hear the sad tone of his voice and she knew he was frowning as well. “We’re gonna fix this, Colby. And by the next time we’re back in Florida, you’re gonna be here at Lee’s with us.”

On the other end of the phone Colby ran a hand through his hair, he didn’t know how she could be so optimistic about things. But it was something he loved about her. She could look at the most dire situation and find the silver lining hidden in the darkness. “How can we fix this? Every show that passes I have to do something that drives Joe and Jon away more.”

“We have to make them separate themselves from their characters. They need to remember that what happens in that ring and on camera, is our job. If we all can’t learn to keep our personal and show lives separate, there’s no hope for any of us. Joe will be the easier one, it’s Jon we have to worry about.”

“He hates me.”

“He doesn’t hate you, Colby. He hates that his brother lied to him. I can fix things with Joe, but it’s up to you to repair things with Jon.”

Colby sighed, “Okay. I’ll try.”

“That’s all we can do. I’m gonna help you all I can, Colby. We’re gonna fix this, together you and I can do anything.”

“I’m starting to believe that.” Colby smiled, he felt like with Tasha by his side, he really could do anything. “Get some sleep, baby, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Tasha smiled, hearing Colby call her baby seemed to chase all of her demons away. “Goodnight my heart.”

Chapter 17: Family Time

Chapter Text

Monday Night RAW emanated the next night from Miami, FL, with Triple H opening the show. Joe had brought Galina and Jojo to the show with him, the girls were currently playing together on the floor. Joe, Jon and Tasha were getting suited up, while Galina and Renee swapped recipes on the couch.

Suddenly Jojo came running over to her dad. “Daddy, can we go see Uncle Colby?”

Tasha saw Joe sigh, “Jojo, sweetie we’ve talked about this. He’s not Uncle Colby anymore and you’re not going to see him.”

“But daddy…”

“Jojo, I said no. Now that’s the end of discussion.” Joe snapped.

Tasha saw her Goddaughter’s face fall, tears brimming in her brown eyes, and that was what set her off. “Lee, can I speak to you outside for a moment.”

She walked outside and leaned against the wall waiting for Joe, he came out a moment later and shut the door behind him. “What is the matter with you? How could you talk to her like that?”

Joe frowned, “Look, you may be willing to let Kailynn be around him, but I’m not letting my daughter.”

Tasha shook her head, “You know I expected this from Jon, but not from you. When are you gonna learn to separate Lee from Roman? I know you hate Colby for lying to you, but you know he didn’t have a choice.”

“There’s always a choice, Tasha.”

“Yeah, there is and right now you’re making a bad one. Our children don’t see things the way that we do, Lee. You see a traitor, a liar, a guy who called you his brother and stabbed you in the back. Jojo sees her Uncle, her dad’s best friend. They don’t understand our jobs, but they are smart enough to know, it’s just a show. It’s not real to them. What is real is this, backstage, where they see that behind the cameras, we’re all still friends. I know you’re angry with him, but we can’t punish our kids for our choices.”

Tasha patted Joe’s shoulder before she went back into the locker room. Joe followed her in a few moments later, sighing he called to his daughter. “Jojo, come with me.” The little girl got up and walked over taking her father’s hand. “You comin’ Tash?”

She smiled, “Yep. Kailynn, come on.” Her daughter got up and took her mother’s hand.

Galina and Renee looked up from the couch, Galina smiling at her husband knowing he was doing the right thing. Joe nodded back before the four left the locker room, walking down the hallways. Rounding a corner Joe told Jojo to wait there with Tasha and Kailynn.

Walking around the corner Joe hollered at the man he had been looking for. “Colby!”

Colby looked up from his conversation with Jericho, saw Joe stalking down the hallway towards him and internally groaned. However, he stood his ground as Jericho walked away, knowing this was a conversation that wasn’t meant for his ears.

Joe stopped in front of his former teammate, pursing his lips he locked eyes with Colby. Joe could see the regret and sadness in Colby’s eyes, he knew that Tasha was right. This was their job, and they needed to learn how to separate personal from professional.

“Tell me you’re sorry.”

Colby sighed as he shoved his hands into his jean pockets. “I am sorry, Joe. I’m sorry I lied to you guys. I never meant to betray you personally, I was just doing my job. I know I’m a traitorous, lying, two-faced sonofabitch, and I’d give anything to take it all back.”

“You forgot one thing.” Joe said making Colby drop his head as he waited to see what Joe would call him now. “You’re also my brother.”

Colby’s head shot up quickly, he was sure he hadn’t heard that right, but as he saw the smile grow on Joe’s face, he knew he had. “I am?”

Joe nodded, “Yeah man, you are. Seth Rollins may be a traitor, but Colby Lopez is my brother. Someone told me we needed to start learning how to separate who we are from the character we play. So, while Roman still wants to spear Seth into next year, Joe just wants his brother back.”

Colby let out a deep breath as Joe held out his hand, he immediately took it, Joe pulling him in for a bro-hug. “Thank you, Joe.”

The pulled back as Joe nodded, “One more thing, no more lies. Whatever happens, we tell each other the truth and we face it together. Agreed?”

“Agreed.” Colby nodded.

Joe still sensed Colby’s apprehension, so he decided to prove that he meant what he said. “And just to prove, that we’re all good.” Joe looked over his shoulder, back to where the girls were standing. “Jojo.”

The girl looked down to where her father stood, he stepped to the side revealing Colby and Jojo’s eyes lit up. “Uncle Colby!” She ran down the hallway jumping into Colby’s arms as he lifted her up and hugged her tight.

As Colby set her down he was grabbed around the leg by Kailynn, he leaned down hugging both little girls. Tasha and Joe stood there smiling, this was what they had been missing, this is what life is all about, family. Now all they had to do was deal with Jon.

“Um, do you guys mind if I take the girls with me?” Colby asked. “I got them each a gift.”

Joe smiled, “Sure. Just bring ‘em back to the locker room when you’re done.”

“Thanks, bro.” Colby smiled as he took the girls’ hands and walked down the hall to his locker room.

Tasha nudged Joe’s arm as they turned back and started for their locker room. “See, feels good don’t it?”

Joe chuckled wrapping his left arm around her shoulder’s and squeezing her. “Yeah, it’s good to have him back.”

“One down. One to go.” She said.

“This ought to be fun.” Joe groaned as they both knew it would take more for Jon to be so forgiving.

The two walked back into the locker room, Galina and Renee smiled over at them. “Where’s the girls?” Galina asked, though she already had an idea.

“With Colby.” Joe said.

The two women smiled, it was nice to see them working out their issues. However there was a bang from the lockers as Jon all but threw his boots down on the floor. “Are you kidding me? What, it’s all forgive and forget now? Just like that?”

“Shut up, Jon.” Tasha and Joe replied together.

“Look man, this is going to happen whether you like it or not.” Joe flat out told him. “You can be pissed at all of us, but this needs to end. If we can’t get past this, then we were never brother’s to begin with.”

“Families fight, Jon.” Tasha said placing her hand on his shoulder. “They hurt one another sometimes, but the ones that truly care and love each other, learn how to forgive.”

Triple H kicked off the show by coming out to announce John Cena’s opponent for Summerslam. That is until Randy Orton comes out to voice his opinion as well as Kane who follows him out next. However their argument is cut short when Roman and Siren show up at the top of the staircase.

“And there is the big dog, Roman Reigns. Lead by his manager, Siren, who is carrying what she has deemed as her “Seth be good stick”. Of course she’s talking about their former partner in The Shield, Seth Rollins, who Siren has been on a war path with over the last few weeks.”

As the announcers speak, Roman and Siren make their way down the stairs and climb up onto the ring apron, Siren making sure to hold her equalizer at her side so it can be seen by the other three men.

Roman picks up a mic and leans on the ropes, staring down the men across the ring from him. “If you’re gonna have a conversation about the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, I think my name belongs in it. Because last time I checked, nobody wants to see John Cena vs. Kane. And don’t nobody want to see Randy Orton vs. John Cena again. It sounds to me like everybody wants to see John Cena vs. Roman Reigns.” Roman climbs into the ring. “Believe that!”

Roman throws down his mic and immediately superman punches Kane, as Triple H and Randy Orton scurry out of the ring.

Triple H stands on the bottom of the ramp with his mic, looking up at Roman he makes an announcement. “I’ll tell you what I believe. I believe that right now, Roman Reigns is gonna have a match. I believe that Roman Reigns is gonna face Kane and Randy Orton. And I believe that is gonna take place right now.”

Siren takes her place at ringside as they come back from commercial to start the handicap match. Kane and Randy take advantage of their numbers, overpowering Roman and punishing him for most of the match. Siren stands by cheering Roman on, the kendo stick gripped in her right hand, looking for her opportunity to unleash it.

Roman knocks Kane to his knees, his head hanging over the bottom rope. Sliding out of the ring Roman runs around and gives a running dropkick to Kane on the apron. Sliding back under the ropes, Roman sets Kane up for a superman punch, but instead hits Randy with a right cross as he tries to interfere from the apron. Kane then hits Roman with a boot to the face knocking in onto the mat. As Roman lies on the mat Kane holds out his hand to Randy for a tag, but the Viper refuses to tag in, so Kane grabs him by the throat.

Roman sees his opening and shoves himself to his feet, hitting Kane with a superman punch to the jaw. He then backs himself up into the corner and delivers a spear to Kane, pinning him for the win. Siren hops up into the ring, raising Roman’s hand as they both watch Randy walk up the ramp, leaving his partner lying in the ring.

Roman and Siren return back to the locker room, they find Seth inside with the girls. Jojo jumps up and runs over to her father, a giant stuffed turtle nearly as big as her in her arms. “Daddy, look what Uncle Colby got me.”

“That’s awesome Babygirl.” Roman smiled at Seth, giving him an approving nod.

“Momma, look what Cole got me.” Kailynn said walking over to her mother, a giant white tiger in her arms as tall as she is.

“Awe, how sweet.” Siren said giving Seth a wink. “Did you both say thank you?”

“Yes.” The girls reply in unison.

Seth bids the group goodbye, he has a promo to film with Triple H, he sends Siren a wink before he leaves. Siren sits down on the couch to watch the promo alongside of Roman.

Triple H shows up on the monitor in his office, he’s talking to someone out of frame. “I understand that, man, but there just really is no reason for you to face John Cena at Summerslam.”

The camera pans over to show Seth Rollins standing beside Triple H, looking disheartened.

“You have the Money In The Bank contract, guaranteed opportunity anytime you want it. When you have all the cards, you don’t put them on the table all at once. You put them out when you wanna put them out. You play ‘em, when you wanna play ‘em.”

“Yeah. I know. I understand. I get all of that, but I mean, what’s the point? Every time I put a hand together and try to play it, Dean Ambrose and Siren are there to screw it up for us. And I’m telling you he’s not gonna stop. He’s not gonna stop until we stop him and I mean, permanently. We got to shut him down for good.”

Seth is interrupted by Cesaro who walks in, shaking Triple H’s hand. “If there’s anybody that should face John Cena at Summerslam, it should be me. I mean, I’m like a walking Money In The Bank contract. Anytime you put me in a championship match, I’ll get the job done. You’re all about what’s best for business. Well, I made a business decision. As of right now, I’m no longer a Heyman guy. I want to be your guy.”

Seth cackles, moving Triple H to the side. “Hey, look, he already has a guy, all right?”

“You?”

“Yeah. Me. We don’t want you around here, okay?”

“Okay, all right, this is uncomfortable.” Triple H says placing himself between the two men. “Here’s the thing, this little bit of unfinished business running around here named Dean Ambrose. You wanna finish that business for me in a match, say tonight, I can let you know that that would be something that would impress me.”

“Consider it done.” Cesaro said shaking Triple H’s hand before leaving the office.

“What’s his deal?” Seth asks.

“I don’t know, but let’s see what he can do.”

“Why not.” Seth shrugs.

Siren chills out on the couch watching Paige and AJ team up to take on Emma and Natalya. She smirks as the crowd starts chanting CM Punk, knowing that AJ and he were now married, AJ sporting her wedding band on her finger.

She claps for Paige and AJ as they win the match, but she’s even more enthused as Paige attacks AJ, retaliation for stealing the championship from her.

Siren excuses herself to go grab a water from catering, she finds Paige walking her way as she leaves catering. “You are one vindictive bitch, Paige.”

The young woman smirks, “I learned from the best.”

The two are laughing when AJ walks up to them, a scowl on her face as she glares at Paige. But it only lasts a moment before she breaks into a smile. “Geez Paige, could you be a little more gentle next time? I feel like a ragdoll.”

“Sorry, love.” Paige says before the two women hug.

AJ notices the sparkle in Siren’s eyes, “You’re happy. Things getting better with Seth?”

Siren shakes her head, “With Seth, no. With Colby, yes. He mended things with Joe today.”

“That’s awesome.” Paige tells her friend. “What about Jon?”

“Jon’s gonna take a little more convincing, but now that we have Joe on our side, it should make it easier.”

“I’m glad things are working out. So are you and Colby gonna try to date now?” AJ asked smirking.

“We agreed to give it a try after we fixed things with the guys. So after Jon and Colby work things out, then Colby and I can work on us.”

“That’s great.” Paige says nodding. “I’m really happy for you both.”

“I’m happy for you too.” AJ says. “So, I’m expecting to be included in your wedding, as you were my bridesmaid. And you did catch my bouquet.”

“Only cause you threw it right at me.” Siren laughs shaking her head. “Let’s not get carried away. But believe me if it ever comes to that day, you both will be there. I would never get married without my two best friends by my side. Besides, people around here need to stop getting engaged, I’ve been in three weddings already this year, anymore and I’m gonna start looking like the girl from “27 Dresses.”

The three women laugh sharing a hug before Siren heads back to the locker room in time to see Flo Rida, their special guest, take the stage for a performance. She dances and sings along with song, alongside Galina and Renee.

However the highlight of the night came when two officers came out to arrest Stephanie for assaulting Brie earlier on in the night. Siren nearly cheered as they placed Stephanie’s hands behind her back and placed their handcuffs on her wrists. It got even better when Brie appeared in front of Stephanie to watch her being lead away in cuffs.

As Siren walked out of the locker room to meet up with Dean at the curtain, she spotted Nikki down the hallway. The two looked at one another before bursting into laughter, Siren hugging Nikki.

“That was amazing. Your sister is my hero.” Siren laughed.

“Oh, I haven’t felt this good in awhile.” Nikki replied.

“Well, I got to go, but when you talk to Brie, give her my love.”

“I will. Be careful out there.”

Siren then walked to the gorilla position, she found Dean there taping up his wrists. As she stood beside him stretching her arms she noticed he wouldn’t look at her. She knew he was upset with her and honestly she didn’t blame him. She knew where he was coming from, now she just had to make him see where she was coming from.

“I don’t have to go out there if you don’t want me too.” She said quietly.

Dean looked up from his wrist, “I want you too. I need my manager.” He noticed how her shoulders dropped when he said manager, he knew she thought it was only Dean talking, so he lifted her chin up with his finger. “And my friend.”

Her bright smile lit up her face as she gave him a light hug and a kiss on the cheek. He sighed, “I can’t promise it’ll be tonight, but I’ll try to forgive him.”

“I understand. Thank you for trying.”

Dean’s music hit and the two made their way out onto the stage, the crowd cheering as Siren held up her kendo stick, she now took it everywhere with her.

“This contest is set for one fall, approaching the ring being lead by Siren, from Cincinnati, Ohio, weighing 225 pounds, Dean Ambrose.”

Once Cesaro makes his way down to the ring the match gets underway, the two immediately going after one another. Siren stays vigilant knowing that Dean is still not 100% and that Seth, Randy Orton or Kane could come down and interfere in the match at any time. She cringes as Cesaro suplex’ Dean onto the floor outside of the ring. He then picks up Dean and drags him back into the ring and targets Dean’s injured left shoulder.

Ambrose retaliates back, head-butting Cesaro and hitting him with a dropkick from the top rope. He then hits a tornado DDT from the top rope and covers Cesaro, but he only garners a two count as Cesaro kicks out. He knocks Cesaro out of the ring and then launches himself out of the ring in a suicide dive, taking Cesaro to the ground.

The two men roll back into the ring where Cesaro hits Dean in the face with an elbow, but Dean rebounds off of the ropes and nails Cesaro with a vicious clothes-line. He again goes for the cover, but surprisingly Cesaro kicks out again at 2. The two men get to their feet, Cesaro then delivers a clothes-line of his own, nearly taking Dean’s head off.

“Come on Dean! Kick out!” Siren yells slapping the mat as Cesaro goes for the cover, and she is rewarded when the lunatic kicks out at 2.

Cesaro gets Dean in the corner, hammering him with boots to the gut as the referee, Mike Chioda, warns him to break if off or he’ll disqualify him. Cesaro pulls Dean out of the corner, he moves to throw Dean into the corner, but Dean counters, tossing Cesaro’s shoulder into the steel ring post. Dean then pulls Cesaro back and does it twice more. Rolling out of the ring Dean looks to Siren before pointing over at a steel chair.

Seeing no big deal for getting disqualified, Siren nods, walking over she shoves the tech off of the chair and folds it up. Handing it to Dean, he slams it into Cesaro’s shoulder, the ref immediately ringing the bell giving the win to Cesaro via disqualification.

As Cesaro rolls out of the ring clutching his arm, Dean tosses two steel chairs into the ring. Both he and Siren roll into the ring, setting up the chairs they sit down, egging The Authority to come down and pick a fight with them.

As Dean and Siren walk through the curtain they are faced by Triple H, feeling like being a bitch, Siren smirks as he passes her. “Oh, hey Hunter, make sure you tell Steph not to drop the soap, and if she does, tell her to breathe out, it makes it less painful.” She winks at him before he rips open the curtain and walks down to the ring.

“We are SO gonna get fired.” Dean laughs, high-fiving her as they head to the locker room to see Triple H’s announcement.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, let me introduce you to John Cena’s opponent and the challenger for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Summerslam.”

The entrance music cues up and the Viper, Randy Orton walks out on stage. But just as Randy gets to the ring he is blindsided by Roman who comes out of nowhere. The two brawl through the crowd as Roman chases Randy to the backstage area.

In the ring Hunter pinches the bridge of his nose, he’s growing irritated with the way things have gone tonight. However his irritation grows as Paul Heyman comes out on the stage, raising a microphone and proceeding to tell Hunter that both his plan A and plan B scenarios have failed. He then says that The Authority needs to make the tough decision to implement plan C. Pointing to the entrance, the crowd goes crazy as Brock Lesnar’s music comes on and the Beast Incarnate himself walks out onto the stage.

However, while many people are celebrating his return, there is one person that is having a panic attack over Lesnar being in the building. Siren is sitting on the couch, her head between her knees, her breathing heavy and erratic. She hasn’t had much contact with Brock since the incident that landed her in the hospital back in 2005. She had managed to keep her distance from the beast, but now being Cena’s manager, if Triple H agreed to this, she would be right where Brock could get her. And that thought alone, terrified her.

She was hoping that somewhere there was a God that was listening to her prayers, but as she looked up to the TV she saw Triple H shake hands with Brock, sealing the deal. And perhaps sealing her fate as well.

After RAW went off the air Tasha went to go grab Renee, so that she could go back to Joe’s house with them for the last night. When she and the blonde returned to the room, they were both surprised to see Colby standing inside talking to Joe.

“Hey.” Tasha smiled as he looked up to see her standing by the couch.

“Hey. Joe asked me to come along with you. Is that okay?” He asked hesitantly.

“That’s great. Um, where’s Jon?”

“Sulking in the parking lot.” Joe said with a smirk. “I told him this was happening, whether he liked it or not, so he grabbed his stuff and walked outside.”

Tasha sighed, looking over at the two-tone haired man to her left. “Colby, you’re gonna have to be the one to go to him, cause he’s not gonna come to you.”

“I know, I tried when I got here, but he just cut me off, screamed and tried to punch me, then he walked out like Joe said.”

Tasha groaned rubbing her forehead, this was gonna call for drastic measures. “I’ll think of something. Let’s get outta here.”

The whole group walked out to the rig together, as they were piling in Jon walked up to Tasha. “Mind if I catch a ride?”

“Is there gonna be bloodshed and yelling? Cause I really don’t wanna deal with that sh*t.”

“Nope, I won’t say a word.” Jon said clearly not ready to work things out.

“Fine, let’s go.” Tasha said shoving him from behind up the steps. “You’re a stubborn ass, Good, you know that?”

“Part of my charm, darlin’.” He said poking his butt back at her with a smile.

Tasha laughed, smacking his butt out of her face as she laughed. “Charm my ass.”

The group minus Jon who stayed back in the bedroom, reminisced on old times as they drove to Joe’s house. They would spend a few days there before heading out together for Smackdown.

Chapter 18: All For One, One For All

Chapter Text

Renee Young and Seth Rollins had to be at Main Event in Orlando the next night, so Tasha drove them to the arena, careful not to let anyone see them together Colby entered the building first, followed by Tasha and Renee a few minutes later.

Sitting in Seth’s locker room Tasha watched Colby getting ready for his match against Fandango, which personally she thought was an insult to Seth. Sure, Fandango was a skilled competitor, but he was not even close to the level Seth Rollins was on. This was just Triple H wanting Seth to have as much TV time as possible, to continue his rise to the top. Considering that now she and Colby had actually started talking about dating, she was now more concerned than ever that Triple H would turn on Seth Rollins. And she knew that on that day, should it ever come, the world would know about them dating, because she would not stand idly by and watch him get hurt.

“You okay?” Colby asked squatting down in front of her as she sat on the couch.

Tasha nodded, not wanting to tell him what she had been thinking about, so she fibbed. “Yeah, I’m okay. Just trying to figure out how to get you and Jon past this.”

“Maybe I should let him beat the crap outta me, get it out of his system.” Colby joked, kissing her forehead as he stood up.

She smiled as he stood up, more from the kiss than from the thought in her head. She was actually thinking that Colby was right, maybe that was what they needed to get past this.

Standing up she followed Colby to the gorilla position where they waited for his music to hit. “Be careful.”

“Always doll.” He winked before his music hit and he left out of the curtain.

Tasha moved over to the monitor on the wall just beside the curtain, it was there so anyone could plan their exact moment of going out on stage. She shook her head as Seth swaggered his way down to the ring. Had he always been that co*cky, brash and arrogant? Smiling, she knew that was one thing about Seth Rollins she loved, he knew he was good and he proved it every time he stepped into the ring.

She couldn’t help but laugh as he stopped at the bottom of the ramp, bobbing his head along to his music. She knew that his new found swagger was partly do to things getting better with their group. She smiled at Seth’s laugh when he realized Fandango was his opponent for the night, Seth shaking his head as Fandango dances his way down to the ring. Again Tasha laughs as Seth motions to the announcers, pointing at Fandango like “are you serious?”.

As Tasha was watching the match she felt someone come up beside her and bump her right arm. Looking over she found CJ or Lana as the WWE Universe knew her standing at her side.

“You look happy.” CJ said in her normal English.

It amazed Tasha that while Lana could speak a thick Russian accent fluently, there were no traces of it when she was just CJ. “I am.”

“So, things are working out?”

“They are. Slowly, but we’re getting there.”

“I’m very happy for you.” CJ smiled giving Tasha a hug. “I just hope when the time comes, you don’t have to break the rules to be with him.”

Tasha nodded, “Yeah, me too. But, hey, wouldn’t be the first time I’ve broken the rules over the years, would it?”

The two laughed as they watch Seth finish off Fandango with a curb stomp. CJ bid Tasha goodbye, she had to go get ready for Rusev’s match later that night.

Seth came back through the curtain, giving Tasha a smirk before he brought her into his arms and hugged her.

“Ew, you are so gross.” Tasha laughed pushing him away, his sweat now on her arms and shirt.

“You love it.” Seth laughed out loud as they went back to his locker room so he could shower and change out of his gear.

Once the show was over the two met up with Renee, the ladies went out to get the car while Colby waited by the doors. Tasha thanked God her rental car had limo tint in the back as she stopped by the doors so that Colby could jump in the back. He stayed down as they drove out of the lot, Tasha and Renee waving to the fans that were outside to see them.

As they got on the road Colby sat up, chuckling at how they all had to hide from being friends. They pulled up to Joe’s house, all of them getting out and walking into the house. Tasha was greeted by her daughter as she ran up to hug her mother, then she took off again to go play with Jojo.

The group had a nice dinner followed by sitting around the fire pit on the back deck, though the tension between Jon and Colby was still there, it wasn’t as strong as before.

The next morning Tasha resorted to desperate measures, this tension had to go, it was uncomfortable for everyone, and it was just plain stupid. So she took a page from Colby and decided to let the two hash it out themselves. So after pulling Colby and Jon out of bed and forcing them to get dressed, she took them to a local gym.

“What are we doing here?” Colby asked from the passenger seat.

“Yeah, if we’re working out shouldn’t you and Joe be with us?” Jon questioned.

“No.” Tasha said turning in her seat to look at both of them. “This sh*t between you two needs to be resolved, today. Jon, you have to learn to separate yourself and Dean, and Colby you have to atone for lying to Jon. So, I rented out the gym, it’s only you two. I don’t care how you get past this, but you need to do it. I am not gonna lose my best friends for this company, we’ve all lost enough over the years, haven’t we? I’ll be back in three hours to pick you up and this better be squashed when I do, or so help me God, I will take my kendo stick and beat you two senseless, got it?”

The two men shrunk back at the fierce tone of her voice, they knew she meant what she said. They nodded quickly as they got out of the car and headed into the gym.

Tasha headed back to the house where Joe met her in the kitchen, raising his eyebrow with a curious look. “Think it’ll work?”

“I hope so.” She admitted.

Joe was preparing lunch when Tasha left to go pick up the two men. She pulled up outside of the gym to find Colby and Jon laughing together abut something. As they climbed up into the car she turned to look at them both.

“Jesus Christ. You two look like hell.” She smiled as she took in their disheveled appearances. Colby was sporting a split bottom lip and the beginnings of a black left eye, while Jon had a split on his right cheek and a split on his top lip. “We all good now?”

The two looked at one another before Jon smiled, holding up his fist. “We’re good.” Colby smiled back knocking his fist against Jon’s.

“Good.” Tasha smiled as she started the car and drove back to Joe’s house.

When the three walked in the other’s just stared at the two men, Joe walked over smirking at them. “Did you leave any for Seth and Dean?”

The group chuckled as both Colby and Jon flipped Joe off, the two men adjourned upstairs to their rooms to take showers before joining the others for lunch. Sitting out on the patio Joe smiled over at Tasha and Colby who were sitting beside one another, Colby gently holding her hand in his.

“So.” He said, earning their attention, he pointed to their intertwined fingers. “You two gonna give that a shot?”

“If you don’t, I’ll beat both your assess.” Jon said smirking at them.

Tasha laughed, “With that being said, yes, we’re gonna try.” Tasha admitted looking over at Colby who smiled, nodding his head. “I don’t know how we’re gonna do it though. We can’t be seen together, so we’re gonna have to sneak around.” She groaned lying her head on Colby’s arm. “I hate our job sometimes.”

Everyone else laughed, they all had that feeling at one point of time or another.

“We’ll make it work.” Jon said. “We’re all in this together.” He raised his beer bottle. “All for one…”

They all smiled raising their glasses up as well, replying in unison, “One for all.”

Thursday night Smackdown emanated from Orlando, Florida. The group rode in Tasha’s rig as it could park close to the venue, out of the view of fans, so that everyone could at least remain together.

As they walked into the arena together you could feel the shift in the air. Superstars and crew members smiled, breathing a sigh of relief as they saw the former friends back together. It had been a tense working environment since the breakup of The Shield, but now there was a calm enveloping the backstage area.

However the group ran into two people who didn’t seem so thrilled about their reunion. Hunter and Stephanie stood in the path of the group, looking less than happy.

“Well, look at you guys, all back on the same page, one big happy family.” Triple H sneered glaring pointedly at Colby who glared back. “If this screws up anything out there, I will personally fire all of you.”

“Nothing will change out there, Hunter.” Tasha said. “Unlike you two, we know how to separate our characters from our real lives. Once we step on camera, it’ll be like nothing ever changed.”

Stephanie scowls at Tasha, she doesn’t like being spoken to like that, she looks down seeing Tasha’s hand intertwined with Colby’s and shakes her head. “Uh, uh, no. I can’t control you all being friends, but that, I will not allow.”

“We don’t need your permission.” Colby states, squeezing Tasha’s hand.

Stephanie smirks, “Yes, Colby, you do. Seth Rollins and Siren cannot be seen together, I will not allow you to ruin what we have built in The Authority.”

“No one will see us together.” He said, shrugging his shoulders. “You cannot stop us from being together, I lost her once, I won’t do it again. If you can’t deal with it, then fire me.”

To say that everyone was in shock at Colby’s words would be an understatement, especially Tasha, she was staring up at Colby with amazement.

“Can we go get ready now?” He casually asked as if he hadn’t just slapped the bosses in the face.

“Yeah, go.” Hunter said, a small smirk on his face, no one had the audacity to speak to his wife like that. Secretly he was proud of Colby, he knew what if felt like to have to hide your relationship. He had to stand up to Vince about his relationship with Stephanie, and Vince nearly fired him, but Hunter stood his ground. He knew it wouldn’t be easy, but if any couple could make it work, he knew it was Colby and Tasha. He also knew that one day, the stress of keeping it a secret and spending time away from one another would eventually take its toll on them. A plan started forming in Hunter’s head, and for once it wasn’t a devious plan that would only benefit the company, it would benefit Colby and Tasha as well. He just had to wait for the right opportunity to present itself.

Tasha sat in the locker room that the entire group now shared, her mind should have been on the show about to start, but in truth, it was millions of miles away. She couldn’t believe that Colby had put his career on the line just to be with her. She was still trying to wrap her head around it when she felt a hand on her knee.

Looking up she found Colby sitting on the couch beside her, already changed into his ring gear. “Penny for your thoughts?”

She smiled, “I can’t believe you told them to fire you, for me. You know I would never let you do that right?”

“I know.” He nodded. “They won’t fire me, but I needed them to know that this, us, is something I’m willing to fight for.”

“I can’t believe it took us this long.”

“Me neither. But sometimes you gotta lose something, to know how much it means to you.” He smiled, leaning forward he kissed her forehead.

The nights show kicked off with Jimmy and Jey pulling a little Bella “Twin Magic” on Curtis Axel and Ryback to secure the win. Siren stood off to the side of the interviewer’s area while Roman cut a promo with Renee.

“Please welcome my guest at this time, Roman Reigns.”

The man in question stepped into the frame, giving a smile and a nod to Renee.

“Roman, this past week on Monday night RAW, you stopped The Authority’s plan A, Randy Orton from accepting his WWE World Heavyweight Championship match at Summerslam.”

The big dog breaks into a large smile, “Of course, Randy Orton’s plan A, he’s The Authority’s spoiled little baby and his daddy Triple H, he’s always got a plan, ooh. Who cares about a plan? Because when you get hit with this right in the mouth, there ain’t no plan that matters anymore and that makes me a wanted man around here. It’s all good for me. One versus all.”

“Roman, tonight, you face another opponent in Alberto Del Rio. How do you feel heading into tonight’s match?”

“As far as Alberto Del Rio goes, last time I checked, he’s not on my side. So, that would put him in the category of all and he can’t stop the one. He better have a plan because I got the punch. Believe that.”

Siren smiles at Roman as he finishes the interview, he sees her standing off to the side and makes his way over to her.

“Deano, up next?”

“Yep.”

“You be careful out there, Babygirl.”

Siren rolls her eyes at his big brother nature, “Come on, Rome. It’s no disqualification.” She swings her kendo stick up, letting it rest of her shoulder. “I thrive in the chaos.”

“You are Dean are two of a kind, you’re both lunatics.” He smiles shaking his head.

“That’s why he’s my partner-in-crime.” She smirked before she turned and skipped off down the hall to gorilla, Roman chuckling as he watched her disappear.

Dean’s music cued up and the two walked out on stage, the fans on their feet, roaring with cheers as Lillian Garcia announced the match.

“The following is a No-Disqualification match. Introducing first being lead by his manager Siren, from Cincinnati, Ohio, weighing in at 225 pounds, Dean Ambrose.”

Siren and Dean climb into the ring, she climbs up onto the turnbuckle holding the kendo stick in the air. Nodding to the fans she points at a few of the kids wearing her new shirt, they break into smiles when they see her notice them.

She climbs down as Cesaro makes his way to the ring, rolling out of the ring as the match gets underway. Dean gets the upper hand on Cesaro, giving him ample time to roll out of the ring and start looking for toys to play with. He pulls out a few kendo sticks, and a plethora of steel chairs.

Cesaro grabs Dean and tosses him up against the ring post, grabbing a kendo stick he moves to hit Dean, but the man ducks and then clothes lines Cesaro over the barricade, into the timekeepers area. Dean then hops over the barricade and proceeds to pummel Cesaro, then he tosses him back over the barricade and grabs the ring bell. Jumping up onto the wall he takes the ring bell and jumps off, slamming it down onto Cesaro’s head. He punches Cesaro in the head for good measure, then picks up a kendo stick and climbs up onto the announcer’s table. Jumping off of it he brings the kendo stick down, but Cesaro avoids it, instead nailing Dean in the stomach with another kendo stick.

As they come back from commercial Cesaro has a kendo stick across Dean’s throat. Siren is slamming her fist down on the mat, trying to urge Dean on. Cesaro picks Dean up and gives him a back body drop onto two steel chairs. He then pins Dean’s lower back under a chair and tries to choke him with the kendo stick.

Siren riles up the fans who start chanting “Let’s go Ambrose”, Dean hears them as he fights his way out from under the chair. Cesaro then focuses his hits to Dean’s injured shoulder, punishing Ambrose. As he moves to hit Dean again, Ambrose traps the stick under his left arm, surprising Cesaro. Dean gets to his feet, looking behind him at the ropes he allows Cesaro to push him backwards, Dean pushes off of the ropes and clothes-lines Cesaro viciously.

Cesaro picks up the steel chair, raising it over his head, which leaves his mid section open to attack. Which is exactly where Ambrose focuses a swing of the kendo stick, and as Cesaro doubles over Dean swings again bringing the stick down on Cesaro’s back and then another shot to the gut. Dean wraps the stick over Cesaro’s throat as he had done to Ambrose earlier, giving him a Russian Leg Sweep planting him on the canvas. He covers Cesaro but only manages a 2 count before the Swiss man kicks out.

Dean motions to Siren who tosses him another steel chair, he catches it and sets it up right next to another chair, the fronts pressed together just as Cesaro had done earlier. Then thinking for a moment Dean grabs the chairs and flips them around so that they sit back to back instead. The two block another as they try to each lift their opponent up and drop him on the steel chairs. Finally Dean has enough, he picks up one of the chairs, closes it and then rams it into Cesaro’s stomach. He then grabs Cesaro and delivers a suplex to Cesaro onto the remaining chair, bending the metal as he lands on it. Dean again covers him, but still only gets a 2 count.

Ambrose grabs the remaining chair and climbs up to the second rope, he then delivers an elbow drop to Cesaro with the steel chair. Cesaro jolts up grabbing his right arm in pain as Ambrose goes for another cover, but Cesaro again kicks out at 2. Cesaro then runs Dean’s injured shoulder into the steel ring post, he covers Ambrose but the lunatic kicks out at 2. Cesaro again runs Dean’s shoulder into the post, then climbing out of the ring with a steel chair he moves to hit Ambrose’s shoulder with it. But he’s cut off in his attack by Siren as she nails him with a hard hit to the stomach with her kendo stick. Dean then launches himself out of the ring in a suicide dive onto Cesaro , taking them both to the ground.

Dean gets to his feet, motioning Siren over to the side of the ring with him they pull out a dozen more steel chairs and toss them into the ring. Dean then picks up Cesaro and tosses him back into the ring, but as he turns to get into the ring he is ambushed by Seth Rollins.

Seth moves to Irish whip Dean into the barricade, but Dean reverses it instead hurling Rollins into the barricade. Then before he can recover, Dean clothes-lines Seth knocking him over the wall into the timekeepers area.

Dean focuses his attention back on Cesaro climbing to top rope, but Cesaro instead grabs him delivering a German suplex off of the top rope, onto the pile of steel chairs.

“Oh my God, Dean!” Siren yells as she sees him hit the chairs and immediately holler out in pain.

Cesaro goes for the cover, but miraculously Dean kicks out at 2, the entire arena is stunned that he’s still fighting. Cesaro grabs Dean going for another suplex, but Dean reverses it, rolling Cesaro up in a small package for the win.

Siren hikes a leg up onto the ring apron to roll inside when her hair is grabbed from behind. Seth pulls her off of the apron jerking her back towards the announcer’s table. “Steel steps, ready baby?” Seth whispers into her ear as he holds her tight to his body.

She gives a light nod that he can feel through his hand in her hair, he whips her around, shoving her back first into the steel ring steps. Her body makes a sickening thud before she slumps to the ground. Seth then jumps into the ring and begins to pummel Ambrose, nailing him with kicks to the body. He and Cesaro start double teaming Dean, Cesaro giving Ambrose his finisher before he rolls out of the ring.

Seth smirks as he stands over Dean’s body, he kneels down placing one of his knees on Dean’s back. Gripping Dean’s hair in his left hand, he lifts his head up and screams at him. “When are you gonna learn to stay down!?” He gets up and bounces off of the ropes delivering another curb stomp to Dean’s head.

Once the trainer’s had helped them backstage both Dean and Siren found Seth awaiting them. They all broke into smiles, knocking fists on a job well done out there. They looked up to find Triple H and Stephanie approaching the three superstars.

“See, Steph. Nothing’s changed.” Siren smirked before she took Seth’s hand and Dean’s arm and walked off to their locker room.

Roman’s music cues up as he and Siren make their way down the stairs through the crowd, both of them high-fiving the fans as they walk down.

“The following contest is scheduled for one fall. Making his way to the ring being lead by Siren, from Pensacola, Florida, weighing in at 265 pounds, Roman Reigns!”

The two hop over the barricade, Siren stands down on the floor raising her fists as Roman climbs the turnbuckle and does the same.

As Del Rio makes his way to the ring Siren walks over and sits in the empty chair beside JBL, who hands her a headset. She puts it on as Michael Cole welcomes her to the announce table. “And we’re being joined right now by Siren. Welcome.”

“Thank you Michael.” She smiles sweetly.

“It’s good to see you out here after that assault by Seth Rollins earlier.”

“Awe thank you. I’m happy to be out here.”

Del Rio goes for the cross arm-breaker but Roman powers out shoving him out of the ring. Roman stands there egging Del Rio back into the ring, “Come on, bitch.”

They come back from commercial, and Roman has taken control of the match over Del Rio.

“So, Siren, as a manger shouldn’t you be out there giving Roman advice, instead of sitting here on commentary?” JBL snarks.

Siren coolly looks over at him, “No, I have full confidence in Roman, he doesn’t need me to yell advice to him. As he always says, he evaluates the situation and then he attacks. If he needs me, he’ll let me know. But let me ask you a question JBL, why do hate me?”

“I don’t hate you.” He argues.

“I bed to differ that.” Cole adds. “I’ve never heard anything nice come out of your mouth about Siren.”

“Thank you, Cole.”

“I’ve had plenty of nice things to say about her.” JBL states.

“Name one?” Siren challenges, but JBL seems caught off guard, like he can’t think of anything. “I’ll tell you what your problem is, you’re still holding a grudge.”

“No I’m not.” JBL says going on the defensive.

“Yes, you are. You’re still angry about me and Cena ruining your limo and then taking your championship at Wrestlemania 22.”

Siren checks on Roman who is dominating Del Rio, as Cole laughs remembering that night on Smackdown.

“I remember that, it was a great night.” Cole laughs.

“I thought it was funny too.” Siren adds.

“It was not funny!” JBL snaps. “You and your criminal ex-husband ruined my limo, my suit and my hat.”

“Oh my God, I’d almost forgotten about the hat, thanks for reminding me, that was hilarious.” Siren laughed along with Cole. “Finish him off, Rome!” She yelled as she saw Roman calling for the superman punch.

Roman nails Del Rio with the punch, then hits him with a spear for good measure. Siren gets up as Roman gets the win, setting down her headset she climbs into the ring, raising Roman’s hand up in the air.

“Nice job, big dog.” She says as Roman pulls her in for a hug.

They climb up on the turnbuckles celebrating with the fans as Smackdown goes off the air.

Chapter 19: Pure Happiness

Chapter Text

The next morning the entire group loads up into Tasha’s rig and starts the long drive to Houston, Texas for Monday Night RAW. While most of the roster was flying, the group opted to drive as it gave them more time to hang out, not having to hide their friendship.

When they arrived Tasha directed Daryl to where they would be staying for the weekend. No one but her knew that they wouldn’t be staying in a hotel, but with a good friend. Tasha smiled as the rig came to a stop, standing up she opened the door motioning to them all. “Welcome to your weekend getaway. Come on.”

She lead the way off of the rig, the others looking around curiously, never having been here before. Colby leaned down to her voicing everyone’s question. “Where are we babe?”

Tasha smiled as a man came walking out of the house, waving to them eagerly and calling out in a Southern drawl. “Hey, there’s my Angel.”

“Shawn’s house.” She said with a smile before running over and hugging the famous Heartbreak Kid himself.

“Hey guys, come on in.” Shawn says as he leads the way into the house.

The weekend slipped by too fast for all of them, they had barbequed, rode around on the ATV’s getting muddy and swapping stories of on the road life.

Before they knew it, it was time for Monday Night RAW, the group bid Shawn goodbye as they loaded up into the rig and Daryl drove them to the arena.

Walking through the backstage area, all of the other Superstars and Divas waved to the group, mainly Tasha and Colby. Everyone was happy for them. In their business, relationships were hard to come by and even harder to keep, between their schedules and the bosses throwing their weight around. So when you were lucky enough to come by that special person that made you want to break all of the rules for, you held on tight no matter what the higher powers threw at you.

Being as she and John were up first, Tasha quickly got changed into Siren’s gear before joining her ex-husband behind the curtain. John noticed her smile and glowing face, and he smiled. “You look happy, T.”

“I am, J.” Tasha said smiling.

“So… you and Colby, huh?”

“Yeah, me and Colby.” She said, raising her eyebrow, “You think I’m making a mistake?”

He shook his quickly, “Nope. I think he’s good guy and I think he cares about you a lot. Any guy who would tell the bosses to fire him, instead of breaking up with you, that’s a good man in my book.”

“How’d you know about that?”

“People talk backstage.”

Tasha chuckled, “Yes, they do. You ready to have some fun?”

“Always.”

John’s music kicked on, the crowd went crazy as he and Siren ran out onto the ramp, the titles slung around John’s neck. The two saluted the fans before they ran down the ramp and slid into the ring. The two of them are handed mics, Siren stands by listening to the fans as John takes off his hat. He scratches the top of his head, the look on his face saying he’s thinking hard about something.

“A very lively bunch here in Houston. And normally, I would share in your enthusiasm. But that week it was revealed to myself, Siren and the world that plan C is what I hoped would never happen. It is Brock Lesnar. I am a marked man by The Authority. They want the WWE World Heavyweight Championship off of my neck so badly that they hired a mercenary. My opponent at Summerslam is the Brock Lesnar. And last week, it was announced, and there were cheers, and Paul Heyman spoke very eloquently to all members of the WWE Universe, those who get tucked in at night and those we don’t. And there were cheers, because the WWE Universe, well, quite frankly, maybe wants to see Brock Lesnar beat the hell out of me.”

Siren winces as the Universe starts chanting, ”Yes!”

“I am certainly not deaf, and I know who my opponent is. Brock Lesnar is the most devastating force in the WWE. His destruction is seismic. With the precision of a surgeon, he destroys who he wants when he wants. I have seen that destruction first hand, and I’m still looking for vengeance for him putting my best friend in the hospital.”

John looked over at Siren with a sad smile, that was a day that the two of them would not soon forget.

“Forty men have been able to say that they were champion. One beast has defeated the streak. I face that beast at Summerslam, and Paul Heyman was right, for once, he tells the truth. I am not ignorant. At Summerslam, I will get the beating of a lifetime. Oh, yes. Those that are happy about it, cheer it up, because at Summerslam… Oh, yeah. There is a beast in my windshield, and at Summerslam, I’m gonna get my ass kicked, I know that. But I will not lay down. I will fight. I am going to Summerslam to beat Brock Lesnar just like I did in 2012! For those who cheer, for those who boo, because I don’t think The Authority realizes, and I don’t think you realize what will happen to this if Brock Lesnar becomes champion.”

John holds up the edge of the belt, he and Siren know what Brock will do to that title if he wins it at Summerslam.

“Brock is a mercenary. He is a hired gun. He fights when he wants. He destroys what he wants. And I don’t know who else can stop him. Nobody can control him, not you, not The Authority, and certainly not Paul Heyman.”

“Ladies and gentlemen…”

Siren’s heart drops to her stomach as she hears Paul’s voice, she knows that just behind that curtain is the man that put her in the hospital, that nearly ended her career. She looks over at John, he can see the fear in her eyes, he nods letting her know that’s it’s okay, he would protect her.

“Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Paul Heyman, and at Summerslam, my client, Brock Lesnar, will conquer John Cena and take away from him the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. I think it’s very courageous, Mr. Cena, for you to realize the beating that is coming your way. But I don’t think that you understand that those are mighty big words from a man that is about to be turned into a victim. Do you know what it’s like to be victimized? Why don’t you ask your ex-wife how it felt.”

“Screw you, Heyman!” Siren snapped causing the crowd to roar.

Paul smirks, he loved getting under the woman’s skin. “John, you’ve suffered from defeat and rose to the occasion. You’ve taken beatings before, and you’ve come back and exacted revenge. But you’ve never, never in your life, been victimized. Know what it’s like to be victimized? Ask the Undertaker. I’m sorry. You can’t ask the Undertaker. No one has seen the Undertaker. No one has heard from the Undertaker, not a phone call, not a text, not a sighting, nothing since Wrestlemania. You, sir, are on the defensive. You want to defend your title. You want to get vengeance for your ex-wife. You want to survive against my client.

But my client, Brock Lesnar, is looking to conquer you, sir. And that’s the difference. My client is charging forward. My client is on the offensive, because Brock Lesnar’s not just going to F5 John Cena. Brock Lesnar’s not just going to pin John Cena. Brock Lesnar is going to victimize John Cena, ruthlessly, mercilessly. You’re a man of great passion, John Cena. You love being the WWE Champion. You love representing those who say, “Let’s go, Cena.” You love even representing those who say, “Cena Sucks.” You love being in that ring. You love being here in WWE. But the only thing that Brock Lesnar is passionate about is the sad*stic pleasure he gets when he realizes that he is inflicting pain on his victim. Brock Lesnar is salivating at the that, when you wake up from the beating that he’s gonna give you at Summerslam, you’re gonna realize that you’re no longer the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. All you’re gonna be, John Cena, is beaten, victimized, conquered.”

John has had enough of the greasy-haired ponytail talking sh*t, he takes the belts from around his neck and lays them in the ring.

“I’m sick if your crap, and I want to talk to you real for one second, one second. Somethin’ you and I can relate upon, you said the word passion. The word passion is something even you, Mr. Heyman, can understand, because every once in a while, faint, off in the distance, it starts and becomes larger and larger. They chant, “ECW, ECW, ECW, ECW.” And those that watched, and those that fought with you have the passion that you have. Every time even you hear that, it brings a smile to your face and a beat in that cold, black heart of yours. You and I, sir, we share passion. This is it for me. This is my friggin’ life. And good, bad or indifferent, I show up to work on time. I work my ass off, because I love this place, and I love what it represents, and I have passion for it, and I have passion for this.”

He picks up the titles, gripping them in the fingers of his right hand.

“That 300 pound gorilla you tote around whenever he wants to show up has no passion for anything but himself. He is big. He is strong. He is a super athlete. But what separates me from him, Jack, is heart. And when the chips are down, he may beat the hell out of me, but he’s gonna have to beat every last breath out of this body. Because I’m headed to Summerslam champion, and I’m walking out with this son of a bitch!”

Suddenly Cesaro’s music keys up and the man comes walking out on stage, giving Paul a hug which he returns awkwardly, as he has no idea what Cesaro is doing out there. “Hey, even though Paul Heyman and I have decided to go separate ways, I won’t allow you to insult my friend like this. Look at you. You’re not a wrestler. You’re a big, muscled-up, walking billboard.”

John slides out of the ring with the sole intention of beating the sh*t out of Cesaro.

Cesaro sees him coming up the ramp and tells him, “Where do you get… Stay right there. Stay right there. Where do you get those shoes at, huh? Kmart? You can’t wrestle in sneakers.”

John rolls his eyes, grabbing the mic he had thrown to the floor he slides back into the ring, standing beside Siren who is shaking her head in disbelief at Cesaro.

“Oh, that’s right. You just can’t wrestle.” Cesaro continues, not realizing the grave he is digging for himself with Cena. “How about… Don’t say anything. How about I prove that to you in a match right now?”

“Shut up, shut up Paul.” John says as the man starts to speak. “Cesaro, it is gonna be my honor for this jacked-up walking billboard who can’t wrestle to wrestle circles around you and beat you right here in the middle of this ring right now.”

As they come back from commercial the match gets underway as Cesaro and John lock up in the middle of the ring. Just as John said he would do, he began to wrestle circles around the youngster, pulling out some veteran moves that the crowd hadn’t seen since some of the legends. The match ends with John giving Cesaro an AA from the second rope, and covering him for the win.

Siren stood backstage chatting with Brie who had been allowed back into the building, as Stephanie wanted to make things right. Of course they all knew that really meant that Stephanie wanted another change to humiliate Brie. The two smiled at Paige and AJ who had come backstage from their promo in the ring where they ended up beating on one another.

“You two are crazy.” Siren said laughing as they shoved and pushed one another, good natured though, they were actually friends off camera, like most of them backstage were.

Together the four watched the promo with Stephanie and Hunter, but before Brie could go out there, Jericho strolled out to make his presence known. They all laughed as Chris had the crowd singing the Cops theme song to Stephanie.

Siren looked over to see Seth heading for the curtain, she knew he was supposed to go out and shut Chris up. He gave her a wink, to which she shook her head and smiled as he walked out and slammed his briefcase into Jericho’s back.

“You two are so cute together.” Brie said seeing the exchange between Seth and Siren. “I’m really happy for you.”

“Thanks Brie.” Siren smiled. She felt Seth come up behind her and wrap his arms around her waist, kissing her cheek. “Be careful out there baby.”

“Always.” She said before he headed back to the locker room, and shortly after she was joined by Roman for their match. “See you ladies later.” She waved as she followed Roman up to the corridor where they would enter from.

“Watch your back, Babygirl.” Roman cautioned her. “You know Randy’s not done with me yet.”

Siren nodded, “I know. I’ll be careful, you just focus on your match.”

Kane entered the arena first, his fire burning across the top of the stage as he made his way down. He then climbed into the ring and raised his arms, bringing them down and exploding the tops of the turnbuckles.

The crowd then leapt to their feet, watching the staircase intently as Roman’s music boomed through the arena. They cheered as Siren appeared first leading the big dog down the stairs, each of them fist bumping the fans along the way.

“And his opponent coming down the aisle, being lead by Siren, from Pensacola, Florida, weighing in at 265 pounds, Roman Reigns.”

Just as they reached the barricade Roman was hit from behind, knocking him into Siren, sending her sprawling onto the floor. She rolled over to see Randy Orton and Roman brawling with one another. She slid out of the way as Roman threw Randy over the barricade, then holding out his hand to help her to her feet. She watched from the safety of the crowd as Roman hopped the barricade, then jumped off of the stairs nailing Kane with a Superman punch as he tried to attack Roman.

It become a two-on-one attack as Kane and Randy get Roman into the ring and attack him. Roman manages to take out Orton with a Superman punch, but he’s grabbed by the throat and choke slammed by Kane.

Kane then gets out of the ring and leaves Roman at the mercy of the Viper. Randy starts beating away at Roman, at that point Siren leaps over the barricade to intercede the mauling. But a stern look from Roman tells her to stay out of the way, he doesn’t want her getting hurt because of him. She backs up behind the announcer’s table as Randy delivers a DDT to Roman off of the barricade. She’s thinking about disobeying Roman’s order when she sees Randy picking up Roman and slamming his head off of the steel ring steps.

“Randy, that’s enough! He’s down! Randy, stop!” She screams as Orton walks over and smirks at her, before he starts ripping everything off of the announcer’s table.

Fearing for Roman’s safety Siren puts herself between him and Orton, even when he tells her to move, she stands her ground. Orton puts his hands up as if he’s retreating, but as she turns to check on Roman, Orton’s boot connects with her stomach, hard. She tumbled backwards over Roman and landed on the floor, the air knocked out of her body with the kick.

She watches Orton drag Roman’s lifeless body up onto the announcer’s table, he then picks Roman up and delivers a devastating RKO onto the table. Surprisingly the table doesn’t break, which sets Orton off, as he picks Roman up again and delivers another RKO, this one splitting the table into pieces.

As the show went to commercial as the trainers came down to help both Roman and Siren backstage.

Backstage Seth was pacing as he waited for Siren to be brought back to him. Once he saw her he rushed up taking her arm from the trainer and putting it around his neck. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, Cole. Just knocked the wind out of me.”

“What the hell is his problem?” Seth snapped as he helped her to his locker room, lying her down on the couch. “I thought he was your best friend.”

“He is my friend. But you know that there are no friends on camera.” She laid her hand on his face, “Please don’t worry about me, focus on your match against Chris. I’ll be okay.”

“You stay right here until I get back.” He said sternly pointing his finger at her. “Don’t move from that couch.”

“Yes, sir.” Siren said giving him a mock salute as she smiled.

Seth shook his head with a laugh, this woman was gonna drive him insane. He leaned down placing a light kiss on her forehead, before he grabbed his briefcase and left the room.

Siren looked up at the monitor as Seth made his way down to the ring for his match. She smiled at his co*cky swagger, he truly loved what he did, and he was one of the best when he got in the ring.

Seth strutted down the ramp, climbing up the turnbuckle and holding up his briefcase containing the championship contract. He eyed Jericho who stood across the ring from him, smirking as he pulled off his shirt.

Siren smiled as Seth took off his shirt, the girls in the crowd screaming, her only thought being, ‘Look all you want ladies, but that is my man.’ She couldn’t wait for the day when she didn’t have to hide her relationship from the world. She hated not being able to walk down the street with her man, to go to a restaurant without worrying of pictures surfacing and placing them in hot water with The Authority.

Seth and Chris locked up with Jericho quickly backing Rollins into the corner, leveling kicks to the stomach. Seth then rolled out of the ring trying to catch his breath, but Jericho followed him, hitting him in the back and sending Seth sprawling on the floor. The two traded chest chops around the announcers area before Seth rolled back into the ring. He then went for a suicide dive, but was cut short with a punch to the face by Jericho.

The two got back into the ring and grappled, both of them backing the other into the corners. Jericho ignored the ref’s caution as he beat down on Seth, disregarding the rules. Seth was knocked to the outside again as Jericho leapt from the turnbuckle, taking him to the floor as the show went to commercial.

When they returned Seth had Jericho in the middle of the ring, a choke hold applied to Y2J. During the commercial Seth had sent Jericho out of the ring, then performed a suicide dive that slammed Jericho’s back against the barricade. Jericho was now trying to get to his feet, releasing some of the pressure from Rollins’ hold on him.

Jericho hit Seth with several elbows to his gut, Seth responded by whipping Jericho backwards and slamming his head off of the mat. Seth then tossed Jericho into the corner and giving a small somersault to change directions, he leapt onto Jericho in the corner. He then went for the cover, wrapping Jericho’s arm, but Y2J still managed to kick out.

Seth stepped back a moment to catch his breath before he went back in for the kill. Or rather bite, as he literally sunk his teeth into Jericho’s forehead as an added insult. Seth whipped Jericho into the opposite corner, but as he charged him, Jericho moved out of the way and Seth nailed the top turnbuckle.

Jericho was building speed, jumping off of the top turnbuckle and hitting Rollins with a forearm to the face. But Seth quickly countered with a swinging neck breaker to Jericho, covering him, but only getting a 2 count. He nailed Jericho with three head butts, getting back to his feet he taunted Jericho, slapping his head and shoving him with his boot. But Jericho quickly got to his feet answering the taunting with several chops to the chest.

But just as he rallied, Seth slammed Jericho into the corner second rope, driving the wind out of his chest. Seth climbed to the top rope looking to put Jericho down for good, but Jericho quickly got up and started leveling punches to Seth’s head. Jericho then climbed up to the second rope, grabbing Seth and looking for a suplex. But Seth countered with shots to Jericho’s ribs and then another head butt for good measure.

He then looked like he was going for a Sunset Flip, but Jericho countered sending Seth flying to the mat with a Back Body Drop. Jericho climbed up onto the top turnbuckle, delivering a cross-body lateral press to Rollins. He covered him as the ref counted, but Seth kicked out at 2 1/2. The two Superstars were both clearly drained of energy as they laid on the mat, the ref starting the 10 count. Jericho got to his feet first stopping the count, followed by Rollins, the two then started pummeling each other with right hands.

The two tried several moves, but were denied by each other, with Seth finally picking Jericho up and slamming him back first into the turnbuckle. Seth then ran towards Jericho looking for the curb stomp, but Jericho moved out of the way, trying to roll up Rollins for the win, but Seth kicked out at 2 once more. Jericho grabbed a hold of Rollins feet, knocking him to his back and looking for the Walls of Jericho, but instead he flipped Rollins trying to slam his back into the mat. But Seth landed on his feet and nailed Jericho with an enziguri kick to the head.

Seth climbed to the top rope to deliver a knee to Jericho’s face, but Y2J turned in into a Codebreaker planting Rollins on the mat. But before he could cover him, the lights went out in the arena, when they came back up Jericho was surrounded by the Wyatt family.

Rollins rolls out of the ring as the three start a three-on-one mugging of Jericho. Bray finished him off with Sister Abigail, before he and his family posed for the fans.

Seth stumbled back to the locker room, he was pleased to see Siren still lying on the couch as he had asked her too. However she did sit up and make room for him when she saw him holding his stomach.

“You okay?” She asked as she gently touched his stomach with her fingers.

“I’m okay, Chris is a tough man.” Seth chuckled as he laid his head back on the couch.

Siren laid her head onto his shoulder as they relaxed watching the promo taking place between Stephanie and Brie Bella. The promo ended with Brie getting her job back and a match against Stephanie at Summerslam. Then without warning Stephanie slapped Brie, knocking her off of the ring apron. Siren winced, she’d been on the receiving end of one of Stephanie’s slaps, they hurt like a bitch. Brie then climbed back into the ring the two women brawling with one another, until Triple H and his security guys broke the two apart.

“Summerslam is gonna be interesting this year.” Siren commented as RAW went off the air.

After Colby had taken a shower and changed, he walked Tasha back to the Diva’s locker room so that she could change out of her ring gear. Once done they walked outside hand-in-hand, meeting up with the others as they waited outside of the rig.

As they drove to the next town for Main Event, Tasha laid on the back bed with Colby watching a movie, her daughter snuggled in between the two of them. Just before they reached the hotel Kailynn looked up at the man, “Cole, are you my mama’s boyfriend?”

Colby was taken aback, sometimes he forgot just how smart the 3 year old was. He smiled down at her, “Not yet, sweetie.”

“Well when?” She asked curiously making her mother smile as they both looked at Colby.

He suddenly felt very small under their gazes as he stuttered out, “Uh, uh, soon.”

“Okay.” Kailynn said going back to the movie, satisfied with his answer.

Colby looked over at Tasha who was laughing behind her hand, it was amusing to her to see a grown man stumped by a 3 year old child. He shot her a glare, but the sides of his mouth were turning into a smile.

The trio after making sure there were no fans around to see them together, made their way up to the hotel room with their friends. They bid goodnight to the others as they entered their suite, Tasha collapsing onto the bed with a groan.

“Oh my God, I feel like hell.” She said throwing an arm over her eyes.

Colby chuckled as he took her hand and pulled her up from the bed, which she allowed under protest. “Why don’t you go take a bath and I’ll watch Monkey.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

Colby shook his head as he held her hands. “Don’t thank me, you and her are a package deal, I want Kailynn in my life just as much as you.”

Tasha felt tears spring to her eyes, hearing that from Colby meant the world to her. Her daughter was everything to her, since her biological father wanted nothing to do with her, Tasha had hoped that she would find a man who would become a father to her. And secretly, she wanted that man to be, Colby.

She nodded as Colby kissed her forehead and then turned her around and pushed her into the bathroom with a tap to her butt. She laughed as she opened the door, but her laugh turned into a gasp when she saw the inside. There were candles lit all around the Jacuzzi tub, which was filled with bubbles and rose petals. She heard Colby behind her and she looked over her shoulder at him. “Did you do this?”

“I didn’t but I called the hotel ahead of time and they took care of it.”

She turned around to face him, “You are amazing.” Stepping up to him she pushed up onto her tiptoes and placed a sweet kiss to his lips. “Thank you.”

“You deserve it.” He said before kissing her forehead and leaving her to relax. After getting the TV set up with a movie for Kailynn, he sat down on the couch and smiled. That was only the second kiss he and Tasha had ever shared, but he was already addicted and was looking forward to the next one. Having an idea form in the back of his mind, he took out his phone and text his best friend Nick Morrill, aka Marek Brave.

‘Hey man. How’s it going?’ He received almost an immediate reply from his friend.

‘Hey bro. Doing good. Things are coming along nicely. How are you?’

‘Good. I got her back.’

‘Congrats man. I’m proud of you. ’

‘Thanks, I feel a weight lifted from my shoulders and I’m happier than I have been in months.’

‘Good, you deserve to be happy. Have you asked her about joining us yet?’

‘Not yet. That’s why I was texting, to ask you if you still wanted her to be a part of it.’

‘Of course I do. She’d be an asset to us and the business, and it’d show her that you care about her and want her to stay around for life.’

‘Alright man. She’s leaving soon to go back to Cali to film the last season of SOA, so I think I’ll bring her up there when we have time and show it to her. Then we’ll both ask her.’

‘Sounds good to me dude. Can’t wait to see you guys again.’

‘Same here man. Give your boys a hug for me. I’ll see you soon.’

‘Aight man. See you.’

Colby smiled as he set his phone down, he felt good knowing that Marek was okay with this still, even though it had been his idea in the first place. He heard a knock at the door, opening it up room service wheeled in a cart containing their dinner and a bottle of wine. Colby tipped the man, then gave Kailynn her food, chuckling as she was so engrossed in the movie she barely noticed. He picked up a glass off of the table and poured some wine into it, then knocked on the bathroom door.

“Come in.”

Colby opened the door, stepping inside he was grateful that the jets and bubbles were blocking his view of her body. “I got you some wine.” He said handing her the glass, which she took with a grateful smile.

“Thank you, Cole.”

“You’re welcome.” He smiled as she took a drink, her body relaxing into the water, as he sat down on the steps beside her. “So, I was thinking about what Monkey said earlier, and I can’t ask you to be my girlfriend yet.”

“Why’s that?” Tasha asked, looking at him curiously, she didn’t feel any dread, she knew he wanted to be with her.

“I haven’t taken you out on a proper date yet.”

Tasha smiled, “I’d like that.”

Colby nodded, he was really looking forward to taking her out, he just wasn’t sure how to do it without them being seen. “Okay, good. Well, I’d like to do it before you go back to Cali for filming.”

“Alright. Just let me know and I’ll be ready.”

He nodded again, leaning over he kissed her forehead before leaving her to relax.

Colby had just gotten Kailynn into bed, read her a story and had her asleep, when Tasha came out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel. He smiled at her, placing a finger over his lips so she knew Kailynn was asleep. She nodded as she grabbed some pajamas out of her bag and went back into the bathroom to change.

A few minutes later she came back out, brushing her long hair, but it was her pajamas that had Colby’s attention, and it made him chuckle. She had on a pair of black shorts and one of his Architect T-shirts, never had his logo looked so good before.

The two ate dinner together in silence, just enjoying one another’s company. After they had eaten and brushed their teeth, they climbed into bed, Colby wrapping his arms around Tasha’s waist. For the first night in a long time Colby fell fast asleep, a smile on his face as he held the woman that had invaded his dreams for months in his arms.

Chapter 20: First Date

Chapter Text

The next day the trio rode in the rig with their friends down to the arena for Tuesday night’s Main Event. When they walked in they split up, Colby, Tasha and Kailynn going into his locker room, while Jon and Joe headed to the male locker room. They had all agreed that once their feud was over, which they weren’t sure how long it would be until then, they’d go back to sharing a locker room.

Dean and Siren kicked off the show that night, Kailynn staying in the locker room with Seth. They walked out onto the stage to the roar of the crowd. Siren had changed up her look, now that The Shield was done she decided it was time to ditch the black leather. So she opted for something a little more comfortable and a little more her. A pair of skintight blue jeans tucked into a pair of knee-high black motorcycle boots and a custom crop fitted tank top with Dean’s new design on it. The tank was cut to a v on top so that her cleavage was visible and it came to just under her boobs.

“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Siren and Dean Ambrose!”

Siren and Dean made their way down to the ring, the Lunatic was in a foul mood tonight and he had some things to get off of his chest. They climbed into the ring, each taking a mic from the tech as they waited for the music to end.

“I’m back. And I’m in a foul mood. Fresh off my little promotional tour last night, shaking hands and kissing babies has never been my strong suit, obviously. But it’s an easy way for The Authority to keep me off of Monday Night RAW and away from their precious little darling Seth Rollins. Oh, but I’m here tonight. And I say let’s cut the crap. I’ll say this to Seth Rollins. Why don’t you finally do what’s best for business. Come out here right now and get your teeth knocked down your throat in this ring.”

The crowd cheers, they really want to see this happen, but Siren shakes her head, raising her mic. “He won’t do it, y’all know he won’t.”

“No, I’ll bet my bottom dollar that you won’t because you ain’t got no guts.” Dean goaded. “Let’s find out if I’m right. Does Seth Rollins want to hang out back there and hide behind closed doors eating protein bars with Triple H or whatever it is you guys do? Or do you want to come out here and you want to get knocked out.”

Dean tosses the mic down and rips off his jacket while the crowd cheers. He looks down at his imaginary watch, then over at Siren and she shrugs, “Are you surprised, cause I’m not.”

He sits down on the canvas and picks up the mic he threw down, “Nothing. That’s what I thought. You’re just going to hang out and hide back there, hide behind Kane and hold Triple H’s hand. Meanwhile, I’ll be out here in this ring doing what I do. Going through every superstar, every thug, every goon, every tiny little bull, every demon The Authority puts in front of me until I get to you, Seth. And when I do, I’m gonna make you pay the price for selling out.”

Dean drops the mic as Siren hops up on the turnbuckle and sits down, her right leg bent, foot resting on the ropes. Just then Del Rio’s music starts playing and they both roll their eyes as he walks out on stage with a microphone.

“Oh God y’all, he’s gonna talk.” Siren said making the crowd laugh, she held up her hand, “Shh, shh, shh. If you guys don’t be quiet, we’ll never understand what he’s saying.” She laughed along with the crowd as Dean threw her a smirk.

“What exactly you are supposed to be?” He then curses in Spanish, the only way he can’t get away with calling Dean names, but little does he know, both of them knew what he said. “You look like a bum. You look like you just came out of a dumpster. You need to stop worrying about Seth Rollins and start worrying about Alberto Del Rio. You think I’m afraid of you, Dean? I’m a former WWE Champion, a former World Heavyweight Champion. You want to know what fear is? Fear is being locked in my cross arm breaker and wondering if Alberto Del Rio is going to show you mercy or not.”

He climbs up the steps and through the ropes into the ring, Dean meanwhile is shaking his left arm. “Dean, as you know, every good show starts with a kickoff. You want to start this right now? Cause I can see your shoulder is wrapped up like a present, a beautiful present just for me. I’m gonna to tell you what I’m going to do tonight. I’m gonna take your arm home tonight and put it on a shelf like a trophy.”

He drops the mic and kicks Dean straight in the shoulder, then scurries out of the ring like a coward.

“Del Rio with a kick right to the injured shoulder of Dean Ambrose.” The announcer says as Del Rio walks back up the ramp.

Siren and Dean walk backstage, finding Seth standing there with Kailynn waiting for them. Kailynn runs up to Dean and hugs his leg, “Are you okay, Uncle Jon?”

Dean smirks as he hugs her, “I’m fine kiddo. No worries.”

While Dean heads to the locker room where Roman is, Siren and Kailynn head to Seth’s where the two adults sit down on the couch while Kailynn colors on the floor.

“So, when do you have to go to Cali to film?” Seth asks as he holds Siren’s hand.

“Right after Smackdown.” She sighed. “I don’t want to go. This is our last season, I’m not ready for SOA for end. I’ve had so much fun on this show, I’m not ready to say goodbye.”

“I know, it sucks, I love the show. Mainly cause you’re on it, but still, it’s a good show.” He chuckled causing her to smile which is what he was going for.

“Would you come with me, when we film our final episode later this year?” She asked hesitantly.

“Absolutely. I’d like that.”

“Okay. Cool.” She said giving him a kiss before they steeled in to watch the show, until it was time for Siren to head out with Dean.

“Be careful.” Seth told her.

“Don’t throw me into anymore stairs.” She winked drawing a laugh from him as she disappeared out of the door.

Siren followed Dean out to the ring for the his match, the last one of the night and it was proving to be a good one for the fans. As always the crowd cheered as they walked out, then voiced their displeasure of Del Rio as he came out.

As soon as the bell rang Dean went straight after Del Rio hammering him with fists. He then proceeded to whip Del Rio into the corners, both men trading blows back and forth.

Throughout the match Siren kept a close eye on the ramp and crowd, she knew Seth would be lurking somewhere trying to ambush Dean. She watched the match with rapt attention as Del Rio starting targeting Dean left arm and shoulder. He was favoring it and she knew he was hurting, “Come on, Dean!”

Dean managed to get a head of steam, hitting Del Rio with a vicious clothesline from the ropes. Siren hears the crowd shouting, she looks to her left and sees none other than Seth Rollins strutting down the ramp.

As soon as Dean sees him he rolls out of the ring and attacks Seth, the two men hammering away at one another. The ref signals for the bell giving the win to Dean by disqualification, but Dean could care less as he chases Seth around the ring past Siren and over by the announcer’s table.

Seth manages to get Dean on the announcer’s table, he jumps up onto him raining down punches. But when he drags Dean up and tries to slam him into the barricade, Dean counters it and sends Rollins back first into the barricade instead. He then throws Seth back into the ring, following him and clotheslining him over the ropes on the opposite side.

As Seth scurries back up the ramp, Dean turns his attention to Del Rio, hitting him with “Dirty Deeds” and planting him on the canvas. Dean and Siren sit on the second rope, waving for Rollins to come back in the ring and fight.

When they get backstage the three laugh at a job well done, Dean and Seth knocking fists before they all disperse to their locker rooms to get ready to go. Once they were all showered and changed they walked out to the rig, Renee meeting up with them along the way.

Luckily they didn’t have to travel anywhere as Smackdown was being held at the same arena as Main Event. So they headed back to the hotel to relax, after dinner and watching movies with Kailynn.

The next day was a day off for the group, while Jon and Renee headed out to spend time together, Joe and Colby went to the gym and Tasha took Kailynn out to Shawn’s house to ride horses.

While they were there Shawn took the opportunity to chat with Tasha about Colby. “So, are you happy baby?”

Tasha looked over at Shawn, he had become like a second father to her over the years she had been with the WWE. He had seen all of the heartaches that she had gone through, and he was the first person besides John that had shown up at the hospital the night Brock had attacked her. “I’m really happy, Shawn. He treats me good, he loves Kailynn. Hell, he was willing to lose his job just to be with me.”

“Then what’s bothering you?” He asked knowingly, he could see it written on her face.

Tasha sighed, “I’m worried about him, not Colby, but Seth. He’s doing so much to be at the top of this company. I’m just wondering when all of this is gonna catch up with him. I’m afraid he’s gonna get hurt. He’s pushing himself so hard. I know his good luck is gonna run out, and I’m terrified.”

Shawn nodded, he know what she meant, every superstar reached that point when they inevitably got hurt, and Seth had managed to avoid that for now. “You have a right to be worried, you care about him, there’s nothing wrong with that. He’s gonna get hurt, it happens in this business. All you can do is be there for him when it happens.”

Tasha nodded as they headed the horses back to the house, Shawn could still see her worrying. “You really love him don’t you?” He smiled.

“Yeah, I do.”

“Have you told him yet?”

“No. It’s too early, I don’t wanna run him off.”

Shawn shook his head, “Honey, I’ve seen the way he looks at you, even when you weren’t with him. That boy loves you. He’s not going anywhere.”

Tasha and Kailynn headed back to the hotel after saying goodbye to Shawn. When they got there Joe was in the room, but Colby was nowhere to be found.

“Where’s Cole?” Tasha asked as she set her purse down on the table.

Joe looked up from the TV, “He’s taking you on a date tonight, but since you can’t be seen together he left already. He said for you to take that bag on the bed and get dressed, and there’s a car downstairs that will take you to the restaurant. Don’t worry about Monkey, I’ll watch her.”

Tasha smiled, then picked up the bag on the bed and excused herself to the bathroom. Setting the bag on the counter she pulled out the items inside, a floor length black coat and a strapless LBD (little black dress). Stripping off her clothes she quickly hopped in the shower and rinsed off the dirt from riding, then she toweled off and tugged the dress on. It was a perfect fit, hugging her in all the right places, it made her smile to know that Colby knew her exact size.

After brushing her hair and applying light makeup to her eyes, she came out of the bathroom and slipped on a pair of black ankle boots. “So, how do I look?”

Joe and Kailynn both looked up from the TV, when they did she turned in a circle showing off the outfit.

“Mommy, you look pretty.” Kailynn said running over to hug her mother.

Joe nodded, “She’s right. You look beautiful, Babygirl.”

“Thanks Lee.” Tasha said with a blush as Joe gave her a wink, she leaned down kissing her daughter then kissing Joe on the cheek. “Be good for Uncle Lee, honey. I’ll see you later.”

“Okay, bye mommy.” Kailynn said as she sat back down next to Joe and continued watching her cartoons.

Tasha then grabbed her phone, placing it in her purse before leaving the room and taking the elevator down to the lobby. Walking to the front doors she was greeted by Daryl, he was dressed in a nice black suit.

“Evening Ms. T. I’ll be your driver/fake date tonight, ready to go?”

Tasha chuckled taking his arm as he lead her over to the car, opening the passenger door and helping her inside. When they got to the restaurant Tasha noticed that it was pretty deserted, she took Daryl’s hand as he helped her out of the car and lead her inside of the building. Anyone who saw them would assume that she and Daryl were going to dinner together.

However when they got inside Tasha found Colby standing by the doorway waiting for her. “Hey. You look stunning.” He said holding out his hand to her.

“Thank you.” She said with a smile as she took his hand.

He lead her through the restaurant to a secluded table in the back, so even if someone came in, they wouldn’t see them. Pulling out her chair Colby smiled as she sat down, before he nudged her back towards the table, then took his own seat across from her.

“You look very handsome, Cole.” Tasha said admiring his crisp black dress shirt, black slacks and black tie. Clearly black was a color they both loved as most of their wardrobes were black.

“Thank you, baby.” Colby smiled as he reached over and took her hand in his. “I took the liberty of ordering you a drink. I hope you don’t mind.”

Tasha shook her head, “No, I don’t mind, that’s very sweet of you.”

The waitress then walked up setting down two glasses of wine, Tasha picked up her glass and took a sip before smiling. “Arbor Mist Peach Moscato, my favorite wine. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

After a moment of looking over the menus the waitress returned to take their orders. “Can I get the stuffed mushroom appetizer, please. And I’ll have the filet mignon medium well, with the fettuccini alfredo, please.” Colby said handing his menu you to the waitress.

“And I’ll have the seafood medley scampi with the white wine sauce, please.” Tasha said handing the menu to the young girl.

“Okay, I’ll get your appetizer right out.”

“Thank you.” They both said giving the young lady a smile.

Tasha looked down at Colby hand holding hers, looking up she found him looking at her. “What?”

Her voice seemed to shake him out of his stare, “I just didn’t realize how incredibly amazing you would look in that dress.”

Tasha ducked her head, hiding her blush with her hair, “Thank you.”

The two spent the night talking about old times, reminiscing and laughing. When their dessert came out Tasha was overjoyed, Colby had ordered them strawberry cheesecake, her favorite.

After they finished the cheesecake, Colby took Tasha’s hands in his, smiling at her from across the table. “So, I said I couldn’t ask you out until we went on a date. Now that we’ve done that, will you be my girlfriend?”

Tasha smiled, bringing his hands up to her lips she kissed them. “I would be honored to be your girlfriend.”

Colby let out a breath, he didn’t think she’d tell him no, but a part of him was still worried. “In that case I got you something.” He reached down into his pants pocket and pulled out a long slim case, sliding it across the table to her.

Shaking her head with a smile Tasha opened the case and gasped, one of her hands covering her mouth as she stared down at the object.

“Do you like it?” Colby asked hopefully.

“It’s beautiful, I love it.” Tasha said softly.

Colby stood up and rounded the table, picking up the necklace he had bought earlier that day with Joe. Placing it around her neck he waited for her to hold up her hair before he clasped it, placing a kiss on the back of her neck. He leaned down placing a sweet kiss on her lips before he went and sat back down.

“I had to claim you before you go back to Cali, don’t need one of those bikers swooping in and stealing your heart away.” Colby joked.

Tasha laughed, “That’ll never happen, you’ve had my heart since Paris. No one could ever take it away.”

As he waited for the check he watched Tasha as she fingered the diamond encrusted initials on the platinum chain. SR. Most people would assume it was for her name Siren Rose, but those who knew her closely would know they were for Seth Rollins.

After paying the check Colby kissed Tasha before he left the restaurant, heading back to the hotel. Tasha and Daryl left shortly after him, driving back to hotel.

When she got back to the hotel room Colby was sitting on the couch with Joe watching TV. She looked over already seeing her daughter in bed, giving them both a smile she grabbed her pajamas and slipped into the bathroom.

“Did she like it?” Joe asked quietly not wanting to wake Kailynn.

“She loved it, thanks for your help, man.” Colby said knocking fists with Joe.

“That’s what brother’s are for.” Joe smiled before he left and went back to his own room.

Colby quietly took off his outfit, slipping into a pair of shorts before he climbed into the bed. A few minutes later Tasha came out of the bathroom, lifting up the covers she slid into the bed beside him. Leaning over she placed a kiss onto his lips, pulling back with a sweet smile.

“Thank you, for tonight.”

“You’re welcome.” He smiled back then kissed her again, before wrapping his arms around her and snuggling her body up against his.

They both drifted off to sleep with smiles, Colby’s hands holding her tight, and her necklace clutched in her hand.

Chapter 21: Birthday Party

Chapter Text

The next morning the group drove down to the arena for Smackdown. The night kicking off with Jack Swagger vs. Cesaro, which Jack won earning him a huge ovation from the crowd. He was then challenged to a ‘Flag match’ by Lana and Rusev which he agreed to. Summerslam was shaping up to be one unforgettable night.

Tasha was walking back from catering when she bumped into Randy in the hallway, he was making his way out to the ring to address his attack on her and Roman.

“Hey, Princess, how’s your stomach?” He smirked.

Tasha rolled her eyes with a smile, smacking him in the chest, “You’re a douche, Randy.”

“But you love me.” He chided as he gave her a hug. “I promise I’ll go easy on you tonight.” He gave her a wink to which she responded by flipping him off, he walked down the hall laughing as she headed for Seth’s locker room to watch.

She walked into the locker room and Colby looked up at her seeing her shake her head while laughing. “What’s up baby?”

She sat down beside him on the couch after giving Kailynn her juice she had gotten. “My best friend’s are dicks.” She laughed, then recounted her talk with Randy.

“Hey, you picked ‘em.” Colby said with a laugh.

After the match with AJ and Rosa which ended with AJ winning, but then being knocked off the stage by her “best friend” Paige, Siren headed off to do her promo with Dean.

Siren sat on a piece of scaffolding behind Dean, smirking at the camera while he spoke to Seth.

“So, Seth Rollins probably thinks he’s pretty safe tonight out there because he brought along his chaperone, Uncle Kane, to face me in a 2 on 1 handicap match. I’m sure Triple H thinks this is pretty funny. It’s probably his idea, because all The Authority does is place obstacles in front of me to protect their precious investment, darling little Seth Rollins. Kane, you are a demon, but I know a thing or two about demons. I ain’t crazy and I ain’t stupid. I know exactly what I’m dealing with tonight, and I’m willing to go through it. I’m willing to go through you to get to Seth Rollins, and when I get to Seth Rollins, no man, no demon, nothing else is gonna be able to pull me off, Kane. I hope you brought two of those masks with you tonight, because when I’m done with Seth Rollins’ face, he’s gonna need one.”

After that Siren and Dean make their way down to the ring to face Seth and Kane, who were already in the ring awaiting them. Siren shakes her head as Seth eggs Dean on, hiding behind Kane of course. She has to hide her smile as Seth leans out from behind of Kane, smirking at her and Dean.

However as the match starts Seth wants nothing to do with Dean, letting Kane get it started, only coming in off of the tag when Dean is down. Then as soon as Dean starts to rally, Seth immediately tags Kane back in. Kane targeting Dean’s left arm, ramming him shoulder first into the turnbuckle.

Seth tags back in after Kane hits Dean in the face with two shots, he stands over him slapping Dean in the face while laughing. But his laughter is short lived as Dean gets to his feet and shoves Seth backwards, knocking him to his ass. Seth quickly gets to his feet and lands a knee to the side of Dean’s head, then begins to “stomp a mud hole through him” as JR would say.

Siren slams her hands down on the mat trying to rally Dean to his feet. “Come on, Dean! Get up!”

Dean is backed into the corner and Kane is tagged in, the two paying close attention to Dean’s left arm. After delivering a sidewalk slam to Dean, Kane tags Rollins back into the match.

Seth circles Dean, yelling at him. “Get up, Dean. Get up. Come on. I’ll give you one last chance. I’ll give you one last chance.”

But Dean can’t get to his feet, so Seth picks him up looking for the “Pedigree”, but Dean lifts him up delivering a back body drop. Dean gets to his feet and clotheslines Seth over the top rope, sending him to the floor in front of the announcer’s. Kane gets in the ring and charges Ambrose, but Dean pulls down on the top rope, sending Kane flying over and onto the floor beside Seth.

But before they can get back into the ring, Dean suicide dives through the ropes, taking them both out. He pounds his fists on the floor, before getting to his feet and tossing Seth back into the ring. Kane rushed Ambrose, but with a drop toe hold, he sends Kane face first into the steel steps, taking him out of the equation for the moment.

“You’ve got him!” Siren yells to Dean, the look on his face telling her he heard her.

Dean gets back into the ring and grabs a rushing Seth, taking his legs out from under him, slamming his back onto the mat. He unloads with strikes to Rollins, then shoves him back into the corner and continues the onslaught.

Siren can hear Dean scream into Rollins’ face. “I loved you. She loved you. You were my buddy.”

He then tosses Seth across the ring, Seth tries to escape but Dean grabs him by the hair. But it is short lived when Kane gets up and drags Ambrose out of the ring, then throws Dean into the timekeepers area.

Dean crawls back over the barricade, Siren stands in front of him a scowl on her face as she looks at Rollins in the ring. “Screw this!” She yells before she grabs a steel chair and shoves it into Dean’s hands, pointing at Rollins. “Payback!”

Dean climbs into the ring and slams the chair into Kane’s back forcing the disqualification. But Ambrose could care less as he slams the chair into Rollins next. But then he’s met with a boot to the face by Kane, who then picks up the chair and drops it down beside Dean. He picks Dean up looking for a choke slam, but Dean counters it and delivers a DDT to Kane on top of the chair.

Seth realizing he’s outnumbered scrambles from the ring and retreats back up the ramp. Dean’s not done sending a message to Seth, he picks up the chair and nails Kane in the stomach, doubling the demon over. He then brings the chair down onto Kane’s back twice, knocking him from the ring.

Once in the back Seth stands waiting for Dean and Siren, when they come back he smirks at Dean raising an eyebrow. “Payback?”

“Maybe a little.” Dean said with a chuckle. “Hurts don’t it?”

“Yeah.” Seth laughs before they knock fists and Dean heads to the trainers to get his shoulder checked out.

After showering and changing their clothes, Colby and Tasha, holding hands with Kailynn made their way out to the rig with Joe, Jon and Renee. They had a short drive to the airport where Tasha and Kailynn said goodbye to their boys, they were traveling to California so that Tasha could start filming the final season for Sons of Anarchy and season 4 of Teen Wolf. Thankfully there weren’t any fans around them at this point, so they didn’t have to hide.

“We’ll be back on Sunday afternoon, please don’t burn the rig down. Daryl will take care of you guys, please be good to him.”

Joe and Jon nodded as she kissed and hugged them goodbye, followed by Kailynn, the young girl chatting with her Uncle’s while Tasha said goodbye to Colby.

“Call me when you land, please.” Colby said as he pulled Tasha into his arms.

“Of course I will. You guys be safe, and I’ll see you on Sunday.” She said giving him a kiss. “We can throw Monkey a party when we get back, since Sunday is her birthday.”

“That sounds great. Be safe, baby.”

“Always.” Tasha smiled before Colby pulled her into a deep kiss.

Waving at the boys Tasha lead Kailynn onto the plane, the three men waiting until they were out of sight before they headed back to the rig.

As they drove to the next town for RAW Colby had a great idea. “Hey, we should plan a party for Kailynn on Sunday.”

“That sounds great.” Joe said as Jon nodded in agreement. “What’s her favorite thing?”

“Paw Patrol.” Jon answered, both Joe and Colby raising their eyebrows at him, wondering how he knew that. He shrugs his shoulders like it was no big deal, “What? We’ve watched it together.”

Colby shook his head as he listened to Joe rib Jon for that admission, and Jon then tossing back Joe’s tea parties that he has with Jojo. Pulling out his phone he shot a text to Tasha.

‘Miss you already.’

It was only a few minutes before he got a reply back. ‘Miss you more, Cole.’

It was around midnight when Tasha called Colby, lying in his hotel bed he reached over and picked up his phone off of the nightstand.

“Hey, baby.”

“Hey.” She said with a sigh.

“You okay, Tash?” He said hearing her sigh, he knew she was probably tired from the red-eye flight.

“Yeah, just tired. We got to the hotel a little bit ago and I just put Monkey to bed.”

As much as he wanted to hear her voice, he knew she needed sleep. “You should get to bed too, got a big day tomorrow, you need your rest.”

“I know.” She said with a yawn which made Colby smile. “Okay, I’m going now. I’ll call you tomorrow when I have time.”

“Okay, baby. Have fun.”

“Blood, sweat, leather and bikes. How could I not have fun?” She laughed.

“True. Goodnight, baby.” Colby said, he could hear her smile over the phone and it made him smile.

“Goodnight, my heart.”

Sunday morning Tasha and Kailynn boarded a plane for RAW, sitting in the seat she let out a deep sigh. After two full days of filming she was tired, sore and slightly bruised in a few spots. As much fun as she had on both shows, she was bummed that it was her last season of SOA. The guys had become her family, and she wasn’t ready to say goodbye to them. They were so sweet, they had gotten Kailynn a cake and presents from each of the guys.

But that was the nature of the beast, all good things had to come to an end. She had been told that her entire life, but it didn’t make it any easier to deal with.

When they got off of the plane they found Colby waiting for them, being as there were a lot of people around, he had on a black sweatshirt with the hood pulled up, a ball cap underneath and his glasses on. Unless you were a true fan, you wouldn’t recognize him at all.

He smiled as he saw them, walking up and giving Tasha a kiss before picking Kailynn up and hugging her. “Missed you, munchkin.”

“I missed you too, Uncle Cole.” Kailynn said happily as he carried her through the airport to pick up their luggage.

After grabbing their luggage the trio walked out to the car that Colby had rented. Driving back to the hotel Colby asked Tasha how filming had went.

“Good. Tiring. Because I’m not there for long and as often as the others, we tried to get my appearances for a couple episodes done. So it was more riding, shooting and fighting packed into one day. SOA wasn’t as tough as Teen Wolf though, cause I had to get into my wolf makeup and that takes them like 4 hours just to put on. But I’m good until the weekend after next.”

“So you have a weekend off next Friday?”

“Ha, I wish, I have to go down to Georgia for Walking Dead.”

“Gotcha.” Colby nodded, looking over he could see how tired she was and it made him frown. “Maybe you should ask Steph and Hunter to take you off of Smackdown for a while. Then you would have Tuesday-Sunday to film, you wouldn’t have to push yourself so much.”

Tasha squeezed his hand that was holding hers. “That’s very sweet of you to think of, but I can’t. WWE is my number one priority, I can’t miss shows just because I’m tired. I have too many fans, and I don’t want to let them down by wussing out.”

“That’s one thing I love about you, your dedication.” Colby said bringing her hand up to his mouth and placing a kiss on the back of it.

Once they got back to the hotel Colby had Tasha and Kailynn go up to the room and change, he had made plans for them all. So after they had changed clothes, they met Colby back down in the car and he drove them to their destination. They both smiled as they got out of the car to find they were at a skating rink. Tasha had grown up roller skating with her family, her sister and her were very good at Rexing, which is a form of dancing on skates.

They walked inside to find the inside decorated with everything PAW Patrol and even a PAW Patrol cake, and nearly half of the WWE locker room waiting for them, when they saw Kailynn they all looked over and shouted. “Happy Birthday, Kailynn!”

Tasha almost cried, she turned to Colby with tears in her eyes, “You did this?”

He smiled motioning to Joe and Jon, “We did it.”

“You guys are amazing.” She said giving him a kiss, before she went over and hugged Joe and Jon. “Dang it, my skates are in the rig.” She frowned, but she saw Colby smile, he held up his hand which were holding her skates. “You’re the best.”

It turned out that Colby, Joe and Jon had rented out the entire rink for about 4 hours. While Kailynn spent most of her time on the indoor playground on the opposite side, with Jon, Joe and Colby chasing her around, Tasha spent her time skating around the floor with her friends.

The girls were crowded around her, fawning over her necklace. “It’s beautiful.” Paige said. “You’re a lucky woman.” Naomi told her. “He really loves you.” AJ smiled. “And he loves your daughter.” Nikki said as they all watched Colby chase Kailynn through the playground.

Tasha was on cloud nine as she skated round, holding her necklace with her fingers. But just as every relationship in her life, she was waiting for the floor to collapse beneath her.

Chapter 22: Sit Down Ronda Rousey

Chapter Text

Monday Night RAW kicked off the next night from the University of Texas, with The Authority coming out to the ring to make an announcement. Siren sat in the back smirking as Seth gave her a kiss before he headed out to the ring. She watched him walk to the ring with a co*cky smirk on his face and shook her head with a smile.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we are just two weeks away from the biggest pay-per-view of the summer, Summerslam. And you can see it all live on the WWE Network for just $9.99. Well, I’m not the kind of guy that likes to pat myself on the back, but in this instance, I’m gonna do just that, because I think quite frankly, this could be the biggest Summerslam card in history. At the Summerslam pay-per-view, you will get to see the sad*stic Bray Wyatt go one-on-one with Y2J Chris Jericho. And you can see it all on the WWE Network for just $9.99. But that’s not all, because Mr. Money In the Bank, Seth Rollins, will face the unstable, Dean Ambrose. And you can catch every minute of that live on the WWE Network for just $9.99.”

In the back Siren is overly annoyed, “IfHunter says 9.99 one more time, I’ma beat the sh*t out of him with a kendo stick.” Beside her Roman and Dean chuckle, but they know she’s not kidding, seeing her “Seth Be Good Stick” propped up by the door.

“Speaking of that match, Seth Rollins came to me with an idea earlier today that I thought was actually spectacular and we’re gonna do just that. Tonight, there will be a beat the clock challenge. Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose will both try to beat their opponent. And the one that does just that and does it in the shortest period of time will be the winner and will be able to name the stipulation in the match between the two of you at the Summerslam pay-per-view.”

In the back Siren and Dean both smirk at each other, rubbing their hands together. “Oh, ho, hooo. The possibilities.” Siren said with an evil chuckle.

“Dean Ambrose will not have it easy, because his opponent tonight in the beat the clock challenge will be Alberto Del Rio. But just so you don’t think we’re taking it easy on Seth Rollins, Seth Rollins’ opponent will be none other than Rob Van Dam.” Triple H hands the mic over to Stephanie, “And later tonight we will have…”

The crowd start booing her, very loudly and the superstars in the back can’t help but laugh.

“I know. I’m happy to see you guys too. I’m even wearing cowboy boots. Look, we’re in Texas. They’re nice, right? Yeah. Later tonight, we will have the official contract signing for my match at Summerslam against Brie Bella.

Triple H then steals the microphone from Stephanie, “Which by the way you can catch live on the WWE Network for just $9.99.”

“Oh my God! That’s it!” Siren snaps as she heads for the kendo stick by the door, but Dean is quick to grab her around the waist and haul her back to the couch. “No, no, no, no, no. Sit down, Ronda Rousey. No blood shed before the matches begin.”

Siren frowns as Dean plops her back on the couch, in between him and Roman, she huffs crossing her arms and sulking. “You guys suck the fun out of everything.”

“And if Brie gets out of line tonight,” Stephanie continued, “I will slap her so hard, she will wind up in a hospital bed, right next to her husband, Daniel Bryan.” The crowd starts “Yes! Chanting,” and Stephanie smiles, “Yes I will.”

Triple H then takes the mic back, “And that is not all because, ladies and gentlemen, it is on. In what could be the biggest fight of the summer, the Beast Incarnate Brock Lesnar will try to take the championship from the 15-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion, John Cena. And, ladies and gentlemen, remember that you can catch every moment of that spectacular match on the WWE Network live for only…” He holds the mic up and the crowd yells, “$9.99.” Triple H smirks, “How much? That’s right $9.99.”

“Oh, hell no!” Siren says trying to get up off the couch, but Dean’s arms catch her around the waist and drag her back down, this time on his lap. His arms tighten as she squirms, but she can’t get up. She growls, but gives in settling back against Dean’s chest, but not before elbowing him in the stomach once.

“Ouch.” Dean snaps, but doesn’t loosen his grip.

“But wait, there’s more.” Triple H then hands the mic to Orton, “You see the best part of Summerslam, ladies and gentlemen, is my guarantee to you. And I guarantee that you will witness me continue to methodically decimate Roman Reigns. Roman, took something very dear to me, you see, my chance, my opportunity at becoming WWE Champion. You can even look onto this announce table and see remains from that sorry SOB after what I did to him last week, but if you think what I did to him last week was anything, just wait. That was only a taste.”

The crowd jumps to its feet and screams as Roman’s music booms throughout the arena. Roman and Siren descend through the cheering crowd, Siren carrying her kendo stick on her shoulder. She wasn’t dumb, she knew they were outnumbered, so why not bring an equalizer along.

One of the techs brings mic’s up to them as they pause in the middle of the crowd, still cheering the two on as Roman’s music cuts off and he raises the mic. “Randy Orton claims the Viper is back, that means I took everything the Viper had last week and I’m still standing right here! And Hunter, you say you’re all about great deals. Well, I have one for you, I’m gonna come down there and I’m gonna beat the Viper’s ass for free—tonight!”

In the ring Randy has ripped off his jacket, he’s ready for a fight. Triple H lays a hand on the man’s shoulder, “Alright. Alright. Hey, calm down, calm down. Randy, you got Roman Reigns, but you got him at Summerslam.”

“I want him right now! I want him tonight! I want him now!” Randy yells.

“Hold on. You’ll get him at Summerslam. Tonight, Roman Reigns is gonna face a demon. And I expect to see a demon tonight.” Triple H says looking directly at Kane, insinuating that he’s been less than a demon lately. “Roman Reigns, you will face Kane in a last man standing match.”

“I love ‘em. I love ‘em.” Roman says cracking his neck.

“And don’t go anywhere, because that match starts right now.”

Roman and Siren make their way down the stairs and over the barricade as the shows goes to commercial.

When they return to RAW Roman and Kane square off in the ring as the bell rings to start the match. As the two beat one another inside the ring and outside, slamming one another into the announcer’s table and steel steps, Siren keeps her eyes on the ramp. She knows Randy or Seth could interfere at any time.

Siren checks on Roman as Kane moves the steel steps over onto the ramp, he then tries to shove Roman into them, but Roman counters with a few punches, then sends Kane back first into the barricade. But the demon gets to his feet and slams Roman into the barricade, the black mat shoving back into the crowd.

While Roman is down Kane starts looking under the ring for something, it’s a no DQ match, so anything is legal. Kane picks up a kendo stick and swings it around as he approaches Roman. He slams the kendo stick into Roman’s back, then stomach, back again and stomach again before he tosses it away. He picks up the top of the steel steps and bounces them off of Roman’s head, immediately Siren can see blood form on Roman’s forehead.

Referee Mike Chioda is at a 7 count before Roman gets to his feet, pulling himself up on the ring apron. Roman finds the will to fight back as he tosses Kane into the timekeepers area, just before RAW goes to commercial.

When they come back both superstars are back in the ring, as Kane goes to ram Roman’s head into a steel chair wedged between the ropes in the turnbuckle, Roman counters it and sends Kane crashing head first into it instead.

Both men are down as Mike starts the ten count, both men get back to their feet stopping the count at 7. They then start trading blows to one another, Roman gets a head of steam and starts unloading on Kane. The demon collapses onto the bottom rope, Roman gets out of the ring and delivers a “drive by”, both feet nailing Kane in the face.

The two then end up outside of the ring where Roman sends Kane crashing into the steel steps that he had set up for Roman earlier. Roman whips Kane into the barricade, he then tosses out his arms saying “it’s over” as he lifts up the ring apron. Roman pulls out a table and puts it into the ring, but he hears Siren yell beside him, “Roman, look out!”

Kane nails Roman in the back, tossing the man into the ring, the demon climbs in and proceeds to set up the table. As Kane goes to pull Roman to his feet, the big dog reverses it into a Samoan drop, the two struggling to get up to their feet afterwards. Roman co*cks his fist looking for the superman punch, but just as delivers it, Kane choke slams him through the table.

Siren stands beside Roman’s head willing him to his feet, he just beats the ten count at 9. A frustrated Kane then unloads right hands on Roman, before he grabs the steel chair from the ropes and slams it down in the middle of the ring. Roman can barely stand as Kane drags him to his feet, picking him up for a Tombstone pile driver, Kane is shocked when Roman counters it and delivers a DDT to him on the steel chair.

Roman backs into the corner, co*cking his fist once again, he then connects to Kane with a superman punch. Siren is screaming at the ref who is ignoring the count as Kane lies on the mat, “What the hell are you doing, Mike, count it!”

Kane gets to his feet as Roman yells, “ooh ahh” and goes for the spear. Kane tries to counter it to a choke slam but Roman instead counters and delivers a spear straight to Kane’s stomach. The ref finally counts to ten, Kane not making the count giving the victory to Roman.

“Yes!” Siren yells pumping her fists as she climbs into the ring and celebrates with Roman, raising his hand into the hair.

Backstage Siren gets Roman settled into the trainer’s room before she heads back up to the curtain for Dean’s match. Seth is chatting with Dean as she walks up, he smiles giving her a kiss before he turns to Dean with a smirk. “Good luck man. But you know you ain’t beating me.”

“Yeah, we’ll see about that two-tone.” Dean says causing Siren to laugh, which earns her a glare and middle finger from Seth as he walks off.

Dean and Siren head to the ring, the crowd erupting into cheers as the two walk down the ramp to the ring.

“The following contest is the first match in the Dean Ambrose/Seth Rollins beat the clock challenge. If Dean Ambrose is victorious, he will set the time for Seth Rollins to try and beat later tonight.”

Both Siren and Dean smirk as Del Rio comes to the ring, they are running through all of the possibilities that they could come up with for the Summerslam match.

Siren climbs out of the ring as the match gets underway, Del Rio immediately going on the attack. She watches the clock on the big screen as the minutes tick by. They are nearly at the 15 minute mark as Dean goes for a cover on Del Rio, but he can’t hold it due to his left arm hurting. But finally Dean managed to deliver “Dirty Deeds” with his right arm and stops the clock at 15:42.

Dean rolls out of the ring, cursing when he sees his time, Siren tells him it’s okay as she helps him to the back.

Dropping Dean off at the trainer’s with Roman to have his shoulder looked at, as well as the cut above his nose treated, Siren headed to the locker room to check on Kailynn.

“Hey, how’s Dean and Rome?” Colby asked as she came into the room.

“They’re okay, Roman’s got a cut on his forehead, and Dean’s got a nick over the bridge of his nose.”

“How’s his shoulder?”

“It’s okay, a little sore but he’ll be fine.”

“Good, I don’t wanna send him to the hospital on Sunday.” Colby admitted, he wanted to win, but he didn’t want to seriously injure his friend.

Siren smiled as she kissed Seth while they sat down to watch the show until his match.

When it was time for his match she turned to him, “Good luck. Be careful.”

“Always.” He said mimicking her, leaning over the back of the couch he smiled, “How bout a good luck kiss?” He puckered his lips like a fish.

Siren laughed, “You’re stupid.” But she leaned up and kissed him anyway. “Like you need luck.” She smiled as he left the room, his laughter could be heard down the hallway.

As Seth Rollins made his way to the ring, the fans could see Siren sitting in her locker room watching the monitor. She rolled her eyes as the announcer told everyone that “per The Authority, Rob Van Dam would not be Seth’s opponent.”

Siren was fuming as she saw Seth smile, he was trying to give off a “I have no idea what’s going on” look, but she could see right through him.

As his opponent’s music came on Siren lost it, “Are you fricking kidding me!?”

Heath Slater walked down to the ring, the entire time Siren could see Rollins smirking, he knew exactly who his opponent was, and that he could beat him easily.

Seth tried to give Heath the opportunity to leave the ring, saying that it was the easy way, if he stayed it would be much harder on him. Heath actually stepped to the ropes like he was going to leave, then said “f*ck it” and turned around leveling Rollins with a right hand.

Seth beat Heath back into the corner, dropping him down to the mat, but he was distracted as Siren started walking down the ramp. The smile on her face told Seth he was in trouble, and sure enough when he turned around he found Dean Ambrose standing by the announcer’s table.

Seth watches Siren as she casually walks around the ring, her eyes falling on the briefcase sitting by the turnbuckle. Grinning at Seth she picks it up and carries it over to Dean, who sets it down on the announcer’s table and opens it up taking out the contract inside.

Seth freaks out, leaning over the ropes he yells at Dean to put it back, but the smartass that Dean is he rips the contract up into little pieces, even chewing on a few of them before he spits them out.

Dean looks around for more stuff to mess with Seth, he snags a drink from one of the fans, sipping on it while he watches the match. Dean then takes the top off of the cup and opens the briefcase pouring the soda inside. Seth is livid inside the ring as Dean and Siren walk around the other side of the announcer’s table. This time it’s Siren who leans over the barricade and snags a bucket of popcorn from a fan, giving him a wink in return.

As she shares the popcorn with Dean, both munching on it, Dean points to his watch reminding Seth he’s running out of time. Dean then struts over to the case and pours the popcorn inside with the soda. He looks around the announcer’s table for something, the announcer’s are beside themselves with laughter as he picks up JBL’s cowboy hat and puts it on.

Dean then smashes the hat up into a ball and shoves it into the briefcase, then he attempts to shut it. Once it’s shut, he grabs the case and stands up on the announcer’s table, JBL, Cole and Lawler all scatter as the soda spills out of the briefcase onto the table.

Seth is furious, he’s so angry he’s not even paying attention to the match at this point. So he’s taken by surprise when Heath Slater rolls him up and picks up the victory.

As Dean and Siren make their way out through the crowd, Seth tries to empty out his briefcase, after which he starts throwing a tantrum.

Backstage Siren and Dean are clutching their stomachs in laughter as Seth comes back through the curtain. “You guys suck!”

“Oh, poor little Sethy. Are you mad?” Siren ribbed in a baby voice as Seth tried to keep a straight face but his smile betrayed him.

“You guys are horrible.” He said shaking his head as he walked back to the locker room with the two in tow, both still laughing as soda continued to trickle out of the briefcase.

After changing, then gathering up Joe and Kailynn, the group headed out to the rig to drop Tasha and Kailynn off at the airport. Being as none of the guys were scheduled for Main Event, Tasha was taking the now three days before Smackdown, since it was now on Friday nights, to fly down to Georgia and get a jump start on filming for Walking Dead.

Before they walked into the airport Colby pulled Tasha aside to talk to her. “Hey, I was wondering if maybe Kailynn could stay here, with me.”

“Oh, Cole, I don’t know about that.” It wasn’t that Tasha didn’t trust him with her daughter, she did 100%. It was just that she knew how much of a handful her daughter could be. That and Kailynn hadn’t really been away from her, unless it was with her family, and she wasn’t sure how she would react.

“Please, I promise she’ll be safe, I’ll take great care of her.” Colby pleaded. “I want to be in her life just as much as yours. Please, baby.”

Tasha couldn’t deny the look on his face, and she gave in. “Okay. I trust you.” She kneeled down to talk to her daughter, “Monkey, you’re gonna stay here with Cole while mommy goes to film, okay?”

“Okay, momma. See you when you get back.” She said kissing her mother’s cheek, then hugging her before running off into the rig to play.

“Well, I guess that settles that.” Tasha said with a laugh. “I’ll see you when I get back.” She said before kissing Colby.

“Be safe.” He said hugging her before he watched her walk into the airport, giving him a wave before she disappeared.

Friday morning, Colby picked Tasha up from the airport, she looked slightly less tired than she had before she had left. “Hey, baby.” He greeted her with a kiss taking her bag and putting it in the car trunk.

“Hey.” She said as they climbed into the car. “How’d things go?”

“Great. She was perfect, no problems at all.” Colby told her as he started driving them to the arena.

“Good, I’m really happy to hear that.” She reached over and took his hand into hers. “Thank you, by the way. Not having to stress over whether she was being taken care of, it gave me such a sense of relief. It was so easy for me to focus on work.”

“You’re welcome. I’m glad I could help.” Colby smiled bringing her hand to his mouth and kissing it. “Maybe I could take care of her while you’re filming from now on. Give me time to spend with her and give you a break to focus on work.”

Tasha was over the moon that he wanted to spend time with her daughter. “I’d like that, as long as she doesn’t mind.”

The couple arrived at the arena, seeing the fans outside Seth walked into the arena first and Siren followed him after about ten minutes waving to the fans standing outside. Once in the building she headed for Seth’s locker room, she didn’t see Seth anywhere, shrugging she dropped her stuff down on the bench and changed into her ring clothes. As much as she missed being in the ring competing, she was thankful to be able to wear comfy clothes, not spandex. Unlike some of the other managers, a pencil skirt or suit was not for her, it didn’t fit her style.

Knowing that they were up first Siren quickly changed and then hurried up to the curtain to meet up with Dean.

“Kill any Zombies?” Dean said smirking.

“Quite a few.” She laughed.

Dean and Siren kicked off the show, ready to announce what the stipulation would be for their match at Summerslam. They both grinned as the events from RAW replayed on the screen, they enjoyed watching Seth throw a temper tantrum.

“Monday Night RAW, the Authority thought they held all the cards.” Dean says as the crowd cheers. “They thought they had their little beat the clock challenge in the bag, they thought they had a fool proof plan B, but what The Authority is figuring out, you can’t plan for Dean Ambrose. And uh, since I outsmarted the Architect, I get to choose the stipulation for my match. At Summerslam, against my friend, my buddy, my pal, my brother, Seth Rollins, and I’ve had all week to think about this and I got a lot of options here.”

He pulls a piece of paper out of his back pocket and opens it as Siren sits up on the turnbuckle smiling. “Tell me what you think of them. All right. I was thinking of maybe JBL’s cowboy hat on a pole match. Cole miner’s glove match. Maybe—I looked into maybe getting some alligators to surround the ring, but the logistics of that just didn’t really work out. Oh, we can have a sumo wrestling match, a boxing match and we could forgo the match altogether and just fight in the parking lot, but we already did that.”

“Oh, but that’s my favorite one.” Siren commented from the turnbuckle where she sat smiling.

Dean laughed, “You would say that. Uh, good housekeeping match. Oh, we could have a loser has to wash Triple H’s car match but I’m pretty sure Seth Rollins already does that, so… that’s off the table.”

At that moment Seth’s music kicked on and he stalked out onto the stage. Siren couldn’t help but admire his new Authority t-shirt, it looked very good on him.

“All right. Ambrose, cut the crap. When we were in The Shield…” Seth is cut off by the crowd loudly chanting, “you sold out,” Siren smirks as she nods along with the WWE Universe.

“You know, when we were in The Shield, everyone knows that you were the unstable one and I was the brains of the operation. But after your antics on Monday night as much as it pains me, I have to give you a little bit of credit, that was pretty clever. But it’s been a long week, so let’s cut to the chase, all right? I heard all your little co*ckamamie stipulations out there. I know you know what you wanna do. So, name your stipulation already and let’s be done with it. Come on.”

“Come on, Deano, you better tell him before he has an aneurysm and his head blows up. Not that I wouldn’t like to see that you know.” Siren said smiling wide as Seth glared at her.

“Well, hold on.” Dean says, “Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce to you Mr. Money In the Bank. Hey, that briefcase is looking a little rough today. You might wanna take that for a good detailing. You know, maybe give it a buff and shine, something like that.”

“Shut up!” Seth snaps as he paces back and forth on the stage. “You know what your problem is, Ambrose, and it’s been this way the entire time, you like to think with your heart and not your head. And I get it, that’s courageous, all right. People appreciate that, but you know what, that’s only going to get you so far. And it’s sure as hell not gonna beat me at Summerslam. If you use your head half as much as you use your heart, you’d be able to figure out that it really doesn’t matter what stipulation you put on this match, because Summerslam is the end for you.”

“Is that what the people are gonna get, Seth?” Dean asks.

“I guarantee Summerslam will be the end for you. And the entire world will be able to watch it live on the WWE Network for the low, low price of $9.99.”

“Is that what they’re gonna get? Are they gonna pay $9.99 to see you get me kicked out of the building again? Are they gonna pay $9.99 to see you drive away in a car? Are they gonna pay to see you run? No. No, not this time.” He says as he tosses the piece of paper over his shoulder. “This time, they’re gonna get something worth a whole hell of a lot more than $9.99. They’re gonna get Seth Rollins stuck in the middle of this ring with nowhere to run, because if you try to run, you’re gonna run into a wall of bodies, the same bodies we built our reputation on. The bodies we used to stack one on top of the other. We made a lot of enemies together, Seth. And those enemies are gonna make sure that ain’t nobody running from this, those enemies are gonna make sure that we tear each other apart at Summerslam, Seth. I promise we will tear each other apart.

Now if you’re old school like Siren and me, you could call this match at Summerslam a lumberjack match. You call it a human cage, you call it a wall of flesh, call it whatever you want, but call it the end of the line for Seth Rollins. I swear to God, I promise, Summerslam, August 17^th is the day that Mr. Money In the Bank goes broke.”

Seth is fuming, he’s pacing the top of the stage like a caged animal, and at Summerslam that’s exactly what he’ll be. He knows he can’t let Dean have the last word, “I’m not going anywhere. I’m not going anywhere and you know why, because you know what, no matter what happens at Summerslam, I still have this.” He holds up the briefcase, “And whether you or anybody here likes it or not, that makes me the future of this company. You know—you know what, speaking of—speaking of futures, let’s talk about your future here tonight, Dean Ambrose. See, you had the option to choose a stipulation for our match at Summerslam, but The Authority has granted me the option to choose your opponent for tonight on Smackdown. And since I know that you’re always in for a good fight, I picked someone that is so cold and so merciless that they were capable of this.”

Siren’s eyes go up to the screen where the video of Randy Orton decimating Roman, their brother, plays. The crowd can see the anger radiating off of both Siren and Dean as they watch that.

“Your opponent for tonight is “The Viper” Randy Orton.”

In the locker room Siren sits on the couch watching Dolph’s promo, he’s standing with a few of the Divas, Adam Rose and some of the rosebuds, making fun of Seth for what happened on RAW with Dean and Siren.

“Actually the floor of that briefcase kind of looks like the floor of a movie theatre now, do you know what I mean? Should’ve got like the renters insurance or flood insurance, right? What an idiot, right? I mean I would—I wouldn’t need it.”

They all laugh until a certain familiar cackle breaks them all up, they all scatter as Seth Rollins steps up to Dolph. “Oh, you kill me, Dolph. That’s rich, that’s rich. It’s so funny, right? It’s almost as funny as the laughing stock that your career has become. And since we’re telling jokes, I got a joke for ya. What’s um—you know, what’s got terrible hair, a head the size of a hot air balloon and is just begging for me to stomp their face into the mat tonight?”

Dolph thinks for a minute, “I would say you, but it looks like somebody already beat me to the stomping of the face thing.” Seth drops his head with a sigh, Dolph feels bad. “Seth, I’m sorry, man. Hey, listen, I didn’t recognize you without your whole superhero getup, you know. Hey, who didn’t always wonder what cat woman would look like if she did Crossfit all the time, you know what I mean?”

Siren is dying of laugher at the scowl crossing her boyfriend’s face, he hates it when people make fun of his love for Crossfit.

“You know,” Seth clears his throat, trying to get ahold of his anger. “Triple H gave me the authority to picks Dean Ambrose’s opponent for the evening, so I really don’t think he would mind too much if I picked my opponent for the evening.”

“Seth, that uh, sounds like a challenge.”

“Yeah, you bet your ass it’s a challenge.”

“Just know what I do to you out there won’t be anything funny about it. See you out there, kid.”

Siren sits in the locker room watching Seth’s match with Dolph, it’s shaping up to be a good contest between the two. She loves watching Seth wrestle, his technique and attitude, his heart, he was without a doubt one of the best she had seen in the business. She winces as Seth plants Dolph with a devastating curb stomp for the win.

She smiles up at him as he comes into the locker room, “One of these days they’re gonna ban that move, like they banned Randy’s punt. That thing is nasty.”

“Yeah, I figure I’ll use it until they take it away.” He says running a hand through his now drying hair as he pulls it back in a bun.

“I gotta go get ready,” Siren says leaning over and kissing Seth, “I know you’ll come out there, so take it easy on me would ya?”

“Never.” He smirked, “I kinda like playing doctor with you.”

She laughed, “I always knew you had a kinky side, babe.” Giving him a wink she headed up to the curtain to meet Dean.

Dean and Siren are standing in the ring as Randy Orton is introduced, both of them rolling their eyes as he struts down the ramp. Siren keeps a vigilant eye on the ramp as the two kick off the match, just knowing that Seth is gonna make an appearance.

She watches closely as Dean and Randy take the fight out of the ring, Ambrose’s shirt ripped on one side. She hears the pop of the crowd, looking over she sees Seth standing on the side of the ring apron. Running over she grabs Seth’s legs at the same time that Dean slugs him in the face, yanking his legs out from under him, Siren sends Seth crashing to the floor.

Siren turns to the ring, shouting at Dean to go for the win, behind her Seth gets to his feet and suddenly she feels her stomach driven into the ring apron. She backs up hunching over as she clutches her stomach, but Seth’s not done yet, he tangles both of his hands in her hair and whips her head back, slamming her back first onto the floor driving the air from her body.

In the ring Dean delivers “Dirty Deeds” to Orton, but before he can pin him, Seth grabs his foot and pulls him out of the ring forcing the disqualification. Seth continues to punish Dean around the outside until Dean slams him back into the barricade. Seth tries to take off running, but Dean grabs him, shoving him into the ring where he continues to beat up on his former brother.

Dean stands up in time to get hit with a clothes line from Orton, followed by an RKO for good measure. Seth then comes in to pick the pieces of Ambrose, Dean can’t even defend himself. After beating him down, Seth climbs out of the ring, walking over to the crowd he steals a soda from one of the female fans. Climbing back in the ring he pins Dean down and dumps the soda onto his face, after which he drags Dean back to the center of the ring and delivers a curb stomp to his head.

Siren and Dean make their way to the back after the match, like always Seth is standing there waiting for them. “You okay, bro?” Seth asks Dean as he’s limping by holding his face.

“You know, one of these days, I’ma plant you with your own move, let you see how it feels.” Dean says socking Seth in the shoulder before heading to his locker room.

Seth laughs as he checks on Siren, “You okay, baby?”

“Yeah, I’m cool.” She says rubbing her head where he had grabbed onto her hair.

“Nice bald spot, T.” Randy said as he passed heading for the parking lot.

Siren’s eyes went wide as she touched her head, “Do I have a bald spot? Did you give me a bald spot!?”

Seth shook his head, trying to contain his laughter. “No, you’re fine. No bald spot.”

“f*ck you, Randall!” She yelled at the man who laughed loudly as he left the building.

After showering and changing clothes the group again loaded up into the rig and headed for the airport to drop Tasha off again. Once she had said her goodbye’s she waved to them as she walked into the airport. It was a short flight to Georgia, but she picked up a few hours of sleep. When she arrived to her hotel she dropped off her bags in the room, then headed for the bar to have a drink with a few of her co-stars.

For the next two days she busted her ass filming for the next episode and they even got some shots done for the following, so that she wouldn’t have as much to do next weekend.

Chapter 23: The Beast Returns

Chapter Text

Monday morning like clockwork Colby picked her up from the airport in Portland, Oregon. Tonight’s show would be a special one, it was Hulk Hogan’s birthday and Siren was going to have a special part to play, having been a small part of the NWO earlier on in her career. Hulk was one of the many legends she knew personally and he was a good friend of hers.

Changing into her ring gear Siren heard the tell tale music of Brock Lesnar, looking over her shoulder a white hot flash of fear ran through her body as she laid eyes on Brock. “Oh my God, he’s here.”

Seth looked up at her seeing her face a sickly shade of white, looking over at the monitor he realized what she had said. He stood up quickly and crossed the room, taking her into his arms. “Hey, hey, it’s okay. He’s not gonna do anything to you. I promise.”

“You can’t do anything, we can’t be seen together, remember?” She said quietly.

“I’ll think of something, but if he knows what’s good for him, he’ll stay away from you.” Seth said, a hard look in his eyes.

Siren quickly walked up to the corridor to meet up with Roman, she was hoping to avoid Brock at all costs.

Walking down the isle with Rome her fears subsided and she started to have fun. As they got into the ring Corporate Kane came out to announce Roman’s opponent for the night. Which turned out to be two men, Ryback and Curtis Axel.

Not surprisingly the two men started double-teaming Roman, which prompted the ref to ring the bell. Roman won via disqualification, but that’s when the two men descended on him to inflict more pain. But they weren’t prepared for Roman to retaliate, which he did finally leveling the men with a superman punch to each. He then smirked as the crowd chanted “spear” which he obliged them by spearing both men together into the corner.

Siren smiled as she climbed into the ring and held Roman’s hand up, he then climbed up the turnbuckle and saluted the fans. He climbed down standing beside Siren, as Renee got into the ring to interview him.

“Roman, clearly you are physically prepared for this match at Summerslam, but as we edge closer, how do you feel knowing that you’re gonna be going one-on-one with Randy Orton at Summerslam?”

Siren smiles as the fans start chanting Roman’s name, growing louder in volume. Roman takes the mic from Renee, “I don’t know Portland, does it look like I’m readyyyyyyyyyyyy?” The crowd answers with a deafening cheer. “And I’ll admit, Randy got me two weeks ago, he left me lying. But he claims I stole something from him. I’ve never stolen anything from Randy Orton. But this Sunday at Summerslam, I’m taking everything from him. And he claims the Viper’s back. What’s a Viper when you knock its fangs down its throat? A worthless little worm.” He pauses for a moment before hollering, “Believe that.”

In the back Siren kisses Seth as he heads to the curtain for his match against RVD. She stands back watching the monitor, liking the redesigned logo on his shirt. She has to laugh as he takes off his shirt, hearing a lot of the girls in the audience screaming. She knew that her man had a nice body, and she had no problem allowing the world to see it. She watched him dispatch RVD with a curb stomp gaining the pinfall. However his co*cky mood made her want to take him down a peg, so she got up and headed for the curtain.

As Seth got to the top of the ramp he saw Siren walk out, she stopped just by the edge of the boxes that were set up for Hulk’s birthday. Leaning against the tron, she smiled at him wiggling her fingers in a wave.

Getting the feeling that something was up Seth started looking around at the presents behind him, one big one in particular. He glanced over at Siren who just grinned as he walked over, lightly shoving the box, thinking that maybe Dean was inside of it. He walks around it checking to see if the back is open, which it wasn’t. He shakes his head laughing at himself for being so paranoid, but he’s got a good reason. As he passes the front of the box again, Dean barrels out of the box and tackles Seth to the ground. He tosses Seth down the ramp, then chases him down the ramp into the ring, where Seth escapes out of the ring and runs out into the crowd to avoid the beating.

Dean grabs a mic and slides back into the ring, Siren stands at the top of the ramp holding the briefcase in her hands with a grin.

“Run Seth! Run while you still can. But there ain’t no running, ain’t no hiding in a lumberjack match in six days. Your ass belongs to me. And for just $9.99, I’m gonna get more than my money’s worth.”

Dean rolls out of the ring and walks up the ramp, stopping beside Siren who knocks fists with him, before they walk backstage, Siren holding the case up for the fans to see.

Siren comes into the locker room, finding Seth sitting on the couch, “You guys suck!”

She laughs, “I’m pretty sure that only applies to me, babe.” She holds up the case with a smirk, “You forgot something.”

“Can I have it back, please?” He asks with a smile.

“Not yet. I have an idea.”

He notices the sinister look on her face and it worries him, “Oh, this is gonna be all bad.”

So about half an hour later Siren and Seth were standing in an undisclosed spot in the back. Seth turns to her with an uneasy look, “Are you sure about this?”

“Yes I am. Stephanie is going to continue to haunt us, she’s gonna do everything she can to break us up.”

“What about Hunter, he’s gonna flip.”

She shakes her head, “No, he’s not. I already talked to him about this and he thinks it’s a good idea.”

“Why does he think it’s a good idea?”

She takes his hands in hers, holding them. “Believe it or not babe, Hunter is on our side. He doesn’t want us to have to hide our relationship. He wants us to be able to go out in public, go to dinner, on a date, go out with Kailynn. We’re not gonna come out and say we’re dating, we’re just gonna plant a little nugget in the universe and let the fans do the rest.”

“And how is that gonna help us?”

“Hunter said he’s got a plan in mind, this is the beginning of it, this is how we start changing things. If you don’t want to do it, that’s fine. It’s up to you babe.”

“I want to be able to show you off to the world. I’m in.” He said giving her a kiss.

Just before the match between AJ and Eva Marie the tron cuts to a camera in the backstage area. Siren is walking down the corridor smiling, Seth’s briefcase in her hand. Suddenly from behind a stack of crates someone grabs her arm and yanks her backwards. She startles as her back is slammed up against a wall, but she relaxes when she notices it’s only Seth.

“Interesting greeting, Rollins.” She said giving him a bored look. “What do you want?”

“You have something of mine.” He says with a glance down her body, his eyes raking her over before stopping at the briefcase.

“Oh, my bad. Is this yours?” She asks with a smile holding the briefcase up.

Surprisingly to Siren and the audience Seth’s face takes on a serious look. “Siren, do we really have to be like this? Hating one another? Maybe we don’t.”

“Mm, maybe we do. You stabbed us all in the back, Seth. That’s not something that is easily forgotten, no matter what the good intention behind it.”

“But what about us?”

“There is no us, you made that perfectly clear. Paris never mattered remember?” She snapped trying to push past him, but he shoved her back against the wall, a little harder than before, drawing a gasp from her lips.

He leans in close, brushing his lips across the skin of her neck. “I don’t think you hate me half as much as you say you do.” He doesn’t realize that he left himself open, until he feels her teeth bite down on the flesh of his neck. “Ow!” He snapped backing away from her as she shoved the case into his arms.

“What would give you that idea?” She said smiling as she turned to leave.

“The initials around your neck.” He said with a grin.

Siren paused turning around, she calmly replied, “They’re my initials.”

“They’re mine too.” He shot back as she turned and walked away, reaching up he rubbed at the mark on his neck grinning.

When the cameras cut off Siren ran back jumping into Seth’s arms and kissing him. “Nice job.”

“You too.” He smiled rubbing at his neck, “In the future no more biting at work.”

“Why did I hurt you?” She asked puzzled.

“Not exactly.” He smirked rubbing up against her, her eyes sparkling as she felt what she had done to him.

“Ah. File that away for future reference.” She laughed as Hunter walked up to the two, Siren moving over so that Seth and his “problem” was hidden from the boss’ view.

“Nice job you two. That was very good, the crowd was eating it up.” Hunter said with a proud smile.

“Thank you for helping us out, Hunter.” Seth said holding out his hand.

Hunter took his hand and shook it, “Anytime. Steph may not remember what it was like for us when we started out, trying to sneak around her father and family, but I do. It’s not easy, and it really takes a toll on a relationship after awhile. You two care about each other, and that’s not something that is easily found in our business. So, I’ll help you out however I can, without totally screwing up our storylines.”

“Thanks, Paul.” Siren said, she only used his real name when she was genuinely talking to him like a friend and not her boss.

“You’re more than welcome, Tasha. I’ll see you guys later.” He said with a smile before he walked off.

Suddenly Seth picked Siren up and swung her around, her laughter was like music to his ears. He set her down and took her face in his hands kissing her deeply.

She pulled back a moment later breathing heavily, “What was that for? Not that I’m complaining at all.”

“You are amazing and I am the luckiest man in the world to have you.”

“Well, I definitely don’t mind a compliment like that. But I’m the lucky one, I get to wake up beside you everyday.” She said giving him a kiss, they then walked hand in hand back to the locker room where Dean and Roman were chilling on the couch with Kailynn.

Siren changes into her new Cena shirt, they had made them in honor of Hulk’s birthday, red with yellow letters. Taking a deep breath she kissed Seth and headed for the door to meet up with John.

“Be careful, baby.” Seth told her.

“I will.” She said as she walked out of the door, walking up to the curtain where John was waiting for her.

He noticed the terrified look on her face and he laid a hand on her arm. “Hey, it’s okay. I’m not gonna let anything happen to you. I promise.”

The crowd comes to their feet as John Cena’s music hits, and he and Siren walk down to the ring. Once inside John takes a mic while Siren stands in the far back corner, her face a mask of stone, trying not to let her feelings betray her cool exterior. She can’t help but smile as John lifts the mic and addresses himself as Paul Heyman does.

“Ladies and gentlemen, my name is John Cena. And six days from now at Summerslam, I am to be maimed and conquered by Brock Lesnar. That is if you believe the prognosticator of prognosticators, Paul Heyman. This Sunday there will be pain, punishment. This Sunday Brock Lesnar will give me the beating of a lifetime. This Sunday there is one thing that Brock Lesnar will not do… win. This Sunday, Brock Lesnar will not win, because for him to win, he is going to have to make me lose, he is going to have to make me lose. Cause I am not laying down for Brock Lesnar. And any of you can take that any way you want, but, Brock, I’m not gonna lay down for you, you know why? Because you don’t deserve this.”

Siren stands in the corner clapping as John holds up the titles around his neck. “I am not saying I am unbeatable. One day, I will undoubtedly lose this championship, but it will not be this Sunday and it will not be to Brock Lesnar. And every single one of you know why, I don’t like the guy. Mainly for personal reasons.” John said looking over at Siren, who ducks her head, she hates being reminded of the attack that nearly ended her career.

“He’s arrogant, he’s a bully, he doesn’t give a damn about anyone, but himself. He is the most difficult, uncaring, selfish SOB ever to walk in the WWE locker room and every superstar knows that. But behind that screen is not a social club, this is business and I get that. But Brock Lesnar’s idiotic view of this business doesn’t reward him with deserving this. I’ve been out here a lot of times and we’ve shared a lot of great moments together. I’ve heard the cheers.”

The crowd cheers loudly for him and he chuckles, “This one should be good, I’ve heard the boos.” Siren chuckles as half of the fans boo, John joining her.

“I’ve been told I can’t wrestle.” Of course the crowd starts chanting, “You can’t wrestle.”

“I’ve heard, “Let’s go Cena.” The crowd chants.

“I’ve heard, “Cena sucks.” Of course the crowd chants this louder.

He laughs, “And every week, I come out here with a smile on my face. And there’s a group of you that ask the question every week, “When does John Cena turn?” “When does John Cena say enough is enough?” “When does John Cena finally stop being about the T-shirts and ball caps?” John takes his hat off and throws it. “When does John Cena finally stop being about the wristbands and K-mart shoes?” “When does John Cena unleash hell!?”

“Well, this Sunday, I fight a beast and to fight a beast, you must become one. So this Sunday, you get your wish, you see a John Cena that I’m not proud of. A John Cena you have never seen before, but a John Cena necessary to keep this out of the hands of Brock Lesnar.

And I’ll tell you why Brock Lesnar does not deserve this. Paul Heyman told you earlier tonight, Brock Lesnar believes that this is his house and you belong to him. That is not what this stands for. And any idiot with a pea brain would know that this house has, does, and always will belong to you. This, this is your house. But for the sake of gamesmanship, I’ll play along with Brock tonight. Hey Brock, if this is your house, then there’s a stranger standing in your living room.”

John removes the titles from around his neck, he hands them to Siren who places them over the turnbuckle behind her. “Brock, there is a stranger in your house right now. Try, to come down here and kick me out. Come on. Come on, you talk the talk. I’m standing right in your living room, I’m in your house, you come down here right now and you try to kick me out.”

John tosses down the mic and pulls off his shirt, then he retrieves the mic from the canvas. “No Brock, no Brock. We must have interrupted dinner, or maybe he came down with diverticulitis or hepatitis or laryngitis or maybe a huge case of punkbitchitis. We getting serious enough now, Brock. Come on. You said you’d rip me limb from limb, I say you’re doing me a favor. Start with my hand, I got way too many fingers. I’m giving you the middle one.”

John and Siren stand in the ring as the crowd chants John’s name, but still no sign of Brock. “Fine. Paul Heyman, you want a response? Here it is. I’m not gonna repeat history on Sunday, I’m gonna make it. Sunday, I conquer the conqueror. This Sunday, I am the one that beats the one.”

Siren picks up the titles and brings them over hanging them around John’s neck.

“This Sunday, the champ is here!”

Heading back to the locker room Siren feels a little better, it seems that the beast is no longer in the building, and that was just fine with her. She’d prefer to not have to see him until Sunday, and then it was unavoidable. She stood behind the curtain waiting for her cue to go down and kick off the birthday celebration, she was so honored that Hunter had asked her to be a part of it.

Siren’s music kicked off and the fans roared as she walked down to the ring, making sure to knock fists with the fans on either side of the ramp. Climbing into the ring she took the mic that was offered to her.

“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome your MC’s for the night. Mean Gene Okerlund and The Mouth of the South, Jimmy Hart!”

The two legends made their way to the ring, Siren hugging them as she handed Gene a mic, Jimmy didn’t need one of course, he had his trusty bullhorn. As she turned to leave they both stopped her, “Oh, wait a minute honey.” Gene said. “You stay right here, every birthday needs a beautiful woman.”

Siren laughed as she shook her head, moving to stand in between the two men as Gene announced the birthday boy.

“Ladies and gentlemen, here we go. A man that I have introduced many, many times. He is none other than the one, the only, the birthday boy, the immortal Hulk Hogan.”

Hulk’s music comes on and he walks through the crowd of superstars that are gathered on the stage clapping for him. He gets into the ring and does his patent listening to the fans scream for him. He smiles as he gives Siren a hug, “Missed you girl, you look great.”

“Thank you.” She says placing a kiss on his cheek. “Happy Birthday.”

“Hulkster, I could tell you, I’ve never had a birthday party like this.” Gene tells him. “We are here tonight to celebrate you, the man. And we’re gonna do it in fine style. I want you to take a look right here. Here’s the reason why.”

The screen then plays a video of Hulk’s life and career throughout all of his years wrestling. Siren can see Hulk getting a little emotional as the video ends, she smiles as she hands him a mic, while the fans chant his name.

“We could be here all night.” She says as the crowd cheers.

“Well, after seeing that and that was amazing and the way this ring is and all of these Hulkamaniacs and the WWE Universe, I think this is the first time I’ve ever been speechless, Mean Gene.”

“Well, that’s not gonna be for long, Hulk.” Gene tells him. “As a matter of fact, a reception like this got to do your heart good.”

“Well, let me see if I can muster up just a little something since we’re right here in the middle of Portland, Oregon, brother. And it kinda goes like this, well, let me tell you something, Mean Gene. You know, all day long, everybody has been showering Hulk Hogan with birthday presents, even that nasty mean old Vince McMahon gave Hulk Hogan a present. And everybody knows how much it costs to subscribe to the WWE Network it’s just $9.99. Well, Vince McMahon gave me a birthday card. In that birthday card, there’s a certain amount of money. And you know, it was just $9.99. And Vince McMahon, as mean as he is, as nasty as he is, he wanted to make sure that Hulk Hogan could subscribe to the WWE Network just so I could see Summerslam this Sunday, brother. But, in all sincerity, this has been the greatest day of my life. This has been the greatest birthday I’ve ever had. And to all of the crew in the back that work so hard, to all those WWE superstars and even you, Mr. Pat Patterson, all my Hulkamaniacs in the WWE Universe, I wanna thank you guys.

But, you know, Mean Gene, when your birthday rolls around every year and you turn 61 years young, you start, you start to reflect back on a few things. And Hulkmania is basically a two-way street, my brother. And I just hope I’ve been able to touch their lives just a little bit, in compared to how much you guys have touched my life. I love you. I love my Hulkamaniacs and I love the WWE Universe, brother."

“Hulkster, we love you.” Gene says but he’s interrupted by none other than Rick Flair’s music. He’s then followed by Mr. Wonderful, Paul Orndorff; and then of course one of Siren’s biggest crushes (that has her squealing like a little girl) a very close friend of hers, Rowdy Roddy Piper.

“Oh my God!” Siren yells out as the NWO theme starts playing and Kevin Nash and Scott Hall come strutting down to the ring. She gives them hugs as she stands beside Roddy, his arm draped over her shoulders.

Kevin hands his mic to Scott, who smirks at the fans. “Hey, y’all. Hulkster, the Outsiders are honored to be here to show some love to you on your birthday. And brother, you look sweet in that red and yellow. He looks sweet in the red and yellow, right? But, I think Siren looks a little better.”

Siren laughs as all the legends look at her, she’s still wearing John’s top, they all nod in agreement which only serves to make her laugh harder and blush a little bit.

“But I just wanna take a little survey,” Scott says. “Now, how many people here in RAW came to see Hulk in the red and yellow? Or did you like him better when he was rocking that black and white in the NWO?”

The roar of the crowd is loud, Hulk nods as he rips off his red shirt revealing his NWO shirt underneath. “Survey says, one more for the good guys.”

Scott then hands the mic back to Kevin, “I’ve done a lot of things in my career, but one thing I haven’t done is this… Happy birthday to you.” He starts singing and the crowd joins in. “Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday, Hulkster…”

Just then a theme rings throughout the arena and Siren’s heart drops to her knees. Her body starts shaking as she backs herself into the corner behind Hulk, Scott and Kevin, her breaths are coming in gasps, her chest constricting so tight she can barely breath. She watches Brock walk down the ramp, none of the superstars at the top attempting to stop him. She prays that somewhere in the back John is watching and he’ll come out to deal with the beast.

Brock jumps into the ring and it only takes a second for his eyes to fall on her. She cowers back as his eyes bore into her body, the men in the ring stepping in front of her, protecting her. Brock stalks back and forth in front of them deciding which one was going to be the target of his wrath. He makes sure to lock eyes with each of the men before his attention falls on Hulk, who steps up to face Brock.

“Oh, Hulk,” Paul says. “So, whatcha gonna do, Hulkster?”

Brock grabs the mic from him, “Party’s over, grandpa.” He then throws the mic to the ground, shoving past the men he grabs Siren by her arm, yanking her to her feet in the middle of the ring.

But right then Siren sees her salvation running down the ramp, John had come to her rescue. John slides into the ring, ripping off his shirt and all of his bands. He holds out his hands begging Brock to take the first shot.

But with a smirk Brock releases Siren’s arm, shoving her over against John who catches her, then he climbs out of the ring and walks back up the ramp with Heyman.

After they go off air, the celebration continues with John joining the legends and Siren in the ring. Kevin hands John a mic, “The party is most definitely not over. I think we’re all still ready to party, don’t you? Can’t have—can’t have a birthday party without a birthday cake, right? Do we—do we have a cake?”

About that time Titus O’Neil and Heath Slater come down carrying a small cake. They’re arguing over who gets to give Hulk the cake, tugging on the plate until Heath accidently tosses the cake onto Titus. As they walk back up the ramp arguing, two techs come out with a table, setting it in the ring and two more tech come in carrying a large yellow cake with red writing.

“A cake, with candles.” John says as the techs place candles reading 9.99 on the cake and light them. “The candles say 9.99! Amazingly enough that’s the price to subscribe to the WWE Network. It’s only $9.99! Well, I say we let the crooners have it. Guys, let’s try this one more time. One—two—three.”

“Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Hulkster. Happy birthday to you!”

Hulk steps over to the cake with his hand on his chin like he’s thinking what he wants to wish for. He looks over at John as he motions around his waist like he wants a championship belt, he then smiles when John glares at him good-naturedly. He blows the candles out and everyone claps.

“Hey guys, this has been a wonderful night, but it is Hulkster’s birthday and the Hulkster wouldn’t be here without the Hulkamaniacs. We’re gonna clear the ring. The show’s yours brother. Take us home!” John says as he shakes Hulk’s hand.

“Thank you guys! And lets hear it for the champ, thank you champ!” Hulk says as John climbs out of the ring, then helps Siren down as well as they walk up with the legends to the back.

In the ring Hulk continues to celebrate with the fans as red and yellow confetti and balloons cover the entire area, there’s so much you can barely see.

After the celebration Tasha walks into the back to find Colby who is pacing back and forth like a caged animal. When he sees her he rushes over immediately finding the hand shaped bruise on her arm. “Motherf*cker!” He shouts before he takes off down the hall yelling for Lesnar.

“Colby!” Tasha yells as she chases after him. She looks back over her shoulder, “Joe! Jon! He’s going after Lesnar!”

The two men immediately take off after her, the trio coming around the next corner to find Colby and Brock nose-to-nose. They immediately put themselves between the two, pushing Colby away from Brock as he snarls at the man.

“What the f*ck is your problem, Lesnar!? It’s a f*cking show! You didn’t have to grab her like that, you f*cking bruised her arm!”

“Casualties of the job, man.” Brock said calmly with a shrug as he looked over giving a wink to Tasha.

“I’m gonna rip your f*cking throat out!” Colby said as he shoved against Joe and Jon.

“You better watch your mouth boy, or you’re the next one on my list.”

“f*ck that, put me at the top of the list. If you ever lay a hand on her again, I swear to God, no one will stop me from breaking your neck with a curb stomp.”

Brock chuckles, “Whatever you say, kid. See you Sunday, sweetheart.” He said throwing a wink to Tasha.

Tasha shudders as she moves herself in between Joe and Jon, placing her hand on Colby’s chest. “Hey, calm down. Calm down. I’m fine. Colby, look at me. Look at me.” He stops struggling, his eyes sliding down to meet hers. “I’m okay. Relax. All right.”

He nods, pulling her into his arms and holding her, the thought of someone hurting her sent a surge of rage through his body.

“Okay, let’s go get some cake.” She says with a smile as she takes his hand and leads them all back to catering where the superstars and legends were gathered around.

As everyone was chatting Colby walked over to John, giving him a serious look. “You better destroy him on Sunday. Whether you win or lose, make sure he never comes near her again.”

John nods, looking over to where Tasha stands laughing with Roddy, the dark hand print visible on her arm. “You got my word.”

Chapter 24: Summerslam Love and Hurt

Chapter Text

Once the festivities were done the group loaded up into the rig and again took Tasha to the airport, being as Summerslam was on Sunday, the producers of the Walking Dead had scheduled her shoot on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, so that she didn’t miss Smackdown or the pay-per-view.

Colby kissed her goodbye, Kailynn by his side waving to her mother as she boarded the plane. The two then drove to the next arena with Joe, Jon and Renee for Main Event. Colby was the only one scheduled, he had a match with Kofi Kingston.

In Georgia Tasha hurried onto set the next morning, the makeup girls quickly covering up the still very visible handprint on her arm.

She made it back to her hotel room with about an hour to spare before she needed to get to sleep. So after a shower and a little dinner, she turned on the WWE Network to watch Seth’s match against Kofi. She noticed when Seth was shown backstage heading to the ring, he had an extremely angry look in his eyes. She knew it was because of the bruise Brock had left on her arm, and she couldn’t blame him for being angry. Seth was particularly vicious in the match, ending it with a curb stomp, and she couldn’t help but wonder, was he picturing Dean or Brock while he was fighting?

Two days later Tasha stepped off of the airplane, finding Colby again in his sweatshirt, hat and glasses waiting for her. She gave him a kiss and a hug, before they went to go grab her bags.

Driving to the arena for Smackdown Colby glanced over at her, “How’s your arm?”

“It’s better, still dark but it doesn’t hurt so much now.” She said squeezing his hand.

“Look, baby, I know you have to be out there with John, but I want you to stay as far away from Brock as you can.”

“Oh, believe me, I won’t be within ten feet of him at any time. Promise.”

Smackdown kicked off that night in Seattle, Washington with the Miz coming out to run his mouth like always.

Siren sat in the locker room with Seth and Kailynn, the little girl coloring in her books. Siren felt bad that her daughter hadn’t spent much time with her, but the little girl didn’t seem to mind, she had been having a great time with Colby and the guys, as well as the divas.

Roman and Siren were up first, being the guests on Miz TV, making their way through the crowd and down to the ring. The two climbed through the ropes and took a seat in the chairs to the Miz’ left, Siren on Roman’s left side.

“Siren, Roman, welcome to the show. And I gotta say, you have been impressive as of late. I mean, you are my mom’s favorite WWE superstar apparently.”

Roman ducks his head laughing, “Tell your mom I said what’s up.”

“But this Sunday, you’ll be stepping into the ring with one of the most dangerous superstars on one of the biggest stages that WWE has to offer, and Roman, are you nervous?”

Roman laughs again, raising the mic, but just as he opens his mouth to speak, Miz cuts him off.

“Because if you fail against Randy Orton, you’ll forever be known as a guy that was just in a vest with a nice smile, and great hair, and you’ll be known as a guy that was once on Miz TV and as honorable as that may be, are you prepared to know that in life, you were so close to close to superstardom but you just couldn’t rise to the occasion?”

Roman grinds his teeth, turning in his chair to face Miz, he raises the mic. “Listen to me.” But again Miz cuts him off, and by now Siren is anticipating the punch that she’s sure is coming.

“Listen, I know you probably look at me for a person that you want advice from, so, I’ll tell you what. I’ll open the doors, I’m an open book, if you have a question to ask me for advice, please do.”

Roman barely gets the mic up to his mouth before Miz starts talking again, Roman closing his eyes and breathing deeply.

“Because I am one of the only WWE superstars that have been in movies like Christmas Bounty, Marine 3, Marine 4…”

And there was the punch. Siren laughed as Roman clocked Miz across the jaw sending him tumbling from his chair and out of the ring. She knocked fists with Roman as he casually leaned back in his chair with a smirk.

“Hey Miz. A guy in a vest with great hair and a pretty good smile, just put you on your ass.” The crowd cheers, Roman holds up a finger, he’s got something else to say.

But he sees Miz jumping up onto the ring apron, so he stands up to his full height. Miz knowing he’s no match for Roman, jumps down and backs away from the ring. The crowd starts chanting Roman’s name and he smiles looking around.

“Well, it’s pretty good to see you too, Seattle. Randy Orton is known as the Viper. But it’s for a damn good reason, because with that attitude, he’s won championship, after championship, after championship, and that’s what I respect. Which gives Randy every reason to respect me when I beat him this Sunday at Summerslam!”

The two walk backstage still laughing, but Siren stops there, she has to turn around and go right back out with Dean for his match. Roman knocks fists with the both of them as Dean’s music cues up and the two walk out to the ring.

Like usual the crowd goes crazy as Dean and Siren make their way down to the ring and climb inside. Siren and Dean grin as they watch Dean busting out of the present and beating the crap out of Seth.

Cesaro makes his way down to the ring, Dean and Siren know that he’s one of the lumberjacks in the match on Sunday. Siren watches closely as Dean squares off with Cesaro, she knows Seth is in the back watching.

The match is tough, Cesaro putting up a good fight, but Dean walks away with the win after delivering “Dirty Deeds.” However as Siren climbs in the ring to raise Dean’s hand, Seth’s music comes on and the man himself walks out onto the stage.

“Ambrose, this Sunday at Summerslam, you and I finally go one-on-one in a lumberjack match. A match of your choosing, by the way, a match where 20 other WWE superstars who probably don’t like us very much are gonna surround the ring and ensure that if either of us tries to run or hide, say, in a birthday present, or in the trunk of a car, the moment that person steps through those ropes, one or all of those lumberjacks will throw them right back in the ring.

This Sunday I will prove to you and to the entire WWE Universe what I have known all along. I am the future of this company and I am better than you. I am better than some lunatic fringe who doesn’t give a damn about his physical well-being. I am better than some bi-polar nut job who should be locked away. I am better than some hellcat with rabies who was never my friend, who was never my brother, and who I never gave a damn about in the first place.”

As Seth’s music plays and he goes backstage, Siren walks over to Dean who is backed into the corner. She grabs onto his arms, leaning in so that no one else can hear her. “Hey, it’s okay. It’s Seth talking, not Colby. It’s fine.”

He takes a deep breath, nodding he follows her out of the ring to the backstage area, where Seth is standing, waiting for them. He can tell by the look on Seth’s face that he didn’t want to say those things, but we have to play our parts. Dean nods pulling Seth in and hugging him, “It’s all good bro.”

After the two work things out Siren heads up to the corridor to join Roman, he gives her a concerned look as she stops beside him. “They okay?”

“Yeah, Jon was bugged, but Colby and I reminded him that it was Seth saying it, not Colby.”

“Good. Let’s go have some fun.” Roman says holding out his arm for her.

“Let’s.” She smiled hooking her arm into his as his music hits and they start down the aisle.

The two smirk as they make their way down to the ring, fans high-fiving them and reaching out just to touch a fingertip to their skin. Siren didn’t understand it, but she loves her fans so she didn’t mind if they grabbed at her as she passed, as long as it wasn’t in an off-limits place.

As they stood in the ring waiting for Miz, their earlier antics were shown on the screen, the two smiled as they watched Roman slug him again.

Roman looked over at Miz as he took off his sunglasses, Roman asking him, “You okay? You being a little baby.” Then looking down at his fist with a smirk.

The bell rings and the two lock up in the middle, Roman backs him into the corner and goes to hit him, but Miz drops to the floor covering his face and Roman backs up laughing. The two then lock up again, Roman backing Miz into another corner, when the ref breaks them up, Miz shoves Roman back by his chest.

Roman’s smile disappears as he clenches his fists and steps towards Miz, who jumps out of the ring in retreat. Roman wanders around the ring until Miz climbs back in, complaining about Roman nearly breaking his “money maker” as he referrers to his face, which only makes Roman smile more.

“Oh, sh*t. Bad idea, Miz.” Siren gasps as Miz slaps Roman across the face.

Miz takes off out of the ring running around past Siren, where he climbs back in the ring and tries to kick Roman as the big dog slides back in the ring behind him. But it backfires as Roman sees it coming, he grabs Miz by the feet, drags him out of the ring and then slams him full force into the barricade.

Roman then picks Miz up and again tosses him into the barricade, his body crumpling like a ragdoll on the floor. Roman picks Miz up and dumps him back into the ring, the young kid scurrying to the other side, climbing out onto the ring apron. Roman pursues him but Miz grabs a hold of him and snaps his neck down off of the top rope.

Miz then climbs to the top of the turnbuckle, he jumps off and catches Roman’s arm straight to the stomach. Miz backs into the opposite corner, Roman catches him delivering a punch to the stomach followed by several boots to the gut. The ref tries to back Roman up, only for Miz to use the distraction and kick Roman’s leg out from under him.

Miz then rushes over stomping on Roman as he lays on the mat, targeting Roman’s left knee. But Roman manages to get to his feet, grabbing ahold of Miz and tossing him across the ring. Miz gets back up and starts targeting Roman’s knee, slamming it against the ring post and the canvas.

He manages to get Roman locked into the Figure-Four leg lock, Siren yelling to Roman from the outside. “Power out, Rome! Come on!”

Roman uses his brute strength to lift Miz’ leg, releasing some of the pressure on his own, but Miz answers with several punches to Roman’s face and head. Miz goes for the leg lock again, but a well placed boot to his ass sends Miz crashing shoulder first into the ring post.

Siren notices Roman is struggling to stand up, “Roman! Roman, look at me. You’re fine. Shake it off and end this!”

Roman nods to her getting to his feet as Miz rushes him, he picks the man up and delivers a Samoan drop. He gets to his feet and hits Miz with a clothes line, then another devastating clothesline in the corner, followed by a nasty punch to the face. As Miz lays on the bottom rope, Roman climbs out of the ring, running past Siren he jumps up on the apron and nails Miz with a “drive-by.”

Climbing back in the ring Roman co*cks his fist, but before he can deliver it Miz rolls out retreating up the ramp. But his retreat is blocked by one Dolph Ziggler, who saunters out onto the stage. Miz turns around only to be nailed in the face by a superman punch. Roman picks him up and shoves him back into the ring where he hits him with a spear, then covers him for the win.

At the top of the ramp Dolph smirks as he watches Roman celebrate his win, tossing a wink to Siren, who blows him a kiss in return.

After the show the group loads into the rig and makes the drive to Los Angeles where Summerslam would be held. Being too tired to worry about the hotel, the group just fell asleep in the rig, the beds were so much more comfortable.

Saturday they took some time to play at the beach, Kailynn loving building sandcastles with the guys and playing in the water with her mom.

The arena was buzzing as the group entered the next night for Summerslam, it was a big night for a lot of people. The group split up going to their locker rooms as they all got dressed in their ring gear for the night.

They sat down to watch the first contest between Dolph and Miz for the Intercontinental Championship.

“I hope Dolph punches him in the face, several times.” Siren says smirking over at Roman, who grins back.

They watch the match with rapt attention, the two men beating one another, both going for covers, but only receiving a 2 count. But that all changed when Dolph hit the “zig zag” and pinned Miz for the win.

“Yes!” Siren said bouncing on the couch, kissing Seth in her excitement.

He gives her a funny look as she sits back, “If that’s how excited you get for Dolph winning, I can’t wait to see what kind of response I get when I win.”

“Good luck with that two-tone.” Dean said from the opposite side of the couch, causing all of them to laugh together.

After watching Paige beat AJ for the Divas title, Siren just shakes her head with a laugh, “Those two are crazy. Both of them.”

“That’s why you’re all best friends.” Roman says with a chuckle.

Siren looks over at him with wide eyes, “Are you calling me crazy?”

Roman holds up his hands, “I said no such thing. But hey, if the straightjacket fits.”

Siren jumps off of Seth’s lap and launches over Dean’s lap onto Roman, she pins his arms down with her strong legs and starts tickling him. Roman is gasping for breath between laughs as he finally shoves her back over onto Dean and Seth.

“See, case in point.” He says holding his sides, still laughing.

“Hey, if you’re calling my girl crazy, what am I for being with her?” Seth asks curiously.

Roman looks at him very seriously, “Stupid.”

They all laugh as Seth reaches across Dean and slugs Roman in the shoulder, Dean curling up into a ball trying to avoid being punched in the face by the two.

Nearing the end of the Flag match between Jack Swagger and Rusev, which Rusev won only because Swagger passed out from the Accolade, Seth, Siren and Dean headed to the curtain for their match. Standing behind the curtain they all knocked fists, Siren kissing Seth before Dean’s music hit and the two headed out to the ring.

Siren walked beside Dean as they headed down to the ring, Dean walked up the stairs, however as Siren went to follow him she spotted a face in the crowd behind the announcer’s desk. The person saw her too and stood up walking over by the barricade. Siren ran over and launched over the barricade into the person’s arms. After hugging the life out of the person, Siren motioned for a mic to be brought to her.

As she sat on the edge of the barricade, she slung an arm around the person’s neck. “Ladies and gentlemen, please give it up for my co-star on Teen Wolf, my on-screen Alpha werewolf boyfriend, Tyler Hoechlin!”

Tyler smiled as he waved to the fans, laughing as Siren pressed a kiss to his cheek, that was until she saw the person who had been sitting beside him. She squealed jumping down from the barricade and jumping into the woman’s arms.

“Everyone, another big round of applause for Tyler’s girlfriend, an amazing actress, Ms. Brittany Snow and the cast of Pitch Perfect including Ms. Anna Kendrick, I see you sitting over there girl.” Siren said pointing down the row at Anna who blew her a kiss.

“So, are you guys ready to see Seth Rollins get his ass whipped by Dean Ambrose!?”

The whole cast as well as the WWE Universe cheered, Siren nodded, “Alright, let’s get it on!” She kissed the cheeks of Brittany and Tyler once more before she jumped back over the barricade and slid into the ring with Dean as the lumberjacks came down and surrounded the ring.

Then it was time for Seth Rollins to make his entrance, which he did with a very dark scowl on his face, before he climbed the stairs and jumped into the ring.

Siren slid out of the ring, taking stock of who all of the lumberjacks were, and it didn’t look good for either Dean or Seth. As the match got underway it was clear to her that some of the superstars were picking sides, some were on Dean’s side, but it seemed that none of them were on Seth’s side. That in itself was a silver lining for Siren.

She walked over sitting down on the edge of the announcer’s table beside JBL, throwing the cowboy a wink. Watching as Seth basically took control of the match, Siren hollered to Dean, “Come on, Dean! This is your payback!”

Suddenly all she saw was Dean flipping Seth over the ropes, she threw herself backwards off of the desk as the two superstars tumbled down on top of the lumberjacks. Within seconds it looked like a melee had broken out as Dean and Seth brawled with one another, while the lumberjacks tried to separate the two and get them back in the ring.

Dean managed to toss Seth over his shoulder sending him over the barricade into the fans. He tried to follow Seth, but the lumberjacks grabbed ahold of him and deterred his attempt, dragging him back and shoving him into the ring. But no one was trying to grab Rollins, they were all focused on Dean.

But they didn’t count on Dean launching himself out of the ring, taking out the group of stars that had shoved him back into the ring. He climbed up onto the announcer’s table, tossing a wink to Siren before he ran across the tables and threw himself over the barricade onto Seth.

Seth takes off through the crowd trying to escape, but Dean gives chase, slamming his forearm into the back of Seth’s head, then bouncing Seth’s head off of a metal pole. The two start brawling as they climb up the stairs into the crowd.

The two stand above one of the corridor entrances, both of them trying to toss the other one over the ledge. Siren yells to the lumberjacks, “Go get them before they kill each other! Now!” She sees some of the lumberjacks basically carrying Dean back to the ring, but Seth was heading for the back. “Oh hell no!” She shoves past the lumberjacks standing around, jumping over the barricade and chasing Seth down.

She comes up behind Seth as he comes to a stop, the Uso’s, Big E and Stardust in front of him blocking his escape, he turns around to find her standing behind him. She smirks before nailing him with a super-kick, knocking him back into the men who then drag him back to the other superstars who then lift him up like he’s crowd surfing, and take him back to the ring.

But before they can get Seth back inside, Dean climbs up to the top rope and launches himself onto Seth taking out him and the entire group of lumberjacks. Dean grabs Seth by the hair and shoves him back into the ring, he stands behind Seth pointing his fingers at Seth’s head like a gun, then pulling the trigger.

He goes for “Dirty Deeds,” but Seth counters with an enziguri kick to the head knocking Dean back against the ropes. Dean bounces off the ropes and hits Seth with a vicious clothes line that literally turns Seth inside out, making him do a full backflip. Dean goes for the cover, but somehow Seth manages to kick out at 2 stunning everyone including Siren who nearly pulls her hair out in disbelief.

Siren watches as Dean trash talks Seth, smacking his head as Seth struggles to get to his feet. Dean grabs him by the hair and tells him, “I loved you, brother,” before kissing his head. Before Seth can stand up, Dean does something that no one saw coming, not even Siren. He bounces off the ropes and nails Seth with his own “curb stomp.”

Dean’s face is full of remorse as he goes for the cover, but before the ref can count it, Kane gets into the ring and stomps down on Dean.

Goldust then climbs in the ring, getting in Kane’s face, the demon shoves him back and that’s when all hell breaks loose. Every superstar climbs into the ring and a melee breaks out, they’re fists and bodies flying everywhere. Once the superstars start clearing the ring, Dean finds himself preoccupied with Harper and Rowen as they both charge him, but he knocks them both from the ring.

As he turns around, Seth charges him with his briefcase in hand, nailing Dean in the face. If she hadn’t been standing there Siren wouldn’t have noticed Dean’s hand curling around Seth’s back urging him into the cover, as Seth barely knew where he was at this point. Seth gets the win as he rolls over on his back laying on top of Dean, Siren has to fight to remain pissed off, when all she wants to do is smile.

She watches Seth get to his feet, holding his briefcase up as he struggles to remain upright. Once he had left the ring she slid in to check on Dean, the trainers coming down to help Dean to the back.

In the back Siren walked Dean to the trainer’s room before she headed to the locker room to check on Seth. He’s laying on the couch when she comes in, his arm thrown over his eyes. She kneels down beside him, gently touching his shoulder. “Baby, are you okay?”

Seth removes his arm, trying to focus his eyes on her face. “Yeah, I’m okay.”

“I’m not sure you are, Cole.” She says noticing his eyes aren’t really focusing on her.

He moves to sit up, his head lolling to the side, “I feel nauseous.”

“All right, you’re not okay. Come on. Let’s get you to the trainer’s, you might have a concussion.” She puts her arm under his holding him around his back and lifting him to his feet. “Come on, babe. Put your arm around my neck.” He does as she tells him, draping his arm around her neck as she leads him out of the room and to the trainer’s.

Knocking on the door she waits for the trainer to open it, “Got another one for you. I think he might have a concussion.” She says walking Seth into the room and laying him down on the bed beside Dean’s.

“How’s your head, dick?” Dean snarks from his bed.

“Bout as good as yours, asshole.” Seth retorts.

Siren shakes her head with a smile as she looks at the trainer, “They’re gonna be fine. Try not to kill each other boys, I’ll be back for you later.” She leans over kissing Seth’s lips, then kissing Dean’s cheek, before walking out of the room, hearing the two men speak before she shut the door.

“Told you I was gonna use your move on you one day.” Dean said chuckling.

Seth groaned, replying, “f*ck that hurts.”

Siren shook her head laughing as she walked to the Divas locker room to check on Monkey. Seth had told her that Brie and Nikki had kidnapped the little girl before their match. Knocking on the door she waited, it opened a moment later, the Divas inside all waving as she came in. Kailynn was sitting on the couch playing a game on her Leap pad with Nikki watching.

“How’s the boys?” Renee asked as she touched up her makeup in the mirror.

“They were tossing insults at each other when I left the trainer’s room.”

“Oh, they’ll be fine.” Renee said with a laugh.

“I’m gonna go check on Roman, you okay Monkey?” Siren asked her daughter.

“Yep momma, I’m fine.”

Siren nodded before she left the room, heading down the hall she passed Stephanie, she gave the boss an approving look on her ring gear. “Damn, Steph. You look hot.”

“Thank you.” Steph said sincerely with a smirk as she continued up to the curtain.

Siren followed her in time to catch Brie standing by the curtain, “Hey.” She waited for Brie to look over at her. “Whip that spoiled bitch’s ass.”

Brie nodded, holding out a hand she high-fived Siren before hearing her theme and heading out to the ring. Siren stood in the back with the other Divas to watch the match between Stephanie and Brie. They are all shocked as hell as Nikki blindsides her sister, giving the win to Stephanie.

“Damn, and I thought The Shield breakup was bad, there’s no coming back from this.” Siren commented.

Siren didn’t get a chance to talk to Brie or Nikki as she had to head up to the corridor to meet up with Roman for his match. Quickly changing out of Dean’s shirt and into Roman’s she met up with the big man.

“You ready big dog?”

“Born ready, Babygirl.” Roman smirked knocking fists with her before his music hits and they walk out.

They descended down through the crowd, Siren leading the way through the crowd to the barricade. Siren hops over and pauses waiting for Roman as he climbs over, then ascends the turnbuckle, raising his fists for the crowd. Siren seeing another familiar face walks over to the side of the ring and gives a hug to Ronda Rousey, who is a good friend of hers. Ronda had been helping Siren train in Muay Thai, she already had a black belt in Jiu Jitsu and she wanted something else in her repertoire.

Roman strikes first delivering right hands to the Viper, knocking Randy outside of the ring. Siren moves out of the way as Roman chases Randy around the ring, before shoving him back inside the ropes. The match between the two is brutal, both men assaulting the other in and outside of the ring.

Siren cringes as Randy drops Roman back first onto the announcer’s table crushing the top portion, then slamming Roman shoulder first into the steel steps. They get back into the ring trading blows, until Roman levels him with a superman punch. Roman calls for the spear, but Randy counters it into a power-slam, he goes for the cover but Roman kicks out at 2. Randy then delivers a DDT to Roman off of the second rope.

He slams down on the canvas calling for the RKO, but Roman counters, shoving Randy back against the ropes. Roman goes for the spear, but Randy dodges him and turns it into an RKO. Randy goes for the cover but Roman kicks out at 2, Randy is beside himself with disbelief.

He leans on the ropes staring down at Siren as he holds up three fingers, she smirks holding up 2 of her own. “2 Randy. Only 2, honey.” She laughs jumping back as Randy swipes at her face. But her smile drops instantly as she sees Randy backing up to the corner, she sees the dark demonic look in his eyes and panics.

“Randy don’t! NO! Don’t do this! Randy, please!” She screams as she jumps up on the ring apron, kneeling outside of the ropes. “Roman! Roman, get up! Please!”

She is rewarded as Roman dodges the punt from Orton, standing up he bounces off of the ropes and nails Randy with a spear. Roman covers him and gets the three count for the win. Siren climbs into the ring jumping into Roman’s arms, he swings her around with a smile.

“I knew you could do it, Rome.” She told him kissing his cheek.

“Thanks for having my back.” Roman says setting her down as they both celebrate.

Siren only has a few minutes backstage to change her shirt before John’s match. He walks up as she is sipping from a water bottle, giving her a nod they head out to the ring.

Siren puts on her mask of stone as they walk out onto the stage, she is trying not to show Brock that she is terrified of him. The two of them forget the salute this time as they run down and slide into the ring.

As soon as the bell rings John rushes Brock, he’s like a whole different John tonight. He’s vicious and angry as he goes after Lesnar, but the beast hits him with the F5. Brock goes for the cover but John kicks out at 2. He laughs as he stands over Brock, his eyes glancing over to John. “That was your one chance, John. I’m gonna kill you. And I’m gonna hurt her… again.”

Siren stands by the ring, her hands covering her mouth as Brock delivers German suplex’ to John, one after another, 8 in total. John manages to get a head of steam, but Brock catches him in the F5, but John reverses it into an AA. John goes for the cover, but Brock manages to kick out at 2.

Before John can get up Brock sits down over his legs and starts hammering John with fists. “What the f*ck is this!” Siren yells to the ref. “This isn’t an MMA match. Get him off of him.”

Brock picks John up with a pointed look at Siren before he delivers three suplex’ in a row to Cena. Brock tosses John to the canvas, his body landing by the ropes in front of her. She reaches in laying her hand on John’s leg, “John. I know you won’t give up, but please, don’t put yourself through this anymore. It’s not worth it.”

John sits up struggling against the ropes to get to his feet, Siren pleading with him, “John, please stay down. Please. John!”

She screams as Brock grabs John and administers three more suplex’ in a row. She’s nearly in tears as John refuses to quit, even as the ref is telling him he needs to. She yelps as John suddenly flips over, catching Brock in a drop toe hold knocking him to the canvas and immediately locking in the STFU.

But her joy is short lived as Brock flips John over pummeling him with right hands, before lifting him up and delivering another F5. John is down for the count as Brock covers him for the win. Siren stands stoic waiting for Brock to leave the ring, when he does she slides in and kneels down beside John.

But apparently Brock wasn’t done sending a message, as he climbs back into the ring. Siren looks up in time to see Brock tower over her, she screams as his arms close around her waist. Her only feeling is pain as Brock slams her to the canvas three times with suplex’. Then as she lays there Brock decides he’s hasn’t finished with her yet as he grabs her by the hair and yanks her to her feet. Grinning sad*stically Brock picks her up and slams her to the canvas with an F5.

Siren’s head is reeling, her entire body aches as she attempts to walk back up the ramp to the back. The trainer’s wanted to put her on a back board but she refused, shoving them away from her as she rolled out of the ring. The trainer’s take her arms guiding her to the back, where Seth is waiting for her, he immediately lifts her into his arms bridal style.

“I got the bags, let’s go.” Roman says, they’re all staying in character since there were still people milling around backstage.

“NO, Roman take her.” Seth says stopping in his tracks, everyone could see the fire in his eyes, he was beyond pissed off.

“No! We’ll deal with him later, let’s just get her out of here.” Roman stated. “She needs you right now.”

Seth sighed, nodding he turned and headed for the parking lot where Daryl was waiting for them. Behind Seth and Roman, Dean carried Kailynn with Renee walking beside him. “Uncle Jon, is my momma gonna be okay?”

“Of course sweetheart, mommy’s fine, she’s just sore right now.” Dean told her trying to keep her fears at rest.

The group gets into the rig, Daryl immediately closing the door and heading them out of the parking lot to their next destination. Inside Colby takes Tasha back to the bedroom to lay her down, coming back out into the kitchen Joe hands him a couple ice packs and some aspirin.

“Here these should help. Don’t worry about Kailynn we’ve got her, you just take care of our girl.”

Colby nods, patting Joe on the shoulder in thanks before he goes back to the bedroom. He sits down on the side of the bed, leaning Tasha up he has her take a few of the aspirin with a bottle of water. When she lays back down he notices her struggling to unbutton her jeans.

“Do you want to change, baby? I can have Renee come back here to help you.”

“No, can you help me? Unless you have a problem with it.” She asks her eyes red with tears, caused by the pain radiating through her body.

“No, I don’t have a problem with it, baby.” He says gently unbuttoning her jeans and sliding them off of her legs. As much as he wanted her body wrapped around his, this was not the time for that, he was more concerned with her health, than getting himself laid. He helped her sit up and took off her shirt, then grabbed one of his merch-shirts and pulled it over her head. She laid back down, Colby grabbed the ice packs and placed one under her neck and the other underneath her lower back, trying to alleviate some of her discomfort.

Pulling off his shoes he laid down on the bed beside her, brushing the hair away from her face. He saw her eyelids dropping and he panicked, “No baby, keep your eyes open please. You gotta stay awake a little while longer, okay?”

“But I’m tired, and I hurt all over.” She whined and Colby’s heart clenched.

“I know baby, but the doctor’s gonna check you out when we get to Jon’s, so you gotta stay awake until he does, okay? I promise only a little while longer.”

“Okay.” She said softly as she laced her fingers with his.

When they arrived in Vegas four hours later, Jon directed Daryl to his house. Not many people knew where Jon lived so it was easy for them to slip inside the house. Colby slipped Tasha into a pair of sweats and a sweatshirt, tugging up the hood so that no one could see her face. Being as it was Summerslam weekend, there were fans everywhere that might see them together. Colby could care less who saw them by this point, but he didn’t want to cost either of them their job.

He waited for Joe, Jon and Renee to take Kailynn up to the house first, then he pulled on his own sweatshirt and pulled the hood up. Picking Tasha up in his arms he swiftly carried her up the driveway and into the house to one of the spare bedrooms, laying her down on the bed.

A few minutes later the doc showed up to check her out, running a light over her eyes, he was mainly checking for a concussion. When he finished his exam he pulled the three men off to the side, “I don’t see any signs of a concussion, so she’s free to go to sleep. Um, her neck is a little swollen, probably a slight case of whiplash from her head snapping back. Just keep ice on it throughout tonight, make sure she takes some more aspirin for the pain and it’ll help to keep the swelling down. If she has any problems let me know tomorrow, but I’d like her to take it easy for a couple days.”

“Yeah, that probably won’t happen, but we’ll try.” Colby said, knowing they had RAW the next night, and she had filming for SOA and Teen Wolf the next three.

After getting Kailynn settled in her own little portable bed and reading her a story, Colby helped Tasha out of her sweatshirt and pants, situating her under the covers. Pulling off his clothes he changed into a pair of shorts and crawled gently in the bed beside her.

“Can I go to sleep now?” She mumbled, her head resting against his chest.

He nodded running his fingers through her hair, “Yeah, baby, you can go to sleep. Just don’t you go to sleep and not wake up on me, okay?”

“I’m not going anywhere, Cole.” She said kissing his chest before she drifted off to sleep.

Colby sighed as he laid awake, still running his fingers through her long hair. Every time he closed his eyes all he could see was the terrified look on her face as Brock grabbed her and suplexed her to the mat. It was the hardest thing in the world for him to stand in the back and watch it, and not be able to do anything. He had tried to go out there, but Joe and Jon had talked him out of it, even though the two of them were ready to do the same thing.

He leaned down and kissed her forehead hearing her let out a contented sigh, it was then that Colby made up his mind, he was gonna do whatever was needed, for her to be with him all the time. In order for Colby to have Tasha, Seth needed to have Siren.

Chapter 25: First Meetings

Chapter Text

As he slept Colby had a dream about the first time he laid eyes on Tasha in person. It was the start of the Gold Rush Series for the NXT Championship on August 1^st, 2012 when Triple H had asked her to be the guest ring announcer for the tournament. He had found out later on from her that Triple H wanted her to give him a manger’s perspective on the talent in NXT. Triple H wanted to know if any of the superstars had what it took to be a part of the main roster.

As his music started he came out on the stage, bouncing around in his usual mosh pit fashion, the music pumping him up. He could hear her announce his name and it sent a flush through him as his name tumbled from her lips.

She was already out of the ring when he entered, but as he climbed up on the turnbuckle he looked right down at her. She was bobbing her head along with his music, she looked up and gave him a sweet smile that was followed with a wink, and he was hooked from that moment on.

He never told anybody but Joe and Jon, but he’d had a crush on Siren since he was a kid. When he made plans to go to Florida to wrestle for FCW, he was hoping it would give him a chance to meet her and perhaps make his crush into his girlfriend. But his hopes were dashed as he watched her marry Cena at Wrestlemania 21. But 4 years later, their marriage dissolved and Siren was back on the market.

When he finally entered NXT, he knew that she was single, and when he heard that she was coming to NXT, he thought he might finally have his opening. But despite his persona Colby was actually a very shy guy, and in his mind, Siren was so far out of his league.

But Siren had changed his opinion on the August 15^th, edition of NXT. She had introduced him and his opponent for their semi-final match. During the match his opponent had beaten him down in the corner, slamming him down on the mat to where he could barely move. As he opened his eyes from where he lay, his gaze met directly with her eyes and he saw her mouth the words, “come on.” She was pulling for him, she wanted him to win the match, and it gave him a second wind to get up and win the match.

Afterwards he had watched the match, listening to the commentary from the announcer’s. JR, Byron and William Regal had asked Siren what she thought about the match and the superstars in the tournament. She had said that all of them were impressive with their own styles and it was interesting to watch the styles clash in the ring.

But what got Colby was when Byron had asked her, “Which of these guys in the tournament from a manager’s point of view, would you like to work with?”

“Not to take anything away from any of the other competitors, because they’re all great, but I’d have to go with Seth Rollins. I think he’s got that wow factor. He’s got a style that is all his own. Since his first day here, he’s had a following, the crowd loves chanting his name. He’s going up against guys that are bigger and stronger than he is, and he keeps finding ways to keep going. He’s resilient and resourceful. Every time these guys think they’ve got him beat, he finds a way to rally and outsmart them. As a manager he’s got everything I would look for in a client. He’s got a presence, he’s smart, resourceful, methodical. He’s my pick to win this tournament. I think he’s the future of our business, and there’s no doubt in my mind that he’s gonna be WWE world heavyweight champion one day.”

Hearing the way that she talked about him, how much she believed in him, that meant so much to Colby.

It was the next week when he got to actually be in the ring with her, he had been told that she would be interviewing him and his opponent. As he waited for her to announce him, he actually found himself a little nervous to be out there with her. But he shook Colby out of his head and let Seth take the reins, Seth was the brash, co*cky, ladies man.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we are just one week away from the finals of the NXT Gold Rush tournament to crown the first ever NXT Champion. But, before we get to next week, tonight, we have an opportunity to hear for the final time before their match from both competitors. So with that said, ladies and gentlemen, my first guest, please welcome, Seth Rollins!”

He got into the ring walking past her and taking a mic from one of the techs, he then turned as she held out her hand. He took it with his own, noticing the tingle he felt when their hands met.

“And his opponent, the Punjabi Nightmare, Jinder Mahal.”

He stood there beside her as his opponent walked down the ramp, he saw her look over her shoulder, tossing him a smirk and a wink. She stepped in between the two men, holding up her hands to them. “Let’s keep this civil, please. Don’t make me have to hurt you, because I can.” And there wasn’t one part of Colby that thought for a second that she couldn’t.

“Okay, gentlemen. I’m gonna start things off with you, Seth. What does it mean to you to have the opportunity to become NXT Champion?”

“You know, Siren, my entire life all I ever wanted was to hold a championship in WWE. So this opportunity to become the first ever NXT Champion means everything to me. Growing up isn’t always easy. Sometimes when you’re a kid, it’s hard to find yourself, it’s hard to figure out what you stand for. I was like that until I found wrestling, until I found WWE, and that gave me purpose, that gave me direction, that gave me a dream. And now, here I stand on the brink of achieving that dream. And there is no way I am leaving Full Sail University without becoming the first ever NXT Champion.”

She nodded giving him a smile, she understood what he was saying, this was his dream. They stood side-by-side as his opponent rambled on in another language, the two of them looking at one another confused. It wasn’t until his opponent referred to him as a “born loser” that Colby got pissed off. He stepped towards Jinder, but Siren laid a light hand on his chest, holding him in place. The tingle he felt when he shook her hand was nothing compared to the tremor that ran through him as she touched his chest.

When his opponent finished talking Colby knew it was gonna get ugly, he reached out placing his left hand on her stomach and gently moved her back where she would be safe.

“Born loser,” Jinder, “Born loser,” you know what I never liked…” But he was cut off as Jinder slugged him in the mouth. He got up and took the fight to Jinder knocking him out of the ring, then diving out of the ring and taking him out. He ripped off his shirt and climbed back in the ring, standing on the turnbuckle he saw Siren clapping, a smile on her face. She gave him another of her patented winks and a bright smile.

The next week was the championship match for the NXT Championship, and Colby was so nervous. He noticed Siren walk up to him, she was headed out to announce his match. She was wearing a pair of black leather pants, a white corset with red roses on it and a pair of black motorcycle boots. Her long hair was down hanging just above her butt, her eyes were done in a dark smoky eye that made her blue eyes pop, and her lips were blood red.

She smiled as she stopped in front of him, “Relax kid, you got this, I know it.”

Those would be the words that ran through his mind as she announced his name and throughout the entire match.

“At this time, allow me to introduce to you, the commissioner of NXT, WWE Hall of Famer “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes.” Siren said clapping along with the superstars that filled the stage as well as the fans. Dusty grabbed the title and carried it down into the ring where he hugged Siren.

Jinder came out first to a rather horrible ovation from the crowd, mostly with boos. However when Seth Rollins made his entrance, the roof damn near came off of the place.

Colby stood to Siren’s left as she announced the competitors for the match. “Ladies and gentlemen, the following contest scheduled for one fall, is the final match in the Gold Rush tournament. The winner of this bout will become the first-ever NXT Champion. Introducing the participants. First, to my right, from Punjab, India, weighing 221 pounds, Jinder Mahal. To my left, his opponent, from Davenport, Iowa, weighing 209 pounds, Seth Rollins!”

“Good luck boys.” Siren says, her attention on Seth as she gets out of the ring.

Dusty comes up to him shaking his hand, he thanks Dusty for the opportunity, but he’s angered when Jinder refuses to shake Dream’s hand. Colby decides right there that he’s gonna win the match, no one with that amount of disrespect deserves to be champion.

The greatest moment of his life was hearing Siren announcing his name as the winner of the match. “The winner… and new NXT Champion, Seth Rollins!”

He was beside himself with emotion as he hugged Dusty, and then had his hands and belt raised by Dusty and Siren. Then to have the entire locker room come down to the ring and lift him up on their shoulders, the feeling could not be described.

It was even better when he saw Siren backstage, she walked right up and gave him a kiss on his cheek. “Told you so.” She said giving him a smile and that wink that drove him crazy.

Colby had never imagined that the woman he’d had a crush on since he was a kid, would one day be his girlfriend. Despite what some people might think, it wasn’t her looks or her status in the company that attracted him to her. It was her personality, her sense of humor and the unwavering faith and belief she had in him. When the chips were down and no one thought he could win, she was always right there in his corner telling him, “You got this.”

Whether he was a heel or a face, she had his back, even when no one thought she would. He knew he was lucky to have her in his life, and now he was blessed to say that she was his girlfriend. Every time he looked at her, it was literally a teenage dream come true.

The next morning Colby woke up, looking down he found Tasha curled into his side, her right arm resting across his stomach. He laughed lightly as her breath tickled the skin of his chest, his slight movement causing her to open her eyes. He smiled as her blue eyes fluttered open and looked over at him, a smile gracing her face when she saw him watching her. It was little things like her smiling when she saw him, that made everyday worth it to Colby. As long as he could see those beautiful blue eyes and her sweet smile, he had every thing he would ever need in life.

“Morning.” She said with a small yawn.

Colby chuckled, “Morning, baby. How you feeling?”

“A little sore, but no worse for wear.” She said stretching her sore body, her T-shirt rising up to where he could see the black boy-shorts she wore.

Clearing his throat he tossed the inappropriate thoughts in his head away, now wasn’t the time for that. “Well, I’m gonna head to the gym with the guys. You should take a hot bath and relax. I’ll get some breakfast for you and Monkey before I go, Renee’s already up cooking.”

“Figures.” She said chuckling, climbing out of bed, she placed her arms around his neck and smiled. “How’d I get so lucky?”

Colby wrapped his arms around her waist, leaning down he kissed her lips. “I’m the lucky one.”

Tasha kissed him once more before she walked into the bathroom, starting the water she heard him talking to her daughter as he turned on cartoons for her. Sinking into the water Tasha sighed in relief as she felt the tight muscles in her body releasing their tension.

Colby knocked on the door and came in about twenty minutes later, “Breakfast is here, baby. I already got monkey hers, she’s watching cartoons.”

“Okay. Thank you.” She said smiling warmly at him.

“You’re welcome.” He replied, leaning down and kissing her lips lightly. “I’ll be back in a few hours.”

“K. Have fun.”

After getting out of the bath and toweling off, Tasha got dressed in a pair of blue jeans and a black tank top. She sat down on the bed to eat her breakfast, grabbing her phone she thumbed through her social media to see what was going on. There were a lot of tweets about Summerslam, most of them from her fans wishing her well after Brock’s attack. Opening up the tweet page, she typed out a message to her fans.

@WWESirenRose - thank you for all of your well wishes. I’m doing good. #bruisedbutnotbroken

A little under two hours later Colby came back to the room, he was sweating, his hair sticking out from the bun at the nape of his neck. Tasha watched him set his gym bag down, motioning to the tray sitting on the bed beside her. “I got you some breakfast, figured you’d be hungry.”

“Thanks babe.” He said giving her a kiss. “I’m gonna take a quick shower.”

Tasha nodded, she was leaning back against the headboard, her laptop perched on her lap. She was going through her itinerary for the rest of the month, which was for lack of a better word, slammed. She had two RAW’s and Smackdown’s, maybe two Main Events if she was scheduled, and in between them, filming for SOA, Teen Wolf and Walking Dead.

Some days she worried that she put too much on herself, but then she remembered how much fun being apart of all these shows was and she never thought twice.

Colby came out of the bathroom shortly after, dressed in a pair of black slacks. Tasha smiled, even though she hated his heel persona, she had to admit, the man could wear the hell out of a suit. He sat down on the edge of the bed and ate his breakfast, glancing at Tasha out of the corner of his eye. After he finished he got up and pulled on his white long-sleeved button down, tucking it into his pants. He then put on his black dress shoes and went about packing his suitcase back up.

By the time he finished Tasha had repacked hers and Kailynn’s things and was pulling on her zip-up sweatshirt. He smiled as Kailynn tugged her sweat-jacket on, her little hands getting stuck in the sleeves. When they were ready he kissed Tasha and Kailynn’s forehead before they headed down to the rig.

Colby made sure no one was loitering around then walked outside where the rig was waiting. Luckily no fans seemed to be around at this point, and not many of them had figured out who the rig belonged too, yet. He climbed in shutting the door behind him, nodding to Jon, Joe and Renee who were seated on the couch. He set his bag down and sat next to Tasha at the table, the guys ribbing him over his suit as they rode to the arena.

Walking into the arena Colby sighed, he was really getting tired of being alone, his friends and girlfriend laughing behind him as they walked in together. But what could he do right now? Nothing, except wait for Hunter’s plan to come to fruition.

After attending the afternoon meeting, he went to his locker room, finding Tasha already inside. “The girls steal Kailynn again?”

“Yep. As always.” Tasha said with a laugh. “I’m glad she’s having fun, she starts pre-k next Monday, so this is my last week with her before she goes home.”

Colby saw the dejected look on her face, he walked over and sat down beside her on the bench. Wrapping his arm around her, he kissed the side of her head. “Hey, it’s okay. She’s gonna be fine.”

“It’s not that. I just wonder if I’m doing the right thing. What if she resents me later on for not being around more. I mean, I’m on the road so much, I only get to really spend time with her during the summer.”

“Hey, look at me. Kailynn loves you, and she loves what you do. I see how proud she is to say her momma is a WWE Diva. She could never resent you. She has so much fun when she’s here, and she gets to travel and see the world. She is having the time of her life, and she has her mom to thank for that. Okay?”

Tasha nods, leaning into Colby and kissing his lips, “Thank you.”

“Anytime, baby.”

Monday Night RAW kicked off that night in Las Vegas with a look back at Summerslam. Stephanie started the show coming out to Daniel Bryan’s music as a slap in the face to Brie for defeating her at Summerslam. She then brought Nikki out to explain her actions, the two hugging in the ring and making the fans gag. Then Nikki explained that she turned on her sister because she was tired of every thing being about Brie.

Brie then came out to confront her sister telling her that she could forgive her. But Brie was rewarded with a vicious slap to the face from Nikki, she climbed out of the ring and walked backstage, tears falling from her eyes.

Siren met her backstage pulling the woman into her arms, rubbing her back and trying to comfort her. “It’s okay. It’s just a storyline, she didn’t mean it. Okay? Nikki loves you.”

“I know, but it still hurts.” Brie said with a choked sob.

Siren glanced down the hall where Seth stood with Renee, “I know, believe me, I know all too well.”

“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome my guest at this time, Mr. Money In The Bank, Seth Rollins.” Renee says with a smile as Seth walks up beside her, cackling like always. “Seth, you were victorious last night at Summerslam in your lumberjack match against Dean Ambrose, congratulations.”

“Renee, thank you. Thank you very much. It feels so good. Because I did what I told the entire world I was gonna do. I didn’t run. I didn’t hide. I stood, planted my two feet in the center of that ring inside Dean Ambrose’s little wall of flesh. And I proved, that not only am I the future WWE World Heavyweight Champion, but I’m the future of the entire WWE.”

Suddenly Renee runs out of the frame, Seth is confused, until he feels ice cold water pouring over his body. He breathes out deeply, blowing out a breath as he turns around to find Dean standing behind him holding a bucket, Siren beside him laughing.

“What? It’s for charity.” Dean says with a shrug, before hitting Seth in the face with the bucket then tackling him to the ground.

Siren stands by still smiling as security and referee’s come in to break the two up. As Seth is held back he’s yelling at the two, “You’re done, Ambrose! I’m done with you two! Yeah, keep smiling, Siren! I’m done with you! Let me go!”

After they release him he barges into Triple H’s office where the boss is speaking to Kane. “What the hell? Huh? Did you see that? Did you see what just happened?” Seth snaps throwing his towel on the floor.

“Relax, just calm down.” Triple H tells him.

“Dean Ambrose is out of his mind. He’s a lunatic, he’s not gonna stop for anything. I tried to tell you this. We got to put him out, we got to take him out of the equation. If you want me to be Mr. Money In the Bank, you want me…”

“Relax, relax. You’re Mr. Money In the Bank, calm down. We saw it which is why tonight you are gonna have a rematch with Dean Ambrose. Okay?”

“Alright. Alright, good. Good. In a lumberjack match?”

“No, because Dean Ambrose is a problem. People like him, he’s wild, he’s crazy, he’s unpredictable, he’s got an attitude.”

“Clearly.” Seth snarks running a hand through his now wet hair.

“That’s why I’m gonna let the WWE Universe decide the type of match you have. I’m gonna let them decide his fate, so that tonight when you finish Dean Ambrose off for good, he’s not a martyr. No, the blood will be on their hands, not on ours.”

“Good luck.” Kane tells him.

“Finish it.” Triple H says as Seth walks out.

Siren sits in the locker room, she hears the door open and ducks her head to hide her smile. “Hey, babe, I got you a dry shirt.”

“I hate you.” He says making her chuckle. “Did you give him that idea?”

“Give him?” She said looking up at him with a grin. “It was all my idea.”

“I hate you so much.” He groaned with a smile, as he sat down on the bench and attempted to peel his wet shirt off of his body.

Feeling sorry for him Siren stood up and walked over grabbing the bottom hem of the shirt and helping him peel it off of his muscular frame. She then tossed it into the corner as she sat down straddling his lap, giving him her best pouty face. “Do you really hate me?”

Seth knew what she was doing and he refused to give in, crossing his arms over his chest, pushing her back a little bit. “Yes I do.”

She leaned in and kissed his cheek, “Still hate me?”

“Yep.”

She leaned in again pressing a kiss to his neck, “Still?”

“Uh-huh.” He bit out, although he was having a tough time staying angry with her.

Grabbing him by the back of his neck she pressed a deep kiss to his lips. “How bout now?” She said with a smirk.

Seth scoffed before wrapping his arms around her and attacking her mouth in a heated kiss. He pulled back a few minutes later, both of them breathing heavily as she smirked at him. He gently bit her bottom lip with his teeth, “Minx.”

“And you wouldn’t have me any other way.” She stated, before climbing off his lap and walking out of the locker room.

Siren headed up to the corridor where Roman was waiting for her, he was competing in a 6-man tag match with Sheamus and RVD versus Randy Orton, Ryback and Curtis Axel. The two smiled at one another as Sheamus and RVD were announced and made their way to the ring, then it was their turn.

Siren lead Roman down the stairs to the barricade, she hopped over first and waited as Roman jumped over behind her. She smirked up at Randy who was muttering to himself, still pissed off that Roman had beat him at Summerslam.

She stood by the stairs as Sheamus started the match off against Axel. She smiled along with RVD and Roman as Sheamus punished Axel and Ryback with forearms to the chest. The three of them were working as a cohesive unit, she was pleased with that. Roman got in the match with a superman punch to Axel, followed by one to Ryback before Randy jumped in and attacked him. It was a melee then as all six men got into the ring, hitting one another with finishing moves. But it was RVD that won the match for his team with a frogsplash to Axel.

Siren got into the ring, raising Roman and Sheamus’ hands along with the ref and RVD. The four then walked to the back together laughing.

Siren stood in the back alongside Seth and Dean, they were waiting to find out what the match would be. She knew that no matter what the Universe decided, it was gonna be a disaster. It turned out to be a Falls Count Anywhere match. She quickly kissed Seth, giving him a sad look, knowing it was gonna be a bad night, before she headed out with Dean.

Dean and Siren walked out together to the roar of the crowd, she couldn’t help but smile, the WWE Universe loved Dean Ambrose. Her stomach however betrayed the smile on her face as it was tied up in knots. She could tell by the look in Seth’s eyes that tonight was going to be unpleasant, and that meant that Dean was gonna end up hurt.

She stood in the ring with Dean as Seth made his way down to them, climbing up onto the turnbuckle and holding up his briefcase. Siren jumped down out of the ring as Dean rushed Seth and the two started brawling. She watched with rapt attention as the guys beat one another with everything they could get their hands on for over minutes. Seth had even power-slammed Dean onto a stack of steel chairs and he still kicked out.

Her concern grew as she saw Kane come from out of the crowd, taking a seat next to the announcer’s table. Dean had then put Seth through a table from the second rope, but when he went for the cover Kane hopped up on the ring apron. Dean knocked him off, the threw Seth out of the ring when he rushed him, and then he followed that with a suicide dive taking out both men. Dean hefted Seth back into the ring and hit him with a clothesline that nearly turned Seth inside out, before hitting him with “Dirty Deeds.” Once again he went for the cover, but he was pulled form the ring by Kane.

Kane then proceeded to beat the hell out of Dean, until Dean sidestepped him and sent Kane crashing into the steel steps. Before Dean could regain himself, he was attacked by Seth, but a quick move by Ambrose had Seth sailing over the barricade behind him. Dean then tossed an attacking Kane over the announcer’s table, before he ran across the tables and launched himself onto Seth.

Dean tossed Seth back over the barricade, bouncing Seth’s head off of the announcer’s table. He then started ripping the cover and monitors off of the table. He hefted Seth onto the table looking for “Dirty Deeds,” but Kane saved Rollins by choke-slamming Dean onto the table instead. Seth then jumped up and delivered a curb stomp to Dean on the announcer’s table.

Siren was in full blown panic mode as she saw Kane lift up a table by the barricade, 6 cinder blocks hiding underneath it. Kane picked up Dean and drug him over, holding his head above the blocks. Siren immediately forgot about her personal safety as she put herself between Seth and Dean.

“Seth! Seth, don’t do this, please! Please, Seth! I’m begging you! Please, don’t do this!” She pleaded with him managing to back him up against the ring apron.

Hearing the cheer of the fans as the two were basically chest-to-chest Seth leaned his head down to hers, placing his forehead against hers. His hand came down and grabbed hers, the fans were going crazy by now thinking Seth might kiss her. But they were unprepared and astonished, as was Siren as Seth whispered in her ear, “I’m sorry.” Just then he slapped a handcuff onto her wrist.

“What the hell!?” She screamed as he lifted her arm and secured the other cuff around the bottom rope. “Seth! God damnit! Don’t do this! Please, Seth! Seth!”

She cried out in agony and despair as Seth jumped off of the announcer’s table and curb stomped Dean’s head right onto the cinder blocks, shattering half of them. “NO!!!”

Siren sagged against the ring apron, her eyes locked on Dean’s unconscious form slumped over the cinder blocks. She could see Seth standing on the announcer’s table out of the corner of her eye, Kane standing before him nodding in praise. Only Siren could see the regret in Seth’s eyes, the solemn look on his face as he looked down at Dean.

As the camera’s cut to black the trainer’s and WWE personnel ran down to check on Dean. Siren screamed as three of them stood around her, looking frantically for the key to release her. “Just f*cking cut me lose!”

Finally one of the ref’s brought out a key and unlocked her hand, immediately she ran over and knelt down beside Dean. Bringing her face down by his she whispered to him, as there were fans crowded around the barricade still watching. “You with me, D?”

Since she was blocking the view of him from the fans, he cracked open his left eye and looked at her. “My head hurts.”

Siren pursed her lips, dropping her head as she tried to hide her laugh. “They’re gonna put you on a backboard, and wheel you backstage, okay?”

“Yeah.” Dean grumbled. “I’m gonna kick that kid’s ass.”

Again Siren ducked her head, hiding her smile behind her hand. “I’ll gladly help you.”

Once the paramedics got down to the ring, they gently picked Jon up and placed him on a backboard, putting a collar around his neck, and strapping him down. Tasha followed them as they wheeled the gurney backstage, once there they released Jon and let him get up off of the table.

Tasha saw Colby standing a little ways down the hallway, he was peeking around the corner looking at Jon warily. She tapped Jon’s shoulder and pointed to Colby who gave a small wave, smiling co*ckily. “Hey, bro, how you doing?”

Jon pointed to the paramedics, “You might want to stick around, he’s gonna need that gurney.” He then took off in a sprint towards Colby, who’s eyes went wide as he took off running down the hallway away from Jon. Tasha shook her head at the medics, “He’s kidding.” She then took off after the two men their laughs echoing down the hallways. Coming into Colby’s locker room she found her boyfriend on the floor with Jon straddling him, punching the sh*t out of Colby’s chest and arms.

She stood in the doorway leaning against the frame, crossing her arms over her chest she shook her head. She felt a weight released off of her shoulders as she watched the two men play-fighting. Yes, they had worked things out, but there was still a worry in Tasha. She was concerned that any act could trigger the men to go back to their previous ways, trying to kill one another. But as she watched the two men rolling around the floor, she knew they were gonna be just fine. This was one war The Authority would not win.

Chapter 26: The End of Summer

Chapter Text

The next morning Tasha kissed Colby and her daughter goodbye as they dropped her off at the airport. Colby assured her that Kailynn would be fine like always, and he would make sure she had fun since it was her last week with them before she went back home to Nevada for school.

Tasha sighed as she sat on the plane, she was feeling guiltier by the day for not being around her daughter as much as felt that she should be. It was getting harder for her to be away from Kailynn, and as much as she loved her job, she was really thinking about giving it up.

The next three days were long, hot and rough for Tasha, two days on set with her SOA crew which was getting more emotional as the episodes passed. None of them were ready for the series to end, it had been an amazing seven years and it was hard to believe it was ending.

Wednesday Tasha got back to her hotel and turned on the WWE Network, she knew Colby had a promo on Main Event and she wanted to watch it.

“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Mr. Money In the Bank, Seth Rollins.” Renee said with a grimace as Seth stepped up beside her, his ever present smirk on his face.

“Seth, do you have any kind of an explanation for what you did to Dean Ambrose on Monday Night RAW?”

“Explanation? What are you—what are you talking about? Why are you asking me? I didn’t choose that match, Renee. I didn’t choose the stipulation falls count anywhere where anything goes. There are no rules. You know what? It’s on the WWE Universe’s head, the blood is on their hands. They did this to Dean Ambrose. And why are we all feeling so bad for Dean Ambrose anyway? He’s actually in some pretty good company now that I think about it. Lately a lot of heroes here in the WWE have kind of fallen on tough times. I mean, John Cena got demolished at Summerslam by the beast, Brock Lesnar. Chris Jericho had his return party spoiled by Bray Wyatt. Oh, you know who the biggest loser is actually? Jack Swagger. I mean, he let an entire nation down when he lost to Rusev at Summerslam. Can you imagine the weight on the shoulders—”

Seth stopped mid sentence as he saw someone standing on the other side of Renee.

“Look who has his big boy pants on now.” Jack Swagger said as he stared down Rollins. “Talking pretty tough without big daddy Kane around here.”

“You know, you’re talking pretty tough yourself without Grandpa Zeb Colter by your side. And you know—you know, Jack? If you’d been paying attention, I beat Dean Ambrose at Summerslam. Okay? It was my foot on the back of his head that put his face into those cinderblocks on RAW. And you would know that if you weren’t too busy taking a map for your country.”

“I’m wide awake right now and I’m done talking.”

“You want to fight? I’ll fight ya, but not tonight. Yeah, I’ll see you Friday at Smackdown and after I’m done with you, you can go hang out with Dean Ambrose on the missing person’s list.”

“Coward.”

Tasha shook her head, smiling, Colby played a bad guy so well it was scary. As much as she hated the way their storylines were going right now, she couldn’t help but love the bad side of Seth Rollins, it was something she was strangely attracted to.

Thursday was a twelve hour day on set with her Teen Wolf co-stars, they were filming a large fight scene that day. Doing the romantic scenes with Tyler made her miss Colby, but Tyler made sure she was comfortable and laughing throughout them.

On Friday morning Tasha smiled as she walked out of the airport in Phoenix, Arizona and got into the rig, however she frowned when she found it empty. Looking up at Daryl as he climbed into the driver’s seat, she asked him, “Where is everybody?”

“Waiting for you.” He replied cryptically.

“Okay.” She said with a smile as she sat down in the passenger seat beside him.

Daryl gave her a wink as he drove them to the destination that Colby had asked him to. He could see the perplexing look on Tasha’s face as he pulled up to a stop at a local park.

Getting out of the rig Tasha was greeted by Colby, he took her hand and helped her down the stairs. He gave her a smile and kissed her lips, then lacing his fingers with hers he lead her across the grass. As they rounded the small building that housed the bathrooms, Tasha gasped as she saw the picnic that was set up under the gazebo.

“Momma!” Kailynn hollered running up and jumping into her mother’s arms.

“Hey baby.”

“Mommy come on.” She followed her daughter over to the tables where Joe, Jon and Renee were all sitting down.

Taking a seat on the bench in between her daughter and Colby, Tasha looked around at her friends. “What’s going on? What are we doing here?”

“Kailynn wanted to thank you for her summer, so we decided to have a picnic.” Colby explained.

Kailynn nodded, glancing up to her mom, “Yeah, mommy and we made this too.” She said pushing a book over to Tasha.

Tasha smiled at her daughter as she opened the book, she laughed as she flipped through the pages. In it were all of the pictures that Tasha had taken of her daughter that summer, and a lot more that she had no idea who had taken them. There were pictures of all of them together, of Kailynn with the divas and superstars. Nearly every day of the summer had been captured.

The best picture was on the very last page, it was from years ago when Siren had been Women’s Champion. She was standing in the ring with the title held high above her head. Under the picture Kailynn had wrote in tiny scribbles, “My mommy, the champion.”

“This is amazing.” Tasha said, wiping the small tears that had escaped her eyes.

“Mommy can I go swing?” Kailynn asked after they had eaten lunch.

“Of course, baby, go ahead.”

Tasha sat on one of the picnic tables watching her daughter swing with Renee. She felt Colby sit down beside her and wrap his arm around her waist.

“She wanted you to know that despite what you think, she’s had the best time this summer. Not just with you, but with all of us. She is so proud of you, baby. No matter what you will always be her hero. She loves being able to spend time with not only you, but all of us on the roster. She’s very smart for a four year old.”

“Yes she is.” Tasha chuckled looking over to see Kailynn waving to her. She waved back, then turned and placed a sweet kiss onto Colby’s lips. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I’d do anything for you and her. Anything.” He admitted without an ounce of uncertainty.

After a fun day with them all running around the park playing, the group headed to the arena to get ready for Smackdown.

Siren changed into her ring gear for the night, thanking God once again that creative and the bosses had allowed her to choose her own clothes. Skintight black jeans, her motorcycle boots and a black lace bra. She laid out Roman’s shirt on the bench so that she was ready for his match later.

“You are not walking out there like that, I will get fired.”

She turned with a smirk to the bathroom where Seth had just walked out dressed in his ring gear. Laughing she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. “No worries baby, you’re the only one that gets to see me like this.”

He kissed her back, “Better be.”

She let him go and picked up his case, handing it to him. “Be careful.”

“Always.” He kissed her once more before he headed out of the locker room for the ring.

Randy Orton was standing in the corner posing for the fans when his music was cut off by another’s theme coming on. Seth Rollins walked out onto the stage carrying his briefcase, smirking as he saw the irritated look on Orton’s face at being interrupted. However as Randy walked up the ramp the two shook hands before Seth walked down to the ring.

Seth handed his briefcase to the tech and took off his shirt, looking around he had to smile at a young girl who was holding a sign behind him. It said ‘Seth has Rollin into my heart’, he smirked at her giving her a wink. Oh, how upset people would be when they found out about him and Siren.

Swagger had given Rollins a run for his money for most of the match, but a well placed curb-stomp by Rollins had given him the victory via count-out.

After Seth had come back to the locker room to watch Kailynn play, Siren pulled on Roman’s shirt and headed out to meet him at the promo area.

She smiled at Renee as she walked up, “Hey, pretty lady. How’s the grump?”

“Grouchy.” Renee laughed. “He hates being put on the shelf, even if it’s for a good reason.”

“Yeah I know, but once he finishes the movie and sees it play on the big screen, he’ll be fine.” Siren said with a smile as Roman walked up.

“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome my guests at this time, Siren and Roman Reigns.” Renee said as the two of them walked into frame, Siren standing between Roman and the interviewer. “Roman, tonight you’re scheduled to face the Miz. However, we all just saw what Randy Orton did to RVD. And he says he’s coming after you tonight.”

She held the mic up for Roman who smirked, “Randy Orton’s coming after me? I wish he would. And don’t get me wrong, I know exactly what Randy and The Authority are capable of and now that I’ve seen what Seth Rollins and Kane did to our boy, Dean Ambrose, I promise you this, we’re gonna have our revenge. And I saw what Randy did to RVD, so The Authority thinks they have everything under control now, but Randy also promised me before Summerslam that he was gonna methodically decimate me. So I guess he was methodically decimating me all the way up until that point that I speared his ass. And I beat him. So if the Legend Killer wants me to finish what we started at Summerslam, that’s fine by me, because someone needs to kill the legend of Randy Orton and that someone is me. Believe that.”

“We’re gonna make Seth, crazy.” Siren said walking up to the corridor with Roman to get ready for his match.

“Hey, The Authority started this, Seth just has to hang on for the ride until they get tired of screwing with us.”

“Yeah, that may be a long time from now.” Siren chuckled.

Siren lead Roman down the stairs through the crowd, jumping over the barricade she paused by the steps as Roman climbed over behind her. He gestured her into the ring first, following her up and climbing the turnbuckle to pose for the fans.

As Miz came down Siren knocked fists with Roman before climbing out of the ring and leaning on the apron. She and Roman chuckled as they replayed the footage of Roman knocking Miz out last week on RAW.

As Miz rubbed his jaw in reminder, Roman stood in the corner by Siren with his elbows up on the ropes, he pointed to Miz and gave him a little finger wave. Only Siren could hear Roman ask him, “How’s your jaw? You alright?”

As the bell rang to start the match Siren heard the crowd boo loudly, she looked to the ramp where Randy was slowly walking towards the ring. In the ring Miz tried to take advantage of Roman’s distraction, but Roman caught him and shoved him to the canvas.

Roman kept one eye on Randy as he slunk around the ring, Roman picked Miz up and hit him with a Samoan drop. As Roman stood up Randy slunk under the bottom rope, but stopped partway when he saw Roman turn towards him. Miz tried to again take advantage of Roman’s distraction, but Roman hit him with a spear and the cover, for the win.

Roman stood in the ring beckoning Randy inside, which the Viper obliged as the two took the fight to one another. Randy knocked Roman out of the ring with a clothesline over the top rope. He then grabbed Roman and attempted to slam his face off of the steel steps, but Roman countered and bounced Randy’s head off of them instead.

Siren stood by just watching as the two beat the hell out of one another ringside, she knew she had promised Roman that she wouldn’t interfere. But after Randy hit Roman with a steel chair, her self preservation instinct went out the window. Just as Randy had set up the steel chair in the ring, Siren climbed in and grabbed it, folding it back up.

As Roman delivered a punch to Orton’s face giving him some breathing room, Siren handed the chair to her brother, nodding to Orton. Roman took the chair and slammed it into Randy’s stomach, then brought the chair down on his back. Roman then hit Randy with a superman punch knocking him to the canvas, Randy wisely rolled out of the ring to save himself.

Siren climbed up into the ring and stood tall beside Roman as Smackdown went off the air.

After changing into a regular shirt, Tasha gathered her things and walked out to the rig with her daughter. Since they had no house shows, nothing to do until RAW, Colby, Joe, Jon and Renee flew out to Georgia with Tasha and Kailynn to watch her film The Walking Dead.

It was cool for them all to stand behind the cameras and watch the episode being made before them. Colby rolled his eyes as Joe and Jon ribbed him about Tasha’s on-camera kiss from Norman Reedus. But Norman was cool as he apologized to Colby, assuring him that while he loved Tasha a lot, it was strictly a friendship type of love.

The group smiled as Kailynn chased Norman around the set, growling like a zombie as he ran away yelling for someone to save him. Tasha ran up and grabbed her daughter, swinging her around, Kailynn’s laughter causing them all to smile.

The weekend was over too quickly for all of them as they met Tasha’s mom at the airport so she could fly Kailynn back home. While Tasha and Kailynn were saying goodbye, Teresa pulled Colby off to the side to talk.

“I’m very glad you two worked things out, she wasn’t herself without you around.”

“I wasn’t myself either.” Colby admitted.

“How is she doing, really?” Her mother asked, she was worried about her daughter.

“She’s good. She’s been worried about Kailynn resenting her for not being around enough.”

“As her mother, I would tell her if I thought what she was doing with her life wasn’t fair to her daughter. But that little girl adores her mother and loves what she does for a living. And what she’s doing now, will benefit Kailynn for the rest of her life. She’s showing her daughter that if you work hard enough, your dreams will come true. Nothing is out of your reach if you want it bad enough. Thank you, Colby.”

“For what?”

“For loving her. She deserves a good man, and you are a good man.” Teresa said before giving him a hug which he happily returned.

Tasha was trying not to cry as she kissed and hugged her daughter goodbye. “Mommy, loves you more than all the stars in the sky. You know that right?”

“Yes momma. I love you bunches too.” Kailynn said smiling up at her. “I can’t wait to tell all my friends at school who my mommy is.”

Tasha smiled, “Okay sweetie. Mommy will call you tomorrow after school, alright?”

“Okay momma. I love you.”

“I love you too.” She said hugging her daughter once more.

Kailynn made her rounds saying goodbye to the whole group leaving Colby for last. She hugged him tight and kissed his lips, “By Cole. I love you.”

Colby was taken aback, but he smiled bright. “I love you too, munchkin.”

Tasha stood there holding Colby’s hand as they waved to monkey until she was on the plane. As they walked to their own terminal to fly out Colby squeezed her hand. “You okay, baby?”

“Yeah, I’m okay. Just can’t wait until it’s summer again.” She said chuckling.

“She’ll be back before you know it.” Colby said kissing the side of her head as they boarded their plane.

Chapter 27: Real Friends

Chapter Text

They touched down in Anaheim, California the next day for Monday Night RAW. Tasha smiled as she walked down the hallways of the arena after dropping off her bag in the locker room, seeing someone in front of her she broke into a run and jumped onto his back.

“Whoa!” John laughed as he was nearly knocked over, looking down he saw the SOA tattoo on the right arm and knew exactly who it was. He waited until she let him go before turning around and hugging her. “Hey, T.”

“How you doing, J?”

“I’m better, much better. How are you?” He asked concerned.

“I’m okay. Colby took good care of me.”

“Good. Remind me to thank him later.” John said kissing her forehead.

Their attention turned to the monitor where three Hall of Famers were having a panel about the match that Triple H made last week on Main Event. It would be John Cena in a rematch for the titles at Night of Champions, against Brock Lesnar. Shawn Michaels, Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair sat at the table in the ring, while Michael Cole asked them about the match. It seemed as though Hulk was the only one that believed that John had a shot to beat Brock Lesnar.

Both John and Siren had heard enough as Shawn and Ric said that John had gotten Siren hurt, it was his fault that she had been subjected to Lesnar’s wrath.

“Hit his music now!” She snapped to the tech as she and John headed for the curtain.

John and Siren saluted the crowd before they walked together down to the ring, the crowd cheering the two of them. John grabbed two mics and handed one to Siren, neither of them looking very happy as they stood before the Hall of Famers. Shawn ducked his head as he saw Siren glaring a hole through him, he’d been the one that said John was to blame for her getting hurt.

“Look at me, Shawn.” Siren snapped into the mic, waiting for him to look at her before she continued. “Now you listen to me, everyone listen to me and listen closely. John, is not responsible for what happened to me at Summerslam. Nor is he responsible for what happened 11 years ago, that one is on Lesnar and Vince McMahon.”

Her eyes were focused directly on Shawn for that comment, only people who had seen Smackdown that night knew what she was talking about.

“I made my own decision to come to the ring at Summerslam with John. I knew what could possibly happen to me, and I was willing to take that chance. You know me, Shawn, all of you know me. I will never… let a friend go to battle alone. I have never bet against John, and I will not start now. At Night of Champions I will stand by his side, just as I did at Summerslam. At Night of Champions, John has unfinished business with Brock Lesnar… and so do I.”

Siren tossed her mic down onto the desk, she had said her peace, and now it was John’s turn.

“You can hear them just like I can. Everybody is weighing in on me after Summerslam. What’s going through his mind, what should he do? Paul Heyman, Brock Lesnar, The Authority, the vocal WWE Universe. And now a panel of Hall of Famers. Well, I want to say…”

John pauses as he listens to the loud chant from some of the fans saying, “Cena Sucks!”

“I want to say before I go any further, I have the utmost respect for all three of you, every person that sits at this table has influenced my life. Shawn, as a professional and as a friend, Naitch, we’ve had some professional times and we’ve had some recreational times, styling and profiling.”

John laughed and Siren did as well, she had been privy to several of those times.

“And point blank, if there was no hulk Hogan, there would be no John Cena. But I’m sick of all this talk about what I should do and where I should go. I’m out here tonight to tell you what’s going on with me. I saw—everybody saw Summerslam, I was there, I’m not gonna dance around it, 16 German Suplexes. Yeah. There was no sports cliché or excuse or win some, lose some mumbo-jumbo that’ll let me dance around this. Summerslam was an ass whooping. That was a 100% beat down.

But, Shawn, insightful as always, you said a fight like that changes a man. And you’re right, it does change a man. Because after being dropped on my head damn near 20 times, when I come to in the training room and the doctor asked me what do I want to do, my answer was simple, I wanna fight Brock Lesnar again. No, oh, oh, oh, I see how you’re looking at me . I see how you’re looking, “good for you, John, but you got killed in there. Why do you wanna take a beat down like that again?”

I stood in there and took a beat down that a lot of people wouldn’t stand in there and take. So why would I want to do that again, am I crazy? Shawn, I don’t plan on doing it again. I’m gonna bring the fight to Brock Lesnar at Night of Champions. And I know you have your doubts and, Naitch, I know you have your doubts. Hulkster, I thank you for all your support, but I want you to look at me when I’m talking to you. This rematch is the biggest rematch of my entire life, but I am not going to Night of Champions to beat Brock Lesnar. I’m going to Night of Champions to beat Brock Lesnar’s ass.”

The two of them walked backstage and John placed a hand on Siren’s arm stopping her. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“I have to do this, John. I can’t be afraid of him any longer.”

John nodded, he knew what she meant, “You got my back, I got yours.” He smiled before kissing her forehead and heading back to his locker room.

Siren stood backstage watching the interaction between AJ and Paige that had the crowd in hysterics, as AJ kissed Paige’s hand. When they walked backstage Siren shook her head laughing at her two friends. “You two are completely off your meds.”

“And you’re right there with us, love.” Paige retorted kissing her cheek before she and AJ skipped down away the hall together.

“Hey, baby.” Siren turned around to find Seth behind her smirking. “Ready for my speech?”

“Oh yeah. Are you ready for my reply to it?” She asked cryptically.

Seth was slightly unnerved at the grin that graced her lips, “Just don’t put me in the hospital.”

“Of course not, my heart. I’ll take good care of you.” She winked before his music started up and he walked away chuckling to himself. Yeah, sometimes she was ten pounds of crazy in a six pound bag, but he loved her that way.

Kane made his way out to the ring to accompany Seth Rollins for Dean Ambrose’s eulogy. There was a podium and a table with flowers in the ring, as well as a large picture of Dean.

“We are gathered here this evening to honor the memory of the unstable, Lunatic Fringe, Dean Ambrose. But tonight is not a mourning of the departed, it’s a celebration of the future, the future of WWE, Mr. Money In the Bank, Seth Rollins.”

Seth’s music came on and he walked down to the ring in his all black suit attire. His face almost looked upset that he was doing this as he climbed into the ring.

“I was the leader of the most dominant group in the history of WWE, The Shield. And there is a reason why I handpicked Dean Ambrose to be a member of The Shield. Pain was never a factor for Dean, fear was never a factor for Dean Ambrose. Dean Ambrose was a courageous fighter, but last week, I had to prove at his expense once again that The Authority always wins. And now, with a heavy heart, I would like to take a look back in the match that you—that you the WWE Universe, chose as a demise for Dean Ambrose.”

Up on the screen they showed the final moments of the match between Seth and Dean last week, along with Seth handcuffing Siren to the ring rope. One might have thought that Seth felt a little bad for doing that to Dean, but once the video was over Seth started laughing.

“Can you imagine—can you imagine the moment of impact when I crushed Dean Ambrose’s skull, when I pulverized his head into those cinder blocks? Or what was going through Siren’s mind, when I handcuffed her to that rope? I wonder what was going through their minds. Do you think that it even dawned on Dean Ambrose that he was in way over his head, do you think that it even dawned on him that he had been outmatched, not only physically, but mentally as well? You know, it’s no secret that those cinder blocks weren’t out there by accident. But you know what else? That headache that Dean Ambrose is gonna have for the rest of his life, that’s no accident either. And it saddens me that the casualty that is become of Dean Ambrose’s career can now be summed up in two simple words.

What if? What if Dean Ambrose had known his place? What if Dean Ambrose had recognized my superiority? What if Dean Ambrose had simply walked away when he had the opportunity? The real tragedy in all of this is that we will never really know the answers to those what if’s, because as far as I’m concerned, it is highly likely that you will never see Dean Ambrose again. I am the one who created The Shield and I am the one who has destroyed it.”

At that moment Seth jumps when a familiar theme bursts through the speakers of the arena. He looks up to the ramp as Siren steps out onto the stage, she’s wearing one of the new shirts she had designed for Dean. A white tank top, shredded across the top of her chest and down her back, the bottom stops an inch below her chest, and it says “Unstable” diagonally across the front.

She looks around smiling as the WWE Universe chants her name, before she raises the mic. “Oh my Goddess, for the love of everyone here, would you please… shut, the hell, up!”

She smirks as the Universe says the last part along with her, turning to the camera she smiles, speaking directly into it. “That was for you Jericho, come back soon.” She blows the camera a kiss before she turns her attention back to Seth.

“I am so sick of hearing you talk about how you created The Shield, how you controlled Dean and Roman, and how you single handedly brought The Shield down. Let’s all face the facts, Seth, you can’t do anything on your own. Every step of the way, you have had someone pulling your strings. You know, I liked you when you were with The Shield, you were the main reason why I agreed to join it. You were a smooth talker, killer on the mic. You always had a plan, you were always thinking. You went your own way, never let anyone tell you what to do. Seth Rollins did what ever he wanted, to hell with anyone else.

Now… you don’t do anything without being told to. You don’t speak your own words, you don’t think your own thoughts, and you don’t do whatever you want. You used to be Seth Rollins, The Architect of The Shield. And now… you’re just Seth Rollins… The Authority’s puppet.”

Siren stood directly in the center of the ramp, Seth still in the ring staring her down as the WWE Universe showed their support for her and her words.

“Just because you took out Dean, doesn’t mean your problems are over. I’m still here, Seth. I promised you that I would be the reason you fell from the mountaintop, if it was the last thing I do. I keep my promises, Seth. Dean, will be back. And when he is he’ll pick up right where he left off… beating the hell out of you. But… until he returns someone has to take his place. So…”

Siren turned and walked backstage for a moment, when she reappeared she held her kendo stick in hand. “…this is for what you did to our brother. Oh, but don’t worry Babyboy, I’m not coming alone.”

Seth’s panic increases as Roman’s music then booms through the arena, he turns to the crowd to see Roman descending the staircase towards the ring. Out of the corner of his left eye he sees Siren drop the mic and start walking towards the ring, twirling the kendo stick in her hand with enjoyment.

Seth and Kane stand in the ring, both of them removing their jackets and ties. Roman jumps over the barricade and immediately strikes Kane in the face, the two brawl beside the ring, until Roman slams Kane into the steel steps taking him out of the equation for the moment.

Seth stands in the ring looking between Roman, who stands before him, and Siren, who stands at the bottom of the ramp. Taking the lesser of two evils he lunges for Roman as the big dog climbs into the ring. Roman destroys everything in the ring as they brawl with one another, including the podium which he nails Seth in the face with.

Siren meanwhile stands over Kane, blowing him a kiss before she slams the kendo stick down onto his body multiple times. Once he’s down, she slides into the ring where Roman had just hit Seth with a clothesline. As he stands up she slams the kendo stick into his stomach, knocking him back into the corner. She nods to Roman who bellows out preparing for his spear.

But once again Kane saves Seth’s ass, by dragging him out of the ring to safety. Siren stands on the second rope, she sees Seth glare at her and she gives him an “I told you so” look, can’t even fight his own battles. She holds up her kendo stick as Roman raises his hand, his theme booming throughout the ring.

Walking backstage Siren nodded to Roman before she headed to Seth’s locker room to check on him. Knocking lightly she opened the door and peeked in, “Seth? Can I come in?”

He looked up from the bench where he was sat, “Of course you can. This is your locker room too.”

She came inside and shut the door, “I know. I just wasn’t sure if you wanted to see me right now.”

Seth sighed, a smile coming over his face as he held out his hand to her. She placed her hand in his and he tugged her down to sit beside him. “I never don’t want to see you, Tash. You said it before, we all have to separate real life, from our characters. So, while Seth Rollins, might be smarting from a kendo stick, Colby Lopez wants his girlfriend in his arms.”

Siren smiled wide, leaning over she kissed Seth deeply as he wrapped her up into his arms. As much as he didn’t want to, Seth pulled back from Siren. “Hold that thought, baby, I gotta go do my promo with Kane. I’ll be right back.”

“Okay, I’ll be here.”

When RAW came back from commercial the titan-tron showed Seth and Kane in the office, Seth pacing back and forth across the floor, fuming at the attack by Siren and Roman Reigns.

“We got to do something about Siren and Roman Reigns. What are we gonna do?” He says to himself thinking hard as he slams his hands together. “They keep sticking their noses into our business where it doesn’t belong. And they’re too stupid—they’re too stupid to understand that what we did to Dean Ambrose is exactly what’s gonna happen to them.”

“And there’s the answer.” Kane says with a laugh as he pokes Seth’s shoulder. “Tonight, Roman Reigns will compete in a match against Seth Rollins and me.”

Seth cackles, “Oh, handicap match. Handicap match. How poetic?”

“And just like Dean Ambrose, our business with Roman Reigns ends tonight.”

“What about Siren?” Seth asks, knowing that she is a deciding factor in any situation.

“Siren? Well, if she gets in the way, we’ll just have to take her out, too.”

Siren sat in the back waiting for Seth, she was watching the monitor which was showing Nikki and Brie out in the ring. When she heard the awful things that Nikki was saying to Brie her heart broke, she couldn’t believe that creative was doing this to not just divas, but sisters. They were family and what creative was making Nikki say, were enough to break anyone’s hearts. The longer Nikki spoke, the more Siren wondered if creative was making her say those things, or if she really meant them.

When she caught sight of Brie’s face, the real tears streaming down her cheeks, Siren had enough. Opening the locker room door she pushed past Seth who was about to open the door and ran towards the ring. She knew she was signing her death warrant interfering in a segment she had no business in, but real friends were hard to come by and keep in their business. Brie was her friend, one of her closest and she’d be damned if she let her go through this alone.

The crowd was shocked as they watched Nikki knock her sister out of her chair and start to beat down on her. But they were even more perplexed as they saw Siren running down the ramp to the ring. She slid inside grabbing Nikki by her hair and pulling her off of Brie. Pulling her to her feet she slugged Nikki in the mouth with a right cross, knocking her back into the referees standing behind her.

“Get that bitch out of here before I end her career.” Siren snapped as the refs did as she said, dragging Nikki out of the ring and up the ramp.

Siren kneeled down beside Brie, the twin looked up to see her and immediately broke down into tears. She wrapped her arms around Siren’s waist as she sobbed into her shoulder. Siren held her close, running her hand over her hair trying to sooth her. Her eyes locked with Nikki’s as she was drug up the ramp, the pure hatred in Siren’s eyes making Nikki rethink what she had done.

“Come on honey, let’s get you out of here.” Siren said as she helped Brie to her feet and then out of the ring. She wrapped her arm around Brie’s waist and lead her backstage.

Instead of taking her to the divas locker room, Siren took Brie to Seth’s locker room. Sitting her down on the couch she handed the woman a box of tissues. Sitting down beside Brie, Siren took her hand in hers. “I’m so sorry, Brie. I’m so sorry, they’re making you go through this.”

She saw Seth over her shoulder motioning to the door, they had a match to get to. She nodded before turning back to Brie, “Seth and I have a match up next, but you can stay in here as long as you want, okay? If you’d like to travel with us to the next show, you’re more than welcome to. And while I’m thinking about it, you should come with me to LA while I film SOA. You can chill on set, meet the guys. I think it’d be good to for you to get away for awhile.”

Brie looked up at Siren, she nodded as she tried to stop crying. “Thank you so much. I’d love to. I know you’ll probably get in trouble for coming out there, but thank you for doing it.”

Siren shook her head, “I don’t care what they do to me. You’re one of my closest friends, Brie, you and Bryan. If I get fired helping my friends, so be it, it’s all worth it.” She smiled as a tiny smile crossed Brie’s lips, pulling her in for a hug, Siren kissed the top of her head before she quickly changed her shirt and left the room to meet up with Roman.

“You’re amazing, baby.” Seth told her, giving her a kiss before he disappeared behind the curtain.

Siren walked up to the corridor where Roman was waiting for her, he gave her a knowing smile as she stopped beside him. “That was a good thing you just did, helping Brie.”

“I can’t stop them from trying to destroy our lives on-camera, but I can damn well show them that I won’t stand for it.”

Roman and Siren entered the arena first, Siren carrying her kendo stick on her shoulder as they walked down the stairs. Once Roman was in the ring, Siren knocked fists with him as she stood in front of the announcer’s table, kendo stick at the ready.

For most of the match the numbers game was wreaking havoc on Roman, but he got an opening when he sent Seth over the ropes, the Architect landing on the floor at Siren’s feet. While Roman had Kane taken care of on the other side of the ring, Siren kept an eye on Rollins. He managed to get to his feet, but when he tried to get past her to help Kane, he got a shot with the kendo stick to his stomach, then another to his back and arm.

He knew he wouldn’t get past her without taking the stick out of the equation first. So, he did the only thing he could do while she was wailing on him, he kicked out his right leg and caught her on the left knee. She immediately dropped the stick, collapsing to the floor and clutching her injured appendage.

But as he tried to surprise Roman, he was caught in Roman’s grip and flung back first into the barricade and then the ring apron.

Roman then climbed into the ring and hit Kane with the spear, but as he went for the cover, Seth ran in and slammed his briefcase onto Roman’s head. The ref called for the bell, giving the win to Roman via disqualification. But Seth wasn’t done there, he started hammering away at Roman, tossing the big dog out of the ring. Kane and Seth rolled out of the ring and tossed Roman into the barricade, before Kane nailed him in the face with a boot.

Siren looked over to find Kane removing the table beside the barricade, underneath it was another stack of cinder blocks. She knew what they were planning to do, she tried crawling her way over to Roman, all the while screaming at Seth.

“Seth! Don’t do this! Not again, please! Seth, please!” Seth looked over to her, his eyes sad as he seemed to be contemplating her words. “I’m begging you, Seth.” She said softly.

But her words fell on deaf ears as Kane picked Roman up and positioned his head over the blocks. Seth climbed up on the announcer’s table, but before he could end Roman, the big dog fought back sending Kane into the timekeeper’s area. He then hit Seth with a superman punch before focusing his attention on the demon once again. After slamming Kane’s head off of the ring post, Roman hefted him up and threw him back into the timekeeper’s area once more.

Siren had drug herself up onto the steel steps in time to see Roman pick up one of the cinder blocks in his hand. She saw the realization of what Roman was going to do settle on Seth’s face and she smiled, it was about time he got a taste of his own medicine. Roman threw the cinder block at Rollins’ head, but the two-toned man managed to duck out of the way avoiding the attack. As the cinder block shattered against the ring post, Seth scurried past Roman to the safety of the ramp. Roman then nailed Kane with a superman punch for good measure.

As Roman climbed into the ring, Siren looked up to the top of the ramp where Seth stood. The look on his face was one of pure fear, he realized the gravity of the situation he had put himself in. Roman could have ended his career that night, if that cinder block had met its mark.

Returning backstage to the locker room Tasha smiled as she saw Colby sitting on the couch chatting with Brianna. She was crying again, but this time it wasn’t from pain, Colby was telling her a story that was making her laugh so hard she was crying tears of laughter.

“Hey, baby, you okay?” Colby asked as he saw her step into the room.

“Of course.” She said assuring him that he hadn’t hurt her. She changed into a black V-neck t-shirt and grabbed her bag. “I picked up your bag from the Divas locker room, Brie.”

“Thank you, Tasha. And thanks for letting me travel with you guys. I really appreciate it.” Brianna said giving Colby and Tasha a grateful, genuine smile.

“I told you, you’re one of my closest friends. You are more than welcome to travel with us whenever you like.” Tasha said hugging the woman as she stood up by the couch.

“Shall we ladies?” Colby said with a smirk as he picked up their bags.

“Oh, such a gentleman.” Brianna giggled as she and Tasha headed for the door.

“He has his moments.” Tasha said throwing Colby a wink that made him laugh.

As they rode to LA Tasha called Monkey as she had promised. Her mom answered the phone on the second ring. “Hey, Brat.”

Tasha smiled, Brat had been her nickname since she was a kid. “Hi, momma. How did her first day at school go?”

“It went good. There were a couple kids being mean to her, but once she told them who her mom was they stopped immediately. She’s the most popular kid in her class now.” Teresa chuckled.

“Well, that’s good. Can I talk to her?”

“Sure. Kailynn, mommy’s on the phone.”

Tasha smiled as she heard her daughter yell, then her little voice came over the phone. “Hi, mommy!”

“Hi, baby. How was school?”

“It was fun. Some kids were being mean to me, and I told them if they didn’t stop that my mommy would come stop them.”

“Well, I’m glad they stopped being mean. If it happens again, I want you to go tell the teacher, okay? So, then they can call mommy and let her know.”

“Okay, momma. Is Cole with you?”

“Yes he is and Brie too. Do you wanna say hi to them?”

“Yes, please.”

Tasha took the phone from her ear and put it on speakerphone. “Okay, monkey, say hi.”

“Hi, Cole. Hi, Brie.”

“Hi, munchkin. We miss you.” Colby said.

“Hi sweetie. Auntie Brie misses you too.”

“I miss you too. When can you come visit me?”

“We’ll try really hard to come visit soon, honey. Mommy promises.” Tasha said. She was missing her daughter so much and it had only been a day.

“Okay, momma. Grandma says it’s time for me to go to bed.”

“Yep, it is. Mommy will call you tomorrow night, okay?”

“Okay mommy, I love you.”

“I love you too, monkey.” Tasha said as she held out the phone so the other two could say bye as well.

“Bye munchkin.”

“Bye Cole. I love you.”

“I love you too, munchkin.”

“Bye Auntie Brie.”

“Bye, sweetie.”

Tasha sat for a few more minutes talking to her mom before she hung up the phone and sat back on the couch. “Well, it’s good to know that she’s liking school. Hopefully it stays that way.”

Chapter 28: Home Sweet Home

Chapter Text

The next morning Tasha took Brianna down to set with her, Colby had a match that night on Main Event with RVD, so he said he’d join them on Wednesday when he got back.

Brianna was having a great time on set with Tasha, it was so cool to be there to see how the show came together. Not that they didn’t perform in front of cameras with WWE, but they had to get things right the first time, on set if they messed up, they could just start again. She was so impressed with not only Tasha’s acting skills, but her stunt skills as well. She learned that Tasha did 90% of her own stunts, like riding the motorcycle, firing the guns and fighting.

As they finished shooting Tasha told Brie that they were going to have dinner with the guys. Brie was so excited when she got to ride on the back of one of the motorcycles with Tasha’s best friend, David Labrava, who played the Tacoma Killer, Happy, on the show.

As they laid in bed inside the rig, Brie and Tasha laughed about how goofy the guys were when the cameras weren’t rolling. There could be an hour long gag reel episode, and it still wouldn’t catch all of the antics on set.

Wednesday morning Tasha was back on set, Brie was sitting by with Colby who had his hat, sunglasses and sweater on, trying not to be recognized by the fans that were hanging around. He managed to sneak a few pictures of Tasha and the guys performing, he had a great idea for a present to give her after the show ended. He managed to pull each of the Sons aside and let them in on the idea, they all eagerly agreed to help out.

Thursday the SOA crew had a large day as they were filming a very intense chase and fight scene. Colby was nervous as he watched Tasha do all of her stunts, he found himself praying that she wouldn’t get hurt. He was relieved when the day was over, he hadn’t known how much watching her get hurt, whether real or fake, upset him. He vowed then and there to never allow her to be hurt by his hand ever again.

Friday as they rolled into the arena for Smackdown Colby waited until Tasha and Brie had walked into the building before he made his way inside. As he stepped into his locker room he smiled as he saw Tasha and Brie going through their scripts and outfits for the night. He had agreed with Tasha that Brie would hang out with them until the issues with her sister were laid to rest.

Tasha quickly got dressed in Roman’s shirt as his match with Bray Wyatt was starting out the night. She kissed Colby before she headed up to the concourse to meet up with Joe.

Smackdown opened with the events of Monday Night playing on the big screen, before Roman and Siren made their way down through the crowd to the ring. They did their usual fist bump before Roman climbed the turnbuckle and posed for the fans.

As the lights went out and Bray Wyatt made his way to the ring accompanied by Harper and Rowan, Siren could feel her skin crawl. While Bray was a good guy off camera, funny and really sweet, along with Harper and Rowan, their characters gave her the creeps, which was the point.

As the match got underway Siren kept a close watch on Harper and Rowan who stood ringside opposite her. They in turn kept a close watch on her as well, raising goosebumps on her arms. Roman holds his own in the match, until he climbs out of the ring to deliver the “drive-by”. As he rounds the corner he dodges Harper who tries to take him out, and hits Bray with the “drive-by.”

He turns and blasts Harper with a right as he charges Roman, but then Rowan comes to Harper’s aide, slamming his forearm into Roman’s back. Siren not having a weapon with her does the only thing she can and jumps onto Harper’s back, locking in a choke hold. Harper struggles to get her off of him but her strong arms are locked around his neck, backing himself up to the ring post he slams Siren’s back into the pole several times before she releases his throat and crumples to the ground.

As he steps back over to assist Rowan in beating down Roman, backup arrives in the form of Big Show and Mark Henry, who proceed to tear Harper and Rowan apart. In the ring Roman slams a fist into Bray’s face and tosses him over the top rope, he then delivers a “superman punch” to Rowan who was tossed into the ring by Big Show.

Roman walks over to the corner where Siren has just rolled into the ring, he helps her to her feet as Big Show and Mark Henry climb inside. They nod to Roman before they both raise his hands. Siren lets out a yelp as Big Show picks her up onto his shoulder as the crowd cheers for the four superstars.

As Siren comes through the curtain she finds Seth standing in front of her, concern in his eyes. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. He barely nudged me into the post.” She assured him as she kissed his lips. “Have fun out there.”

“When do I not?” He quipped shooting her a wink before he walks out to the ring for his rematch against RVD.

Seth co*ckily walks down the ramp to the ring, fuming as they replay him losing on Tuesday to RVD. He’s got a small bandage over his right eye where his forehead had been busted open when RVD had tossed him into the timekeepers area.

The match was aggressive and fast-paced between the two men, both of them having a similar wrestling style. But as usual Seth’s in-ring skills propelled him to the win, sealing RVD’s fate with a curb stomp.

Backstage Siren sat in the locker room with Brie, they were watching the events that had unfolded on Monday between Nikki and Brie. Siren felt for Brie as she watched that, her eyes welling up with tears as she watched her sister scream, “I have no sister.”

“Hey.” Siren said lying her hand on Brie’s shoulder. “It’ll be okay. It’s just a stupid storyline, it’ll blow over soon.”

“I hope so. I haven’t spoken to her since Monday. We’ve never gone more than a day without speaking. I miss my sister.”

“Well, until you get her back, you have a surrogate sister right here.” Siren said slinging her arm around Brie’s shoulders with a smile.

Brie laughed, wrapping her arms around Siren and hugging her. “Thanks, T. That means a lot to me.”

Seth walked into the room at that moment, “Hey, hey, hey, hands off my woman.” He joked as he sat his briefcase down.

“Hey, you were in the ring, we do what we want.” Siren smirked as she kissed Brie’s cheek, laughing as Seth rolled his eyes and headed for the bathroom. It was fun to get the man’s mind rolling with ideas, even though nothing like he was thinking would ever happen.

“These guys are so much fun to mess with.” Brie said giggling.

“I know right. We don’t even have to do anything, just the thought of two women sends their minds reeling with possibilities.” Siren agreed joining in her laughter.

Soon it was time for Siren to head back up to the concourse with Roman, he had been put into a 6-man tag match with Big Show and Mark Henry.

Siren lead Roman down the stairs, smiling as the fans knocked fists with her, a lot of them pointing at her new shirt she had made just for this match. It was a shredded black, crop top, tank top with “Big Dogs Crew” written on the front in blue letters. She figured since she was out there with the three biggest guys, she might as well rep all of them.

As they hopped over the barricade and climbed into the ring, Big Show and Mark Henry smiled as they read the shirt. Nodding in agreement they knocked fists with Siren before the Wyatt Family made their way to the ring.

The match doesn’t even get started as all six men start to brawl in and out of the ring. The ref rings the bell as Big Show and Rowan square off in the ring. Siren stands by the steel steps near Roman, watching as her guys dominate the match from the beginning. Only a few times does she slam her hand on the mat willing one of them back to their feet.

Roman ends the match with a spear to Harper, giving the win to his team. Siren stands in the ring with them smiling, raising their arms in victory as the crowd goes wild.

Once they were off air, Tasha headed back to the locker room where Colby was waiting for her. As she gathered up her things to take a quick shower she looked around and noticed Brie was missing.

Colby caught her train of thought, “She headed to the airport just after you left, said she was going home to visit Bryan until Monday.”

“Oh, okay.” Tasha said with a smile as she headed for the shower. “I’ll be out in five, just rinsing off.”

Colby sat down on the couch and text his best friend from childhood Nick, letting him know that he and Tasha were catching a flight to Davenport in just under two hours. Colby hadn’t told Tasha where they were going just yet, he wanted to surprise her.

After she returned dressed comfortably in a pair of leggings and an NXT tank top, he took her hand and grabbed both of their bags, walking out to the rig. He had already let Daryl know of his plans, so while they flew to his home state, Daryl would take the rig to the next town. The former Seal didn’t mind in the least, he loved to drive, which is why he took this job in the first place. Having Tasha as his boss was simply a bonus, she was sweet and kind, she treated him with the utmost respect. She never talked down to him or made him feel like he was just a worker, she never made him feel like he was beneath her. It was refreshing to find a “celebrity” as some called her, that wasn’t full of herself and treated everyone around her as if they were on the same level as she was.

Tasha sat on the plane with Colby as they flew to what she thought was the next town. She was intrigued as she heard the pilot announce that they would be arriving in Iowa within ten minutes. She turned to Colby who had a smirk on his face, like he knew something that she didn’t.

“What are we doing here?”

“I wanted to surprise you. I figured it’d be nice to come home and relax for a few days. That and my family is dying to see you.” He said with a chuckle.

“I am surprised.” She said with a smile as she kissed him on the cheek.

After they had landed and retrieved their bags, Colby caught them a cab, directing him to the house. Tasha sighed as she climbed out of the cab and looked up at Colby’s house, it had been a long time since she had been there. Her and The Shield guys had a lot of fun at Colby’s house over the last two years.

As Colby opened the front door Tasha could hear small barks coming from the hallway, she dropped her bag and knelt down on the floor. “Kevin! Come here, baby.” She cooed as she held out her hands. A small Yorkie bounded down the hallway and jumped into her waiting arms, putting his paws on her chest and licking her face. “Oh, I missed you too.” Tasha laughed as she stood up and walked over to the couch, sitting down with the dog in her lap.

Colby took her bag to the bedroom along with his, returning he sat down on the couch beside Tasha, patting his lap. “Come here, boy.” But Kevin merely looked over at Colby as he laid down in Tasha’s lap. “Traitorous mutt.” Colby mumbled as he leaned back against the couch with a scowl, watching as his girlfriend pet his dog.

“Like dog, like owner.” Tasha said with a smirk as she winked at Colby.

He rolled his eyes, he had that one coming the moment he said it, sighing he looked over at Tasha. “Are you hungry, baby?”

“Yeah, a little bit.” She realized, not remembering the last time she had eaten that day.

“Okay, frozen pizza it is.” Colby nodded as he stood up and headed to the kitchen.

Tasha took off her shoes and relaxed on the couch, turning on the TV and flipping through the channels. She paused on a Supernatural episode and smiled, it was one of her favorite shows, she had met the actors at a few events and they were the nicest guys.

Colby joined her about twenty minutes later with two plates of pizza, he handed her one as he settled onto the couch beside her. The two spent the next hour laughing and eating their pizza, both of them giving tiny bites to the dog as he laid between them.

The next morning Tasha woke up curled in Colby’s arms, she smiled remembering when he told her that “I’m not the cuddling type,” could’ve fooled her. As she turned in his embrace to face him, he opened his eyes smiling as he saw her awake.

“Morning, beautiful.”

“Morning yourself, handsome.” She said lighting kissing his lips. “So, what’s on the agenda for today?”

“We’re meeting Nick at the gym to workout, and then heading to my parent’s house for a barbeque.”

“Sounds like a good day.”

The two of them got out of bed and dressed in their workout clothes, Colby grabbing the keys for his car while Tasha fed Kevin. When they got into the car Tasha immediately took over the stereo, changing the station he had it on.

“Hey! Driver picks the music, shotgun shuts her cakehole.” Colby said slapping at her hands playfully.

Tasha huffed, “Bitch.”

“Jerk.” He replied quickly, both of them laughing as they quoted Supernatural.

Tasha waited until he had pulled out of the driveway, before she reached over and switched the station again, sticking her tongue out when he glared at her.

As they drove to the gym Colby smiled as Tasha sang along with a song on the radio. While he didn’t listen to country music much by himself, he liked listening to it with her, he loved hearing her sing and she knew practically every song that came on.

When they pulled up to the gym Colby was really excited, he had been planning this along with Marek for awhile, he just hoped that Tasha agreed. He lead the way inside the gym, Nick standing there to greet them. The two men shared a bro-hug, before Nick hugged Tasha, she lightly kissing his cheek.

“It’s good to see you, T. Been awhile.”

“Too long, Nick.” Tasha admitted as she looked around the gym, which she noticed was empty, this struck her as odd. “So, where is everybody? I figured this being a gym, people would be here working out.”

“Well, that’s the thing.” Nick told her. “It’s not open yet. The uh, grand opening is Monday.”

“It’s a great place. I’m guessing you two know the owner, since we’re in here.”

“Yeah, actually there are two owners, and we were hoping to add a third.” Colby admitted as he took in her confused face.

“We?”

“Colby and I own this place. It’s a wrestling school.” Nick said proudly.

“Wow.” Tasha said with a proud smile. “You guys have been talking about this forever. I’m so happy for you guys. What are you calling it?”

“The Black and The Brave Wrestling Academy.” Colby answered.

Both guys smiled as the meaning behind the name dawned on her. “Tyler Black and Marek Brave. I really like it.”

“Good. Cause we were hoping that you’d be our third member.”

Tasha spun around looking at Colby with wide eyes, “Me? Why?”

“Because you’re part of the reason why we started this, you put us on the right track to make it happen.” Nick told her. “Besides, we’re gonna have females wanting to learn and who better to teach them than you?”

“I just gave you some advice, and a way to get started. I’ll happily help you train the girls, but this should be yours.”

“It is ours.” Colby told her. “But you are as much a part of this as we are.”

“Oh, guys, I’m flattered really, but this your dream, I can’t take credit for it.”

“This is our dream, and you are apart of it.” Colby told her, taking her hands into his. “I can’t do this without you. I don’t want to. This is a start to not only mine and Nick’s future, but yours and mine too. This isn’t just ours.” He said motioning between him and Nick. “This is all of ours.”

Tasha didn’t know what to say, she was overcome with happiness as the two men just smiled at her awaiting her answer. Their eyes were begging her to say yes, and she had to laugh, “How can I say no?”

The two men whooped in joy as they enveloped her in a hug, sandwiching her body between them.

After that the group worked out together, breaking in all of the new equipment that had been delivered. Two hours later they headed back to Colby’s to shower and change before heading over to his parent’s house for the barbeque.

As they walked in the front door, Colby’s mother Holly, ran up to them, but instead of hugging her son, she hugged Tasha instead. “Oh, sweetheart. It is so good to see you, I’ve missed you.”

Colby stood there with his hands up as his mother ignored him, fawning over Tasha instead. “Hi mom. I’m here too.” He said with a scoff.

Holly turned to her son waving him off, “Oh hush, I talk to you all the time. I haven’t seen Tasha in so long.”

“I’ve been replaced by my girlfriend.” He muttered with a smile, as his mother lead Tasha outside to the back patio where his other family members and friends were gathered.

After hanging up his jacket he walked outside to find his family chatting idly with Tasha, they were all laughing and enjoying themselves. He hugged his father Bob, his brother Brandon and his grandfather Don, before he took the empty seat in between Tasha and his dad.

“It’s good to see you son. How you been?” His father asked.

“Good.” Colby nodded, glancing over at Tasha who was laughing with his mother. “Really good now.”

Bob nodded, he knew from the beginning that Colby had a crush on her since the first time he laid eyes on her on TV. “I’m glad you two worked things out.”

“Me too.” Colby said.

“So, what about Joe and Jon? Everything alright with you guys?” Brandon questioned, he knew how close the three of them were before the betrayal.

“Yeah, we’re great. Uh, Tasha helped us through it, made us realize that what we do as performers, shouldn’t effect our personal lives.”

“Smart woman.” Bob said, glancing over at Tasha. His eyes didn’t miss the way that Colby was looking at Tasha and he smiled. “So, have you asked her out yet?”

Colby nodded with a smile, “I did actually a few weeks ago.”

“Good boy.” His dad nodded clapping him on the shoulder. “Don’t f*ck it up.” He laughed winking at his son.

“I don’t plan on it.” Colby laughed.

“So, Tasha.” The woman turned looking over at Bob. “How’s filming going?”

“Arg, very tiring.” She admitted with a sigh. “We film RAW on Monday, I fly out usually that night to California to shoot for SOA and Teen Wolf on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Then I fly to whatever town Smackdown is in Friday morning, film it, then hop back on a plane to Georgia to film Walking Dead on Saturday and Sunday. And that’s all providing that I don’t have to be at Tuesday’s Main Event or a pay-per-view on Sunday.”

“Dear honey, when do you find the time to sleep?” Holly asked, she was very concerned with her health.

“I get a few hours here and there. I’m used to only getting about 4 hours a night, since that was what I got when my daughter was born. Colby makes sure I’m not running myself ragged, he’ll put his foot down if things get too crazy.” Tasha said smiling over gratefully at Colby, who took her hand in his and kissed the back of it.

“Damn right I will.” He smirked.

“So, you two are together now? As a couple?” Holly asked, even though she was sure she already knew the answer.

“Yes, ma’am.” Colby answered looking lovingly at Tasha, something that made his mother smile wide.

“Good. You two are good together. I’m happy for you.” Holly said genuinely.

After a long day of activities with Colby’s family and a wonderful dinner, Colby and Tasha headed back to the house. As they were getting ready for bed Colby did something he had been thinking about for awhile.

“Hey baby, I wanted you to have this.” He said handing her a small golden object.

Tasha looked down to her open palm finding a key, she looked back up at Colby with a small smile. “Is this the key to your heart?”

Colby laughed, she could always make him smile, one of his favorite attributes that she possessed. “It’s a key to my house, but I guess that’s the same thing. I want you to be able to come here whenever you want, even if I’m not with you. This is our place now.”

She smiled bright, holding up a finger she walked over to her purse and took something out of the side pocket. Walking back over she placed a key in his hand as well. “Great minds think alike. My home is your home.”

He wrapped his arms around her waist, leaning down he placed a sweet kiss on her lips. “Thank you.”

“Thank you too.” She said smiling as the two headed to bed.

Sunday morning Colby and Tasha were roused from their sleep, by an incessant banging on the front door. Dragging themselves out of bed the two made their way to the front door, Colby swinging it open to find Jon mid-bang. The lunatic paused with his fist in the air, smiling wide, “Bout damn time.”

Colby glared at his best friend as he stood in the doorway, he wasn’t expecting them until later.

“So, you gonna let us in, bro?” Joe asked turning Colby’s attention to him.

“Yeah, come on in.” He said moving out of the way to let Jon, Renee and Joe into the house.

The trio kissed Tasha on the cheek before they tossed their bags down by the couch and sat down.

“So, what were you two doing? He-ing and she-ing?” Jon asked with a grin.

“No. It’s called sleep, Jon.” Tasha snarked as she sat down on Colby’s lap, he was sitting on the far corner of the couch.

“We haven’t gone down that road yet.” Colby admitted as he snuggled Tasha up against him.

“Seriously? You haven’t?” Renee asked.

“Nope, we haven’t.” Tasha said shaking her head. “It hasn’t been a big deal, we’ve just been enjoying being together.”

“But, it will happen one day.” Colby said winking at Tasha as he chuckled.

Colby and Tasha took them to the gym that afternoon to meet up with Nick, the three of them announcing the big news about starting the school. Everyone was very happy for Colby, Tasha and Nick, they felt it was a great idea.

Afterwards they went back over to Colby’s parent’s house for dinner, Holly was so enthused to see Jon and Joe again, and she was extremely happy to meet Renee.

The boys started a football game with Brandon and Nick, while Tasha and Renee tossed a Frisbee back and forth. The girls hooted and cheered as the men stripped off their shirts, the game getting more serious. Colby’s team consisting of him, Brandon and Nick, were battling it out against Joe and Jon, and they were loosing. Despite having one less man on their side, Joe and Jon had managed to overcome the handicap and were leading the game in points.

After a nice relaxing dinner, the group of superstars headed back to Colby’s house, bidding one another goodnight they all headed to bed.

Chapter 29: You Want A Battle? Here's A War

Chapter Text

Monday morning Daryl arrived with the rig, and once they had gathered up their gear bags, they loaded up and drove to the arena. RAW was being held in Des Moines, so it wasn’t a far trip from Colby’s house, which was nice for all of them. Colby and Tasha headed into the arena behind their friends for the normal meeting with the creative team and bosses. As usual Stephanie shot them a glare as they walked in with their fingers intertwined, the two merely smiling at her as they sat down with Jon and Joe.

The superstars had a small meet and greet after that, Tasha sitting at the far left side with Joe and Jon, while Colby was at the far right end away from them. The four of them played up their characters, shooting glares at each other and tossing insults every now and again.

After that they headed back to the locker rooms to get ready for that night’s show. On the way to the locker room Tasha caught sight of someone she hadn’t seen in awhile, grinning she ran down the hallway and jumped onto the man’s back with a yell.

The man laughed as he wrapped his arms around her legs, holding her on his back as he spun her around, her laughter echoing around the halls. The two were dizzy as he came to a stop and gently set Tasha down as they both tried not to fall on the floor.

“I missed you, fireball.” Chris Jericho said laughing as he hugged her. “Loved the shout out last week by the way.”

“I thought you would. So, you gonna cause some havoc tonight?”

“It’s what I do best.” He smirked.

“Alright, well I’ll see you later. Have fun out there.” Tasha said giving him one last hug.

“Always.”

Siren changed into her jeans and boots, setting out Roman’s shirt as Dean was still not scheduled to be on the show. Sitting down on the couch she watched Chris head out to the ring for his Highlight Reel. However as he started to introduce his guest Randy Orton, he was interrupted by Triple H’s music.

She grew concerned for Chris’ safety as Triple H walked out on stage, but he wasn’t alone. Flanking the boss were Randy Orton, Kane and Mr. Money In the Bank, Seth Rollins.

Siren couldn’t help but admire the way Seth’s black suit fit his body, black was definitely his color, he looked great in it. She laughed at the way Seth bit his lip to stop himself from smiling as the crowd started chanting his name. They were in his home state and obviously the crowd was on his side, but he couldn’t break character.

As the five men in the ring discuss who should face Brock Lesnar for the world title besides Cena, the man in question along with Siren by his side, made their way down to the ring.

Climbing in beside John, Siren sent a wink to Seth behind her long hair, one that was only seen by him. Both she and John grabbed a microphone as they stood in the ring beside Chris.

“What the hell are you talking about?” John snaps as he paces the ring in front of The Authority. “You know, just because your best friends, Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels don’t think I can beat Brock Lesnar doesn’t mean I can’t and doesn’t mean I won’t. Funny, because those same two guys thought that I could never beat you at Wrestlemania 22, yet you tapped out. And if you don’t remember that, you can go back and watch it for $9.99. This isn’t back in the day, Hunter. You’re not kibitzing with your buddies about who you like and who you don’t. You’re running the company, you’re the COO, which means I don’t care how many times you watch the footage.

I don’t care how many Hall of Famers you talk to. I invoked my rematch clause, you authorized it, which means if you even think about taking it away from me, I think I’m taking you to court. Yeah. I will sue you for every single penny that you have. And then I’ll be COO of the company and my first order of business would be looking you straight in the eye and say, “Triple H, you’re fired!”

So how about you save yourself a headache and your job. The rematch is happening. I meant what I said last week. At Night of Champions, I’m not just going to beat Brock Lesnar, I’m going to beat Brock Lesnar’s ass.”

Hunter smirks as he lifts his mic, staring down John and Siren. “Wow. All I can say is, wow. So, this is actually where you’re at with this. You’re gonna sue. John Cena, that’s a new shirt I think. Hustle, Loyalty, Respect, lawsuit. It’s got a nice ring to it, right? You’re so blind at an opportunity for redemption that you are threatening lawsuits? This is exactly what I am trying to protect against. See, John, you might not be able to understand it, maybe you’re small-minded like everybody else here, but I know what my damn job is. I know what being the COO means. And it means that no matter what, no matter what, I do what is best for business for the WWE every single day. And now, I might be the first to admit that I no longer think that John Cena is the WWE World Heavyweight Champion is what’s best for business anymore.”

“Oh, come off your bullsh*t, Hunter.” Siren said finally having enough, as she stepped up beside John. “You and I have known each other a long time, even more intimately than I care to admit.” She said with a grimace, her eyes flashing between him and Randy, only the two men having any idea what she meant. “You have never done anything for the good of this company. Your only concern, is what is best for Triple H, and now it’s about what’s best for your boy band you got standing behind you.”

She casually looked around Triple H at Randy, Kane and Seth. “Let me let you in on a secret boys, Triple H will help you out, he’ll do whatever he can to make sure you succeed… as long as it benefits him. Once you have outlived your usefulness… he’ll have you removed from the equation, just like every superstar that came before you. You can back me up on that, can’t you Randy?” She smirked as Randy looked away from her eyes, she knew he hadn’t forgotten his Evolution days.

“Now, what I’m about to say, is strictly from a manager’s point of view. None of you, have what it takes to beat the beast. I have witnessed everything that Lesnar is capable of, hell, I’ve been on the receiving end of it. None of you, not a demon, not a viper… not even an architect, can slay the beast.”

“You make a fair point, Siren.” Hunter said with a nod. “But, I also know that John Cena’s career ending at the hands of Brock Lesnar at Night of Champions, that’s not good for business at all.”

“Hey, Hunter.” Seth says stepping up beside the boss as the crowd cheers loudly for him. “I say—I say let him have the rematch. I mean, well, what’s the worst thing that could happen? And I mean, if an opportunity should present itself…” Seth cackles holding up the briefcase. “There’s always plan B.”

“You know what, H, Seth…” Randy says interjecting himself into the conversation. “Is right. Give John Cena his rematch. He’s earned it, as have I. Let me—let me have the winner. Give me the winner one-on-one for that championship. After all, what ever happened to my rematch, you know, way back from Wrestlemania.”

Chris who has been uncharacteristically quiet, leaning his elbow on Siren’s shoulder clears his throat. “Randy, let me just interject you. After all, this is still the Highlight Reel. Uh, since Wrestlemania, you’ve had like 4,000 title matches and succeeded a grand total of, never. As, a matter of fact, the last big match I saw you have, you got superman punched and speared by Roman Reigns!”

“Chris, you know as well as I do that Roman Reigns beating me at Summerslam means nothing. Roman Reigns means nothing. And if he were here right now, I would drop that piece of crap right where he stands.”

“Be careful what you wish for, Viper.” Siren said with a feral grin, one that had Randy on edge.

Randy shakes off his hesitation at Siren’s words and continues talking to Jericho. “Now, Chris, little advice for you, I would proceed with caution. You wanna make a joke of me? You will not like the punchline.”

About that time Roman’s music kicked on and the crowd went wild, Randy’s attention turned to Siren who was grinning wide. “I warned you.” Was all she said as Roman appeared at the top of the stairs.

As Roman climbed into the ring Siren handed him her mic with a smirk, standing beside him as he leaned on her shoulder. “Well, here I am, Randy. Drop me. Just like I thought, all talk.” His attention moves to Seth and Kane, a grin forming on his face. “And you two, you guys don’t seem happy to see me. Are you still mad from when my girl and I busted up your little eulogy for Dean Ambrose?”

His gaze moves straight to Seth, “No, you’re pretty pissed from when I almost crushed your skull with that cinder block last week, huh? And that’s me reminding you that we still have unfinished business, but it sounds like the business is all about the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. And if that’s the case, my name belongs in that mix.”

Triple H locks eyes with Siren, they seem to be having an intense silent discussion. He nods after a moment, raising his mic. “It sounds like everybody here in the ring feels like they’re the guy. They’re the guy that can take on the challenge of Brock-Cena at Night of Champions. And, Cena, you think you’ve proved your resolve. I don’t know that I’m believing it yet. Matter of fact, I don’t know that you’re believing it yet. I’m gonna give everybody in this ring an opportunity to prove themselves tonight. Let's see who stands tall. John Cena, Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns, take on Seth Rollins, Randy Orton and the demon Kane.

Let’s see who can earn their spot. Let’s see who can prove it. I’ll sit right down there and I’ll be watching.”

The men surrounding Siren drop their mics as The Authority climbs out of the ring. While they stand in the ring pandering to the fans, Siren sees Seth slip into the ring on her right, holding the briefcase in his hands. “Roman, on your left!”

Roman hears her yell and turns in time to catch Seth with a right uppercut, knocking the traitor to the canvas. As he rolls out of the ring holding his face, Roman picks up the briefcase, holding it in his hands as Seth screams at him to give it back. Nodding Roman hurls the case at Seth nailing him in the chest. As he backs up the ramp Roman gives him a finger wave, smiling as Seth cusses him out.

Once they all get backstage Siren can’t help but poke fun at the guys, “Awe poor, Sethy. How’s your jaw, baby?”

“You’re a bitch. I hate all of you.” He snapped holding his sore chin, but his grimace turned to a laugh as he saw Kane pick up Siren, hefting her over his shoulder.

“Let me down, you big oaf!” Siren laughed as Kane carried her around the backstage area. “Damn it, Glenn. Let me down!”

The guys chuckled, while their characters sometimes hatred Siren with a passion, none of them could hate Tasha. She was one of those amazingly good people that you needed in your life. She made everyday a good one, brought you up when you were down, and made the worst situations something you could laugh at. Kane finally put her down tossing her over his shoulder, luckily Siren was quick and landed safely on her feet. “You guys are so mean to me. Why you got to pick on me? I’m a fricking angel.”

“Oh no, honey.” Randy told her shaking his finger at her. “Angel died after Evolution. This is what was born.” He said motioning to her entire body. “A vindictive, sneaky, conniving, backstabbing bitch from hell.”

“Awe Randy.” Siren smiled placing a hand over her heart. “You say the nicest things to a lady.”

Hunter scoffed, “Lady, my ass!”

Siren’s jaw dropped in mock horror, “Well, that was just rude, Paul.” She took Seth’s hand in hers and started for their locker room, yelling back over her shoulder. “I’m taking my man and you can’t have him back!”

Back in the locker room Jon was sitting on a bench shaking his head, the two walked in and he laughed at them. “You guys are all crazy.”

“That’s why we’re all friends, bro.” Seth reminded him with a chuckle as he sat beside him on the couch. “When do you get to come back?”

“Not sure. Still got some promoting for the movie. But trust me, when I come back, you’ll know.” Jon grinned evilly, making Seth shake his head and roll his eyes.

After calling her daughter to check in, Siren sat down on the couch in between her two guys to watch the show until it was their time to leave. She knew it was going to be a f*cked up match as soon as both Stephanie and Triple H came down to watch the match ringside.

John Cena entered the ring first, followed by Jericho and then Roman and Siren made their way down through the crowd. The four of them stood in the ring as Seth Rollins, Kane and Randy Orton made their way down the ramp.

Roman and Randy squared off first, the Viper putting an early hurt on the big dog. But Roman gained the upper hand as he nailed Randy with an uppercut, then hit Kane with one as well, before he grabbed Seth and hurled him into the ring beating him down until he finally escaped.

As they came back from commercial Roman and Randy locked up once again, but this time it was Roman with the upper hand. Randy tagged in Rollins who proceeded to tear Roman apart outside the ring, before tossing him into the ring for the cover. Roman managed to kick out as Rollins tagged in Kane who immediately went on the hunt of Roman.

The crowd was deafening as they chanted for Cena to get in the ring. When Roman finally made the tag the roof damn near came off of the building, however he tagged in Jericho instead of Cena.

A complete melee broke out as all six men got into the ring and proceeded to tear one another apart, until only Jericho and Rollins were left in the ring.

Once again they came back from commercial with Orton and Jericho in the ring mixing it up, after Orton had picked Jericho apart outside the ring. The three Authority men tagged one another in, taking turns picking apart Jericho.

John finally got the tag and went wild, taking out Kane and Rollins at once, delivering a suplex to Seth, dropping him on the back of his neck. He stared at Hunter and Stephanie as he delivered an AA to Kane, before tagging in Roman who finished Kane off with a spear for the win.

After the match, Rollins wasn’t done apparently as he tried to attack John, but he received an AA onto the announcer’s table for his efforts.

Siren climbed into the ring with her guys, raising their hands with a large smile as both she and John stared straight at the bosses.

As soon as they got backstage Tasha ran straight over to Colby who was waiting for her. “Oh, my God, baby, are you okay? I saw you hit straight on your neck.”

“I’m okay, babe. I promise. A little sore, but I’ll be okay.” He said rubbing his hands up and down her arms trying to comfort her.

While the rest of the group drove to Nebraska for Smackdown, Tasha flew down to Georgia to film Walking Dead. After a grueling three days of filming in the hot, humid weather, Tasha got the best news from her director. Her character would not be in the next two episodes as they were focusing on other members of the group, so she had two weeks off. While it wouldn’t be time to relax as she still had SOA and Teen Wolf, it would be less hectic on her schedule and body.

Tasha was more than happy when she arrived in Nebraska on Friday afternoon, Daryl meeting her at the airport. She already knew that Colby had a meeting with the bosses, so he wouldn’t be picking her up. She couldn’t wait to get to the arena to see her man, three days without him was nearly too much, but they both knew that time apart, would benefit them in the long run.

When she entered the locker room she was immediately swept off her feet, literally, by Colby. He swung her around in his arms, before setting her down and kissing her long and deep.

“I missed you.” He admitted as he leaned his forehead against hers.

“I missed you too, my heart. But if that’s the welcome I get when I come back, I’m leaving more often.” She laughed.

Colby shook his head, tightening his arms around her waist. “The hell you are.”

Smackdown kicked off at the University of Nebraska with John Cena and Siren making their way to the ring. Standing in the ring the two of them smile as the crowd goes crazy for their red shirts, the color of Nebraska’s University.

“I guess we’re wearing the right color tonight, aren’t we?” John says looking over to Siren as the crowd cheers, chanting “Go Big Red”.

“For the rest of the world watching, we are at the University of Nebraska tonight, that’s why everybody’s going nuts. And also for those watching, in three weeks, at Night of Champions, I will face Brock Lesnar for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. No more talk about if I’ve changed or if it’s best for business, in less than three weeks, I will face Brock Lesnar at Night of Champions for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The match is made, so enough, stop. Stop talking about if it’s right or if it’s wrong, if I’m ready or if I’m not, if I can, if I can’t, if I should, if I shouldn’t. Stop. I’ve been here for 12 years. I’ve had thousands of matches, yet after Summerslam, all the superstars including The Authority, Triple H himself, they’re looking at me like I’m at the end of my road.

They’re looking at me like I’m some fragile old man who should just be brought down here to do the Queen’s wave because it’s best for business. My name is John Cena. I’m a WWE superstar and I fight. I fight because I wanna be the champion and I wanna be the champion because it is the symbol of excellence and when the day comes, I step my two feet in this ring and I don’t wanna be champion, I turn around, I walk out and I never come back.

You see, you understand—you understand, but everyone in the WWE after this one match at Summerslam, they don’t get it. They do not get it and it was after one match. Oh, and by the way, one match with the most destructive force that has ever set foot in the WWE and that’s Brock Lesnar. Since 2012 when Brock came back, he has destroyed everything in his path. Brock Lesnar is for real, Brock Lesnar is everything that Paul Heyman says he is and more. And I know Night of Champions will be difficult, but I have my rematch, I find my resolve and at Night of Champions, I get my redemption.

And I don’t care if Brock Lesnar’s a badass, if Paul Heyman’s a loud mouth, or Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels don’t think I have a chance or Hogan knows best or Triple H can’t make a decision, shocker. I will stand right here and say you line ‘em up and I’ll knock ‘em down and you can still get the WWE Network for $9.99. So, what the hell’s the point of all this? Here’s the point. I’m going to Night of Champions not just to beat Brock Lesnar, I’m going to Night of Champions to beat Brock Lesnar’s…”

John is interrupted by Kane and Seth Rollins coming out onto the stage, the two looking very smug as always. Siren backs herself into the corner, resting her arms on the ring ropes, looking very bored with the situation.

“I have to be honest, John, I think you’re starting to lose it.” Kane says as he walks down towards the ring.

Seth cackles, “It-- It’s like when a fifty-year-old guy goes out and he buys like a dozen sports cars, John, are you having a mid-career crisis?”

“I believe we refer to that as overcompensating.” Kane says as the two chuckle.

“Well, then, Rollins would know more about overcompensating than anyone here.” Siren snarks giving Seth a wide grin as the fans cheer for her.

John laughs high-fiving her, “Oh. Oh. Look at these guys. Now I’m getting psychological advice from a hell raised demon and who’s the brother of a dead guy, and is now the poster child for Men’s Warehouse. Oh. And you Mr. Plan B, why don’t you kiss my plan A? The grownups are talking get on over in the corner and shut up.”

“Careful, John. You forget that although I may be a competitor, I’m also in a position of power in this company and I can schedule you for a match right now which would test your absolute limits. So if I were you, I’d watch my tone.”

Siren smirks as Roman’s music comes on and he makes his way down to the ring to back up John and and his girl. Siren is all smiles as Roman climbs into the ring and gives her a fist-bump, then gives a courteous nod to John before his attention turns to Kane and Rollins.

“This coming Monday night on Monday Night RAW, I’m gonna finish my business with Randy Orton. And I’d love to start right now but he’s not here tonight. So that allows me to focus all my attention on these two corporate suck-ups. And I’d love nothing more than to make your lives a living hell, and I say we get started right here, right now, tonight.”

“Oh, Mr. Roman Reigns, I , myself and the big red of U Nebraska, we can believe that.” John says riling the crowd up.

“Oh, wait.” Kane says causing Siren to roll her eyes, she knows he’ll make up some excuse to not fight tonight. “You two thought that you were going to face us?”

“This is why you’re you and we’re us.” Seth says cackling. “Just when you think you’re catching up The Authority is 10 steps ahead of you.”

Just then the lights go out in the arena, when they come back up the Wyatt Family is standing outside of the ring. But before the five on two assault can happen, Chris Jericho walks out onto the stage, flanked by Mark Henry and Big Show.

At that moment Triple H’s music comes on and he walks out onto the top of the stage. Siren again rolls her eyes, because she knows that her boys are gonna be outnumbered, Hunter always does what benefits The Authority.

“You know, no matter how much you love your job, there are just some things that are just a burden that I have to do. You know, it’s like busy work, you just don’t wanna have to come out and do it, but you just have to, right? So here I am to do my busy work because I wouldn’t want John Cena in there, the great almighty John Cena to think that The Authority can’t make a decision. So here goes my busy work.”

He starts talking like Teddy Long, only in a horrible impression of the former Smackdown GM. “Let me tell you something player, this is how it’s gonna be on Friday Night Smackdown. It will be the team of Kane, Seth Rollins, Bray Wyatt and the Wyatt Family against, well, hell, you guys all get it. You know the drill, it’s a ten-man tag. Starring everybody here, including Roman Reigns and John Cena. Now how about that, player? Holla.”

Siren stands in the ring with John and Roman, smiling as she sees Seth and Kane cursing Triple H’s decision.

Backstage Siren is rolling with laughter as she sees Triple H still walking around talking like Teddy. “Hunter, for the love of God, stop. I can’t breath.”

The boss laughs as he gives her a wink, before leaving to go to his office.

For the main event 10 man-tag that night, Rollins entered the ring first followed by Kane and the Wyatt’s as RAW went to commercial. When they returned John was the final participant to make his way to the ring.

Big Show kicked off the match against Rollins, the smaller man saying “I’ll take you on.”

Siren stood on the floor, leaning against the apron between Roman and Jericho’s legs. For the majority of the match Big Show and Mark Henry picked apart Rollins and the Wyatt’s. Siren winced as Big Show slapped Rowan across the chest, “Owe! I felt that one.” She looked up at Roman and Chris who were cringing as well from that slap.

When they come back from commercial again, Roman is in the ring just clearing guys out. He turns towards Rollins and blasts him with a right hand, sending Rollins to the floor. Roman rolls out of the ring and picks Seth up, tossing his body like a ragdoll into the barricade.

The two brawled outside the ring, before Rollins was able to drag Roman back into the ring where Kane took over the beating. But a miscalculation on Kane’s part gave Roman the advantage he needed to tag Jericho in.

While Chris was taking care of Kane inside the ring, Siren was trying to help Roman with his vest. Somehow during the match the zipper had managed to break and now the vest wouldn’t stay closed. After a little bit of work between the two, they managed to get the vest unzipped and off of Roman’s body.

Back in the ring Kane had tagged in Rollins, who was talking sh*t to Big Show while he beating down Chris. But it proved to be his downfall as Chris tossed him out of the ring, the Universe going crazy wanting Cena in the ring, who was the only one that hadn’t been tagged in yet.

“Come on, Chris!” Siren yelled slamming her hand down on the mat. “Come on!”

But Rollins manages to cut Chris off and drag him back to the opposite corner where he tagged in Bray. By now the entire Universe was screaming for John to get the tag, Siren was sure when it happened, the roof might blow off the arena. Which it did moments later as Chris tagged John into the match, Rollins faltering for a moment as John hit him with shoulder knocking him to the mat.

John picked Rollins up and delivered a side-slam, getting to his feet he held up his hand calling for the “5 Knuckle Shuffle”, waving his hand in front of his face to Kane saying “You can’t see me” before landing the move on Rollins.

Right then all hell broke loose as John picked Rollins up for the AA, Kane jumped into the ring and nailed John with an upper-cut. Roman then came in and delivered a superman punch to Kane, but he was rewarded with kick to the face from Harper. Mark Henry then got in the ring and clotheslined Harper, but Rowan hit Mark with a running slam knocking him down. Big Show then nailed Rowan with a boot to the face, before Bray came in and shoulder-checked Big Show. Bray was then nailed with a right forearm from Jericho, then kicked out of the ring.

But as Chris got back to his feet, Rollins jumped off of the top rope and nailed Jericho with a knee to the side of the head. As Rollins was distracted, John who was the legal man at this point wrapped him up in the STFU. Rollins was seconds away from tapping when the Wyatt Family descended upon John forcing the disqualification.

John’s team climbed back into the ring and with a minute cleared Rollins’ team out. Jericho hitting Bray with a “codebreaker”, then Big Show hit Harper with a choke-slam at the same time Mark Henry hit a power-slam on Rowan. Roman then hit a devastating spear on Kane and John finished off Rollins with an AA.

Siren climbed into the ring and raised her team’s hands in victory as Smackdown went off the air.

Chapter 30: Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

Chapter Text

Having two full days off with no filming was wonderful to Tasha, however she was bummed to be spending those two days alone. Colby had flown back to Iowa to help Nick launch the first class of the year. For 12 weeks Colby would be flying back and forth from wherever they were performing, back to Iowa to train the students.

The classes were usually held on Tuesday-Thursday nights, so Colby was only there for Wednesday and Thursday right now, however he was taking time out of his weekend to travel up there and work one-on-one with a few of the students.

Tasha was sitting in the rig outside of the airport when the door opened and Colby stepped inside, lugging his gear bag with him.

Seeing his woman, Colby refused to call her his girlfriend as she wasn’t a little girl and they weren’t in high school, he dropped his bag, flopping onto the couch beside her and gathering her up into his arms. He sighed as he squeezed her tight, kissing the top of her head. “I missed you so much, my love.”

“I missed you too, my heart.” Tasha said burying her face in his chest, his smell was a cross between his cologne and his body wash, it was pleasant and musky.

“I now know how you feel traveling all the time, I feel for you baby, I don’t know how you do it.” Colby admitted as he laid his head back against the couch.

“You get used to it.” Tasha told him as they rode to the arena. “Just don’t try to do too much too fast. I don’t want you to get exhausted or hurt.”

He smiled down at her, “I promise.”

Monday Night RAW emanating from Baltimore, Maryland, kicked off with the Steel Cage lowering to the ring for the Jericho/Bray Wyatt match.

Backstage in Triple H’s office Seth Rollins and Kane are talking about the huge match that just happened, with Bray taking out Jericho.

“What a way to kick off RAW. What a way to kick off a new season of RAW.”

“That was a cage match. That was brutal, man.” Seth says.

Triple H comes up and claps him on the shoulder, “Gentlemen.”

“Hey. You see that? You get eyes on that out there?” Seth says shaking Hunter’s hand.

“I did. Kane.” He says shaking the demon’s hand as well. “Congratulations. You’ve got us off to a hell of a start. But, you know, guys, this is the season premiere of Monday Night RAW, which means we have got to put on something… here…” He pauses as Randy Orton steps up beside him. “That no one—no one will ever forget.”

“And just how unforgettable do you want this season premiere to be?” Randy asks the boss. “I mean, I look around this room and there’s only one man standing in this room whose in the main event tonight and it’s not the corporate suit. And it certainly isn’t the corporate sell-out. No. No. It’s me. Now, Hunter, with your permission, I’d like to do something to Roman Reigns tonight that makes what Seth did to Dean Ambrose look like just another day in Sunday school.”

“Well, then, Randy, you have my permission.”

“Good. You won’t regret it.”

“Interesting.” Seth says after Randy walks out.

“This will be good.” Hunter smirks.

Out in the ring Paul Heyman is running his mouth about John and Brock’s match at Night of Champions, giving his thoughts and predictions, which frankly, no one gives a damn about. However he is quickly shut up as John’s music hits and the man himself, accompanied by Siren, make their way down to the ring.

“You look a little nervous there, Paul?” Siren says pacing in front of him like an animal stalking her prey. “Why so serious? Smile!” He starts to and Siren tosses up her hand. “Scratch that, don’t smile.”

John steps up beside her chuckling at how nervous Paul looks. “Not to worry, Mr. Heyman. I just didn’t want to stretch everyone’s imagination. You want to say something to my face, I’m right here. Talk.”

“You see, that’s why I always tell Brock, that up until Summerslam, sir, you were the greatest WWE Champion of all time. It takes a special kind of man to be confronted by the truth. The truth that’s told by the greatest advocate in the history of WWE, in front of all of these people, in front of a worldwide television audience. But I must admit to you candidly, my client, Brock Lesnar, thought you may come out to the ring tonight. And if that were to be the case, which it is, Brock has authorized me to drop the warning and to give you some inside information. John Cena, this is your lucky night, because I, Paul Heyman, have been authorized to tell you how to beat Brock Lesnar at Night of Champions.”

John laughs along with Siren as she shakes her head as he replies. “I’ll tell you what, I’ll save your breath. I know how to beat Brock Lesnar at Night of Champions. And I don’t have any secret strategy. As a matter of fact, a lot of people here know it tonight. I see it everywhere. Three simple words, Mr. Heyman, you see, Brock Lesnar beat the Undertaker at Wrestlemania and we haven’t heard a peep from him in six months. Brock Lesnar defeats John Cena at Summerslam and a week later, John Cena says, “Let’s go again.” Night of Champions, my strategy is simple, never give up.”

John pulls the towel with his motto on it from his shorts pocket and holds it up. “So, I’ll tell you what I’m gonna do, this is my playbook and I doubt Brock Lesnar can read it, but I want you to go ahead and give it to him and tell him I’ll see him at Night of Champions.”

Paul starts laughing loudly, “Is it me or can he just not help, but be John Cena? And with all due respect, Mr. Cena, that is your biggest problem. You live to be John Cena. You live for the kid that waits and waits and waits and waits for that opportunity to come live to a live event or here in Baltimore to chant at the top of their lungs, “Let’s go, Cena. Let’s go, Cena. Let’s go, Cena.” But you see when Brock Lesnar steps into the ring Brock Lesnar doesn’t hear anybody, but three people. One, the referee who has the power to disqualify him, two, Paul Heyman who strategizes his greatest victories, and three, the suffering of his victims like you suffered at Brock Lesnar’s hands at Summerslam. Like she, suffered at Summerslam.”

Siren bites her lip as she struggles to remain still and not pummel the fat, loudmouth, rat-tailed man standing before her.

“But you see, John, I’m here tonight to give you a gift and it’s not even Hanukkah. I’m here to tell you how to beat Brock Lesnar and it’s very, very simple. All you have to do is give in. Give in to temptation. You hear all of these people that when you came out, you have busted your tail all these years and yet when you come out, these people sit there and say, “Cena sucks.”

Paul starts repeating that phrase over and over again, but he soon notices that both John and Siren are advancing towards him, backing him towards the corner. “Oh, and it gets to you, doesn’t it? It gets to you. And it’s one thing when a man of my stature and my credentials and my accomplishments says, “Cena sucks”, you have to respect me. But what happens when they say it? What happens when that big, fat, ugly, unemployed guy in the sixth row right there says, “Cena sucks?”

Don’t you just want one time to tap into that hatred and that contempt and that distain and that resentment inside your soul and turn to him one time and say, “Shut up?” One time, one moment, one moment of your life. And the rest falls into place so much easier. Look, I’ll help you. I’ll take you by the hand and I’ll do it with you. We’ll do it together. They say, “Cena sucks”, and you tell them to shut up. In three, two, one. Watch. Ready? We do it together. Shut up. Come on, give in. Bust a rap on these guys. Go out there and put them in their place. Show how much you hate when they get on your case like this, watch, umm.”

Paul then leans out of the ring and looks over at the crowd, “Like this, like you used to, right? Yo, yo, yo, yo, yo, you scream Cena sucks like sixth row is your safe haven. You’re getting punked out in your hometown like the Baltimore Ravens.”

He climbs back into the ring and gets down on his knees, “Please, one time, one time, let it go, give in.” He stands back up, “You don’t need to sell your soul to the devil. The devil sold his soul to me a long time ago. You don’t need to sell your soul to me. Just understand, lose the wristbands, lose the t-shirt, lose this horrible excuse for a manager, forget this whole concept of Hustle, Loyalty, and Respect. And then, then when you give in to that hatred deep inside your soul, then you can be the one who beat the one in twenty-one and one, or then you can just be one of many victims that fell at the hands of the conqueror, Brock Lesnar. My client doesn’t mind me telling you this because, John Cena, I believe in you, but my client, Brock Lesnar, says you just don’t have it in you.”

John snaps, he walks over to the ring ropes and starts to climb out, but he pauses straddling the second rope as he sits down on it. His eyes lock onto Siren’s, he can see the fear in her eyes at the mere thought of him changing who he is. He climbs back into the ring, coming over to stand beside her as the crowd starts chanting, “Let’s go Cena. Cena Sucks.”

He storms over backing the fat man into the corner and screams, “Shut up, Paul Heyman! I see exactly what you’re trying to do here. Your client, Brock Lesnar, at Night of Champions wants to end John Cena and quite frankly, so do you. And the way you want to do it is you want me to stand in this ring and turn my back on every single person who’s ever believed a word I’ve said. Including my best friend.”

He looks behind him where Siren stands, a smile on her face. “I don’t think so. You see, in your world, that’s easy. And for what, to pop you, to pop the guy in the second row, to pop that—those two dudes in the wife-beaters right there, so they can have one hell of a laugh, “oh, it was great. Did you see how evil John Cena was?” And then run back to the internet the next day and tell me how much I suck? No, Mr. Heyman. I don’t think so. You see, you live in a world that is eat, sleep, conquer, repeat, eat, sleep, conquer, repeat. A shark-infested world where only the strong survive and if even you had the chance to get ahead by stabbing your precious client, Brock Lesnar, in the back, you’d do it with a smile on your face and ask for seconds.

I will admit, Mr. Heyman, you are an intelligent man, but right now, you are talking about something you know nothing about. Living life with purpose and living life with a sense of being, because in my world, the rules are simple. Eat, sleep, be John Cena, repeat, be John Cena, repeat.”

He repeats the last part several more times before he continues, “And do you wanna know why? Because that’s who I am, because I was born to be that, because I love being that. And I don’t wanna change even if I could. And guys like you and some folks out here, they don’t see the forest through the trees. You see, I like being the guy to get that kid right there to do his homework early so he can come to Monday Night RAW with his dad. And here’s what you don’t also see, I don’t mind being the guy where the dad’s over there saying, “Cena sucks,” and then after the show, comes up to me and says, “you know what, I really don’t like you, but thanks for doing right by my kid.”

And I love—I love being the guy when a child is asked and given one wish and asked what they want to do, their answer is “I want to hang out with John Cena for the day.” You know how that makes me feel” And I am damn proud to be the guy who is fortunate enough to meet people like Sergeant Davin Dumar, a 10-year combat wounded veteran and a purple heart recipient. And because of all this, because of what I do on a random Friday night, I get to meet a guy like that, my hero, a guy that I look up to. And the first thing he says to me is, “When they took me to the hospital and I’m looking at my leg that’s gone. I don’t know where to start. And you, you gave me strength when I needed it most. Thank you. Thank you.” And a purple heart recipient then gives me the one reward he was given for his combat sacrifice. And I’m standing there, talking to a stranger, holding a purple heart, because he believes—because he believes. That’s why all I know is eat, sleep, be John Cena. And in walks an advocate like you who wants me to strip it all away. For what, so I can win a match? Well, you know what, I’ll ask you Mr. Heyman, and you may not understand this. If I strip it away, what did I really win? And now, I’m cutting to the chase and telling you that I’m done talking. It’s time to fight.”

Paul backs up into the corner as far as he can, but John shakes his head, “No, no, no, no. I know you’re an advocate, but you should love this moment because this is where you see rage, this is where you see fury, this is where I can take that pudgy face of yours and pound it into clay.”

John and Siren both laughs as he backs up, “Yeah, but then the headlines read, “John Cena beats up defenseless Paul Heyman.” I don’t want that. So, I’ll tell you what I’ll do. I’ll make a deal with you. I’ll give you seven days. Next week, I’m showing up to RAW to fight. I got a little strategy for you, bring the beast, bring your client, bring the one, Brock Lesnar, because if he decides to show up, I’m gonna get in the ring with him and we’re gonna fight. But if he decides to take another week off, if he decides to continue his vacation, if he decides to let you come out and do his business for him, well then, Mr. Heyman, I’m going to fight you. Have a nice week, Paul. I’ll see you next Monday.”

Siren sits in the back watching Seth take on Sheamus, starting the match by throwing his briefcase at the Irishman’s face. Rollins manages to beat Sheamus with a little distraction from Cesaro, allowing him to deliver the “curb stomp.”

She heard the door open and two voices entering the room, looking over her shoulder she squeals as she gets up and runs to hug the man that just walked in. “Sami!”

Sami Zayn laughs as he catches the brunette in his arms, “Missed you too, blue eyes.”

The trio sits on the couch chatting until it’s time for Roman’s match, Siren slips into her shirt and kisses Seth’s lips before she heads for the door.

“Hey.” Seth says getting her attention. “Be careful, my soul.”

“Always.” She gives him a wink before she takes off to meet up with Roman.

As the door shuts Sami turns to Seth with a smile, “Dude. You are a lucky, lucky man. Do you know how many guys want to be in your place right now? And I’m not talking about being Mr. Money In the Bank, I’m talking about Siren. That is a three time Women’s Champion, hands down the best manager in the company today, practically Vince McMahon’s adopted daughter, John Cena’s ex-wife, Punk’s ex-girlfriend…”

“Okay, I get it.” Seth says holding up his hand with a smile to stop Sami’s rambling. “What’s your point?”

“My point, is you have one of the most beautiful, talented and amazing Divas this business has ever had as your girlfriend. You have achieved something that most of us guys can only dream of. Dude, all of us down in NXT have a crush on her, and you lucky bastard, turned your crush into reality. You are my f*cking hero.”

Seth laughs as he shakes his head, clapping Sami on the shoulder as they watch Siren walk to the ring with Roman.

Siren leads Roman down to the ring, high-fiving the crowd as they pass by them. Roman gets up on the turnbuckle to pose for the fans while Siren keeps an eye on Orton.

She stands beside the ring, leaning on the apron at the corner to watch, she lets out a large breath, she knows this match is going to be very physical. Sure enough, a moment later Roman clothes-lines Randy right out of the ring. Roman pursues him only to have his face bounced off of the ring steps, before Randy shoves him back into the ring.

“Randy, that’s enough!” Siren snaps as Randy bounces Roman’s face off of the steel steps twice more.

During the commercial Randy had slammed Roman into the steel steps, then bounced his head off of them three separate times. After slamming one another around in the ring, Randy knocks Roman to the floor outside, then clotheslines him to the floor. Staring at Siren he throws up his arms in his signature pose. He laughs as he sees her mouth words that only he could see, “f*ck you.”

Randy drags Roman back into the ring, he barely knows where he is, so Randy’s shocked when Roman kicks out. Orton continues to punish Roman, until the big dog gets the upper hand, knocking the Viper to his knees. Roman rolls out of the ring, picking up Randy, he drives the Viper’s back into the ring apron and then the barricade.

The two climb back up onto the ring apron and trade blows back and forth, until Randy snaps Roman’s neck off of the ring rope. Randy climbs up onto the top, dragging Roman’s limp body with him, and delivers a super-plex to the canvas below.

Randy continues to punish Roman, wearing him down, but he can’t seem to keep the big dog down long enough to pin him.

“Roman, come on! Fight out of it! Come on, Rome!” Siren cheers as Roman powers out of the chokehold. He manages to slam Randy to the canvas with a side-slam buying him some time to recover.

Siren claps her hands together, turning to the fans and getting them to clap along with her, together they will Roman back to his feet. Roman gets head of steam, but it’s not enough to keep Randy down long enough for the pin. But he manages to get Randy over the bottom rope, which allows Roman to deliver the “drive-by” to Orton’s face.

From there the two trade off blows in the ring, hitting one another with everything they can think of, but neither of them will stay down. Randy manages to hit a DDT on Roman from the second rope, then he coils and drops down looking for the RKO. But as he moves to deliver it, he gets nailed with a superman punch.

“What the hell is going on?” Siren yells as Seth, Kane and a slew of security guards come running down to the ring. She sees the security people setting out the metal poles that support the steel cage, her eyes go wide as she realizes what they’re about to do.

Sliding into the ring she nails Seth with a super-kick knocking him away from Roman, grabbing the big man’s arm she tries to drag him out of the ring as the cage starts coming down. “Roman, come on. Help me out! You gotta get out of here!” She screams as someone grabs her by the hair and yanks her away from Roman. Struggling she sees that it’s Kane that has her, “Let me go! You sonofabitch!”

“Throw her out of here!” Seth yells as the cage is nearly down.

“No!” Randy yells pointing to Kane. “She stays in!” Grinning Randy pulls something out of Kane’s jacket pocket, holding out the object so that it dangles in Siren’s vision.

Her face blanches, the handcuffs that Seth used on her are in Randy’s grip. “Bring her over to the corner.” Randy yells as Kane drags her to the corner farthest away from Roman, sitting her down on the canvas, her back against the turnbuckle. Wrapping the handcuffs around the ring post Randy smirks as he and Kane cuff her wrists behind her back. “Don’t go anywhere, angel. Wouldn’t want you to miss this.”

Roman gets up and manages to fight back, tossing both Kane and Seth out of the ring, then focusing his attention on Randy. Seth grabs a steel chair and pushes it in the ring, but he can’t make it in as the cage is too low. Seth looks on in horror as Roman spots the chair still in the ring, but as he picks it up Randy hits him causing him to drop it.

Roman shakes Randy off and proceeds to slam Orton into the sides of the cage four separate times. He then backs up into the corner calling for the spear, as soon as Randy gets to his feet Roman nails him. Roman then walks over and picks up the steel chair, slamming it into the cage door as Kane tries to come through it.

Siren’s attention goes to the top where she sees Seth standing on the top of the cage, her eyes go wide as she yells to her brother. “Roman, look out!”

But it’s too late as Seth launches himself off of the top and flattens Roman with a cross-body. Kane then climbs into the ring and nails Roman with a punch to his jaw, sending him crumpling to the canvas. Siren can only watch in horror as Roman is picked apart by the three men, Randy wielding the steel chair in his hand. Seth gives her a sad*stic smile as he and Randy position Roman over the steel chair, Seth talking trash to his former brother as he circles him. He drags Roman to his feet before he bounces off the ropes and slams Roman’s head off of the chair with a curb-stomp.

RAW goes off the air as the trio celebrates, Siren, still cuffed to the pole stares at Roman, who hasn’t moved an inch.

That night Colby didn’t ride in the rig with her and Joe. After a chat with Triple H, Tasha had been informed that in order to keep up with the plan and storylines, they needed the former Shield members to stay away from one another. According to Stephanie, it was getting too risky for a fan or paparazzi to see any of them together, especially Siren and Seth.

Tasha had scoffed shaking her head as she left the office, not giving Colby a backwards glance, he had sat there not saying a word to defend his or her actions, or their relationship.

Lying on the couch, her legs draped over Joe’s she sighed as she looked at the picture of her and Colby on her phone’s background.

“Absence makes the heart grow fonder, Babygirl.” Joe said rubbing her jean clad thigh, he knew this was going to take a toll on her, having been with Colby for 2 months now.

“Yeah, I know, Lee. I just hope it’s not an extended absence.”

Tasha and Joe had stayed in the parking lot that night as Main Event was being held in the same arena the next day. Neither of them were scheduled in matches, but after a phone call from Hunter, it seemed that Siren would be making an appearance Tuesday night.

Since Hunter had said that no one knew about it except for she and him, Tasha waited until it was nearly her time to go out, before she snuck into the arena and waited by the curtain for her cue.

On Main Event Seth Rollins is in the ring listening to the mixture of cheers and boos from the crowd. He sighs, rolling his eyes as the crowd starts chanting, “You sold out.”

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to “Where Are They Now,” starring the most powerful group in the history of the WWE. Give it up for The Shield!”

A photo of the group comes up on the big screen, of course with Rollins front and center, Siren to his right and Dean to hers, with Roman to Rollins’ left.

“Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, and of course our stunning manager, Siren. Three of the most dominant superstars in the history of the WWE, and one of the best managers this company has ever seen. We came in, we kicked down the door, we put the entire industry on notice. Where are we now? Well, let’s start with the lunatic fringe himself, Dean Ambrose. Unstable, unrelenting, undoubtedly one of the most talented performers to ever step foot in this company. But Dean Ambrose made one critical fatal error when he decided to go head-to-head with me.”

Up on the screen they show the demise of Dean last month, from the curb stomp by Rollins onto the cinder blocks.

“And where is Dean Ambrose now? I don’t know. Does anybody here know? You know Dean Ambrose probably doesn’t even know where he’s at. And the truth is, does anybody really care? The bottom-line is that Dean Ambrose was a feral animal and he needed to be put down. Which brings me to the brawn of The Shield, the powerhouse, Roman Reigns.

You know, when we were in The Shield together all I ever heard was Roman Reigns, Roman Reigns, Roman Reigns, is gonna be the future of this company. Roman Reigns is going to put this whole thing on his back. Roman Reigns is the future of professional wrestling. What don’t you people understand when I tell you I created Roman Reigns? I am responsible for every success that he ever had. And well, it may have been true at one time Roman Reigns was going to be an integral part of this company’s future. When he decided to put a target on my back that future became obsolete and at Night of Champions I will destroy what I created.”

They then showed the events on Monday night RAW, where Rollins, Kane and Orton dismantled Roman inside the steel cage.

“Now that brings me to the beauty that controlled the beasts, Siren.” The crowd cheered loudly and Seth had to nod. “I know, I agree with you, she is beautiful. But her beauty, while striking, is not what made me want her as our manager. She is intelligent, perhaps more so than myself. She knows what it takes to be at the top of this company and what it takes to stay there. She has represented some of the biggest names in this company from Brock Lesnar to John Cena, Randy Orton to the former tag team the Hardy Boyz. She has been apart of some of the most dominant factions this company has ever seen, from DX to the NWO and who could forget Evolution.

But her one big flaw, is her heart. For those of you that don’t know it already, Siren has a big heart. Which in this company can be your biggest weakness. I’ll give you an example… John Cena. He broke her heart, cheated on her multiple times and ruined their marriage. And yet, she still refers to him as her best friend. She has too big of a heart, she can’t make decisions based on what is best for business because she thinks with her heart and not her head.

Now despite what you all might think, I don’t want to hurt her. She is the one of the best managers in this company today, and truthfully what I want, is her back by my side. In fact, I have a proposal to make to her next week on RAW.

And that brings us to me. Seth Rollins, the Architect, the tactician, the greatest strategist of my generation and the only man still left standing from the remnants of The Shield. I am the future and I am the future WWE World Heavyweight Champion! I am the future of this company and I am the—”

“A Siren’s song can summon a tempest, a storm of mythical scale, that even the bravest of men cannot escape.”

Ah, ah, ah, ahhhh.

Ah, ah, ah, ahhhh.

A blinding white spotlight focuses on the stage as the heavy rock music booms throughout the arena.

I told you once, I told you twice, you didn’t play very nice

Asked you aboard, you pulled a sword, you took kindness for weakness

I think that I deserve a little more respect than that boy

That’s not the way you greet a Siren

You’re gonna learn your lesson

Oh, just who do you think you are?

You’ve gone to far

Sink or swim man overboard

Believe me it’s a lesson you can not afford

We’ll really give you something to remember

When you play with fire you are sure to burn

Sink or swim man overboard

It’s war!

The crowd goes crazy as Siren steps out onto the stage as her theme plays, crossing her arms over her chest she glares down at Seth who is shocked to see her, he had no idea she was scheduled to come out tonight. After a moment of the two just burning holes in one another, Siren raises the mic in her hand, her elbow resting on her crossed arm.

“Rollins, whatever you have planned for RAW, save it, there is no proposal you could ever give me that I would say yes to. However, I do have to thank you, you said some very nice things about me tonight. With that being said, let me tell you how a manager thinks. You, Seth Rollins are what we call a bad bet. You may be riding high on your horse right now, but soon, you’re gonna fall. See, you alone, are a manger’s dream. You’re talented, crafty, intelligent, you really are an Architect in that ring, one of the best in-ring performers that I have ever seen. But alongside The Authority, you’re nothing but a lap dog, Seth. And eventually, all dogs get put to sleep.

You may have taken out Dean and Roman, but a little piece of info for you honey, they will be back, and you’ll never see them coming. As for your talk about destroying The Shield, you’ve taken out two members, by my count you’re one short. So, what’re you gonna do, Seth? You gonna put my head through a cinder block too? Curb stomp me into a steel chair?”

She stands there for a moment, looking at Seth expectantly for an answer, but he just shakes his head staring down at the canvas. “I caught you off guard, my bad. I’ll give you some time to figure it out. If you need some ideas, I’m sure I can come up with something for you. So, that brings me to tonight, see originally I was going to come here and take you out of commission myself, but I was told by the bosses that I can’t do that. But, lucky for me, I found someone who hates you almost as much as I do.”

Siren grins as music cues on behind her and Jack Swagger comes walking out of the back, his flag in his hand. Both he and Zeb stop at the top of the ramp beside her, both giving her a nod of respect. “He’s all yours. Have fun.” Siren winks to Seth before she walks backstage.

Chapter 31: Summon the Storm

Chapter Text

Tasha manages to slip back out of the arena and into the rig without being seen, Daryl driving them straight to the airport for her flight to Cali. After saying goodbye to Daryl and Joe, Tasha boards her flight and attempts to rest until her flight lands several hours later.

Being on set for two days shooting guns, riding her bike and fighting stuntmen took Tasha’s mind away from Colby. She wasn’t mad at him, more upset at the fact that they were right back where they had started, and he seemed as though he could care less. Establishing her thoughts was the fact that she hadn’t spoken to Colby, in person, on the phone, or in a text, since Monday night.

So little to say that when Tasha walked into the Smackdown arena that night, everyone could see her anger and they were again climbing the walls to avoid her wrath. The aptly named “Ice Queen” of the WWE strode down the hall to the women’s locker room, her hand landed on the handle as her eyes caught sight of her boyfriend down the hallway.

She knew he saw her, his head had turned in her direction, but he didn’t make any move to acknowledge her presence. She shook her head throwing an icy glare his way, as she knocked lightly on the door before she opened it and stepped inside.

The women in the room looked up, most of them shocked to see her as she had been sharing a locker room with Colby for the last two months. Several of the women turned to greet her, but stopped short as she threw her gear bag down to the floor, deciding she was not in the mood for company.

The only two who took the chance of enduring her wrath were Paige and AJ, who each sat down on the bench on opposite sides of her.

“Hey, love are you okay?” Paige asked.

“I’m fine, P.” Came the short clipped reply.

“Bullsh*t.” AJ snapped garnering her friend’s attention. “You’re off tonight, and your friend’s can see it. We are still your friend’s right?”

Tasha sighed, “Of course you are, April.” She dropped her head into her hands. “Hunter and Stephanie pulled myself and Colby into the office after RAW. They made it clear that they didn’t want the former Shield members being seen together. They basically told me that while this feud is going on, it would be better if Colby and I stayed away from each other.”

“Damn. What a bunch of bullsh*t.” Paige said shaking her head. “You guys have been careful, there’s nothing on social media or in the tabloids about you two. I don’t get why they’re so worried about you.”

“It’s not all of them, it’s the Princess.” Tasha grumbled. “I don’t know what her problem is, but she does not want me and Colby together, and I’m not even sure anymore, if it’s because of the storylines, or if it’s something personal.”

“I’m sorry Hun. That really sucks.” AJ told her slinging an arm around her shoulder.

“It’s not Stephanie, I can handle her.” Tasha admitted, biting her bottom lip. “It’s Colby.”

“What about him?” AJ questioned.

“He didn’t say anything to defend us. He just sat there while Stephanie dictated our relationship.”

“But I thought he was the one that told them to fire him before he’d break up with you?” Paige wondered.

“He was, but apparently actions speak louder than words, and his actions told me more than his words did. I don’t know if we’re together, if we’re not, or where we go from here. I haven’t spoken to him since RAW.”

“He didn’t call or text you at all while you were in Cali?” AJ asked shocked.

“Nope.” Tasha said popping the “p” for emphasis.

“Well, we’re really sorry, love. It’ll work out though, I know it will.” Paige assured her friend hugging her.

“Yeah, Colby is crazy about you. Just give this storyline some time to blow over. You guys are strong, you can get past this.” AJ said smiling.

“Thanks girls.” Tasha smiled hugging the two women to her. “What would I do without you?”

Thursday night Smackdown, kicked off with an 8-man tag match, with Big, Mark Henry and the Uso claiming victory over Harper, Rowan, Goldust and Stardust.

The camera then cut to Kane, Seth Rollins and Randy Orton in the office talking about the epic showing of Monday Night RAW.

“Last Monday night’s RAW was a resounding success.” Kane gushed to the two other men, who stood on his sides smiling. “Triple H said that he wanted an unforgettable season premiere. And Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns and Siren, won’t soon forget what the two of you did to them.”

Seth cackled, clapping his hands. “I told you, I told you guys on Monday, I know what makes Roman Reigns tick. I can get inside that guy’s head. It’s just too bad for him he can’t figure out how to harness all that fury, huh? Tonight, we finish Roman Reigns for good.”

“Oh, no, Seth, I really like the sound of that, very much indeed. But now, Chris Jericho says, that, well, I’ve had everything handed to me here in the WWE. But the beat down that I handed him last Monday night on RAW, it will fail to compare to what I do, to what we do, to that wannabe rock star tonight.” Orton said.

Kane chuckled laying on a hand on each of their shoulder’s. “Because gentlemen, that’s what’s best for business.”

Siren sat in the locker room watching the conversation between Kane, Rollins and Orton. “Harness his fury, huh? What a great idea.”

A deadly grin crossed over her face, both AJ and Paige looking at one another in fear, they knew that look was nothing but trouble.

“Excuse me ladies.” She said rising to her feet. “This Siren, has a storm to summon.”

The main event of the night kicked off with Jericho coming to the ring first, followed by an angry big dog Roman Reigns and a vicious Siren descending down through the crowd. Even the fans could feel the storm brewing as the “Siren of WWE” passed by them, her anger at Seth Rollins and The Authority radiating off of her in waves.

When they return from commercial Siren stands in the ring with Jericho and Roman, awaiting the arrival of their opponents. Siren glared as Rollins came strutting out onto the stage, holding his briefcase high. It wasn’t hard for her to pretend to hate him, she really did at the moment. However it had nothing to do with his character, she was pissed at Colby, so she channeled that hatred through Siren to Seth.

Randy Orton followed Seth to the ring, the two of them smirking, they were determined to finish off Reigns and Jericho tonight, leaving Siren all alone for Seth to deal with.

The match kicked off with Orton and Reigns in the ring, Roman easily getting the upper hand and taking Orton out of the ring. Rollins followed his teammate to the floor as Roman knocked him off of the apron. He got to his feet to intercede the beating Roman was laying down on Orton. But a well placed super-kick from Siren behind the referee’s back, dismissed any plans he had about going after Roman.

Seth climbed back up onto the apron as Roman and Orton got back into the ring. Rubbing his jaw he spared a glance over to Siren, who was staring him down, the icy look sending a cold shiver down his spine. If he didn’t know any better, he would think she hadn’t pulled her kick like usual as a shot of pain traveled through his face.

Siren’s hand slammed down on the mat, willing Roman to his feet to tag Jericho, which he did just as Orton tagged in Rollins. She tugged Roman out of the ring to safety as Jericho laid a beat down on Rollins, managing to lock in the “Walls of Jericho”.

However he had to release the two-toned traitor as Orton climbed into the ring, but a well placed fist to the face knocked Orton right back out onto the floor. The double-team then continued by Rollins and Orton, beating Jericho down in the opposite corner, while Roman climbed back up onto the apron.

Smirking at Siren, Rollins delivered three perfect verticals, the moves made great by her late trainer and friend, Eddie Guerrero. Standing up he stood face-to-face with Roman, the two staring one another down.

“I’m going to beat you. You know it. You’re still my little brother. You’ll always be my little brother.” Roman said to Seth.

This served to irritate Seth as he ran towards Jericho, but whatever move he was thinking of doing was halted by Jericho tossing him up and over the ring ropes, sending him crashing to the floor. Siren and Roman willed Jericho over to their corner for the tag.

But Seth cut him off, dragging him back over to the opposite corner and tagging Randy in as they double-teamed him. But Chris rebounded, hitting a drop-kick on Orton, Siren noticing how much it hurt his already injured knee to do that.

“Come on, Chris!” She yelled slamming her hand down on the mat, willing her friend to their corner for the tag.

Roman got the tag immediately getting into the ring and taking out Orton and Rollins. After knocking Seth out of the ring, Roman delivered a “drive-by” to Orton, before sliding back into the ring and beating down on the Viper. Seth tried to intercede, jumping off of the turnbuckle, but Roman caught him and tossed the man out of the ring.

Tagging in Chris, Roman climbed out of the ring to deal with Seth, while Jericho hit Orton with a cross-body from the top rope and went for the cover. Orton kicked out at two while Roman threw Seth over the barricade into the WWE Universe, following him to continue their fight.

Meanwhile back in the ring Jericho countered Orton’s DDT, rolling him up into a small-package for the win. Siren cheered as Chris rolled out of the ring, she took his hand raising it into the air, as the two backed up the ramp. Roman joined them a moment later, Siren raising their hands to the cheer of the WWE Universe as Smackdown went off the air.

The days off leading up to Monday Night RAW were the same for Tasha, fly out to Georgia, film for the Walking Dead and then fly back to the arena for RAW.

She still hadn’t spoken to Colby, not even a text, so being the strong independent woman she was, she didn’t waste a second thought on him. She felt that even though they were forbid from seeing one another, that shouldn’t mean the end of their relationship. But, Colby’s continual silence told her the opposite. So with a her head held high she walked into the arena once again, a single woman. Whether or not she and Colby were still together, that was on him, but if he wanted to ignore her like they were weren’t together, then she would act like they weren’t together. No skin off her nose.

Being an actress for so many years had groomed Tasha to hide her emotions. So, even though her heart was breaking for a second time because of Colby, you would have never known it by the smile on her face.

After changing into her ring gear, she was surprised by Joe and Jon walking into the women’s locker room with a small cake. “What is this?” She laughed.

“Look, just because The Shield isn’t together anymore, doesn’t mean we forget this occasion.” Joe told her smiling. “This was the arena where we debuted Siren as a full fledged member of The Shield.”

“Awe, you guys. I love you two.” Tasha smiled, kissing both men on the cheek.

“We love you too, Babygirl.” Joe said as he held the cake up to her so she could blow out the candle on the top.

Closing her eyes to make a wish, Tasha blew out the candle, just as Jon pushed her face into the side of the cake. Tasha shrieked as the cake covered the right side of her face, turning she glared at the grinning lunatic. “Oh! You are so dead, Ambrose!”

Jon fearing for his safety ran out of the room laughing as Tasha took off after him, a chunk of cake in her hand.

Colby was walking around backstage texting on his phone, when he heard loud laughter and yelling coming from around the corner ahead of him. Turning the corner he found most of the backstage personnel, superstars and divas crowded around a group of people. Glancing over the top of people he saw Tasha, Joe and Jon engaged in a heated food fight. The three of them were covered in the remains of a cake, the plate now lying empty on the ground beside them.

He smiled watching as Tasha pinned Jon to the floor and shoved a piece of the cake into his mouth. He laughed as Joe came up behind her and smeared a handful of icing onto her face with his large hand. His smiled turned to a frown as he realized that while he should have been a part of the fun, he was standing on the outside looking in. Glowering at the people around him that had noticed his presence, he turned and continued back down the hall, the laughter of his girlfriend echoing in his ears.

Tasha went back to the locker room to shower, washing the cake out of her hair, before getting redressed in another set of ring gear. Pulling on her red Cena shirt she ran to the curtain to join John, her ex-husband chuckling at her.

“Any cake residue remaining?”

She laughed, “I hope not, this is my last set of clean gear.”

John and Siren entered the arena to confront Paul Heyman to the cheers of the WWE Universe. The two stood at the top of the ramp, saluting the fans, before they both ran down and slid into the ring. The two of the grab mics, before condescendingly looking around the ring for the beast, not seeing him anywhere John turns to Paul.

“I know this is a little cliché, but I don’t see him.” John says waving his hand in front of his face. “Where is—where is the beast? Where is the 1 in 21 and 1? Where is Brock Lesnar?” He says mocking the gravely way that Paul introduces his client.

“Well, Mr. Cena, that all depends on your definition of the word where. Because where is a relative tern and by the legal definitions of how I was raised as my father was…”

“I told you last week I was showing up for a fight. And I’m either going to fight him or I’m going to fight you.”

“You want this?” Paul asked smirking. “I mean me, personally, as a businessman I’d like to entice them to spend $9.99 on the WWE Network, but you want to come here to Cajun country and give it to them in the Cajun Dome for free. Then, John Cena, if that’s what you want, that’s what you’re gonna get live tonight. Right here, right now, Monday, September 15^th, 2014, the Doctor of Thuganomics, John Cena versus the conqueror, the beast Brock Lesnar. Here comes the pain.”

John readies himself for a fight, turning towards the ramp, but Siren doesn’t. She can tell by how eager Paul is to unleash his beast, that something is off, he had no intention of Brock coming down to the ring. She is rewarded in her thinking when Paul starts giggling, her fury with the fat balding man slowly waning.

“Oh, you’re good. No, I mean really, ladies and gentlemen, he’s really, really good. For those of you who haven’t heard, I thought it would be on the internet by now, my client, Brock Lesnar, flies on a private plane, because Brock Lesnar doesn’t like anybody especially you. No disrespect from me, a lot of disrespect from Brock Lesnar and in that capacity, as you know, in modern day aviation, there’s always delays and Brock’s plane unfortunately has been delayed. And he is on his way here and he will be here, I assure you, Mr. Cena, he will be here.

But you know what I think, John Cena? I think you knew Brock’s plane was delayed. And I think you called him out now, because you don’t wanna fight Brock Lesnar six days before Night of Champions, because you know what can happen to your title chances that way. I must admit you had me fooled, you play this hero character better than anybody else in WWE history, I applaud you, sir.”

Paul goes to climb out of the ring, but both Siren and John take ahold of the man, pulling him back into the ring.

“You know what I think? I think you’re full of crap.” John tells Paul as he holds the man by the back of his greasy head. “But here, here is what I know, and this is what I know. Seven days ago, I gave you twenty-four hours to produce the beast, because I told you I was coming for a fight.”

“You’re hurting me.” Paul whines.

Both Siren and John smirk, “Oh. Hurt? You’re gonna know hurt, because in about eighty minutes, give or take five or ten, your beast doesn’t show up, well, that means it’s halftime. And I’m not gonna wait till the end of RAW, because at halftime, when this show is halfway done, your number is up. No beast, Mr. Heyman… and simply put, I’m gonna kick your ass.”

“Okay.” Paul says uncomfortably as John pats his cheek, before he starts to climb out of the ring. “I’ll let you know when Brock gets here. Thank you very much.”

But Siren and John have different ideas, both of them sliding out of the ring and grabbing Paul before he can hightail it out of the arena.

“Jesus. Come on.” Paul says as they startle him.

“Oh, Paul, not to say that we don’t trust you…” Siren says holding up a finger. “…but uh, we don’t trust you. And I heard Cajun country tonight, and they want a fight.” The crowd cheers as Siren smiles. “So, all we’re gonna do right now is make sure they get one.”

Siren drops her mic as John locks Heyman in a headlock, following John as he drags Heyman backstage.

Siren joins up with Roman as Renee pulls them over for an interview, “Please welcome my guests at this time, Siren and Roman Reigns. Siren, Roman, you were both part of one of the most dominant factions we’ve ever seen in WWE, until this happened.”

“Oh, seriously, you gotta play it, Renee?” Siren says ducking her head so that she doesn’t have to watch the betrayal once again.

“Tonight, you finally have your opportunity to face Seth Rollins one-on-one. This is a man who not only turned his back on you, but he tried to end your career. How do you feel heading into this match tonight?”

“Two years ago, I came into the WWE with two brothers. Now, I stand alone, one versus all.” Beside him Siren clears her throat, giving him a look and he smiles. “Okay, maybe not totally alone. Seth Rollins, he wants to take credit for everything I’ve done, everything I’ve accomplished. We both know that’s a load of crap. And Seth, he’s so smart. He’s always got a game plan. Everyone’s got a plan until they get hit in the mouth. My plan’s simple. I’m gonna ball up this fist and I’m gonna hit him in the mouth as many times as I can until my knuckles bleed. Believe that.”

Backstage Siren was sulking in a corner, her bright smile from earlier diminished as she sat cross-legged on a crate. She felt a presence in front of her and looked up to find Bray, Harper and Rowan standing in front of her. Despite what he portrayed in the ring, Bray was a sweet guy, he and Siren had been friends for several years, she’d even met his family.

“Oh, Bray, as much as I love our creepy banter, I’m not in the mood for it today.”

“What’s wrong lil one?” Bray asked concerned as he sat down on the crate beside her, she usually loved the banter that the two threw at one another.

“Just trying to balance my job with my relationship, and it’s not turning out well for me.”

Bray put his arm around Siren, hugging her to his side. “Little one, that boy loves you. But, I think he has a hard time showing it. Balancing our jobs and having a relationship, especially with someone you have a storyline with, it can be hard. But, I know the both of you, and if anyone can make something work around here, it’s the two of you.”

“Thanks, Bray.” Siren said with a smile.

Bray climbed down from the crate, but before he left he turned back to the woman. “And if you need someone to put the fear of God into him, you know who to call, lil one.”

Siren chuckled as the Wyatt family took their leave, she smiled as she remembered exactly how many friends she had backstage, and how horrible she could make Seth’s life if she chose to.

Siren joined back up with John heading to his locker room where they had locked Heyman inside, the Great Khali standing guard outside. Backing Khali up, John surprising Siren as he spoke to the tall man in his own language, John banged on the door.

“Paul Heyman? Paging, Paul Heyman. It’s show time!”

They could hear Paul shouting in fear as John opened the door and again locked Heyman in a choke hold, dragging him out to the ring once more. Shoving the man into the ring John and Siren stood over him, John grabbing the man by his tie and holding him. Siren motioned for a mic from one of the techs, handing it to John when she had it.

“Ladies and gentlemen, my name is John Cena. And this beauty to my left is, Siren. And now is the moment you have ALL been waiting for. It’s time to watch the great Heymandiny, the great Paul Heyman, the one behind twenty-one and one is going to magically--”

Paul makes a break for the ropes trying to scurry out, but Siren grabs the fat man by his tie, nearly choking him as she drags him back into the ring.

John smiles as he sees she’s got the man under control, he continues talking. “—make a beast appear or… John Cena is going to magically use his fist and make Paul Heyman’s teeth disappear. Everyone’s waiting, Paul. Produce… your… beast.”

“So, everything about hustle, loyalty, and respect is a sham, isn’t it?” Paul says as John holds the mic in front of his mouth. “This is the John Cena I have been trying to pull out of you for weeks. Last week, I called you to take your aggression out on them. And you’re right and I’m wrong. You’ll never turn your back on the Cenation. That won’t be the trigger ever, but me, I can be the trigger. To beat a beast, you have to become a beast. And it has to be deep inside you, that hatred, and I’m the one to bring that hatred out of you.

Oh, you won’t hit me, because that would make you a bully, because you know it’s true that my client’s plane is legitimately delayed and you’re gonna take it out on a 49-year old father of two. No. Brock Lesnar is a bully. And you won’t be Brock Lesnar, which is why John Cena you can’t beat Brock Lesnar. I thought even your hatred for me would allow the beast inside you to come out. But this whole role model thing, you really do believe it. So, I’ll give you a chance, let that aggression out. And this Sunday, you have a chance to become the WWE Heavyweight Champion of the world.

This is the precipice of an all new John Cena just like I told you last week, and I’m telling you now and I’m gonna give you your chance. Hit me! Hit me, John Cena! Let it go! Let it flow! Let it out! Come on! Why don’t you say it, John? The champ is here, you can. And my guy took it away from you. That my time is now, you can’t, because Brock Lesnar took it away from you. Your mother and father raised you better. They raised you to live a code. And that code is hustle, loyalty and respect. And ti will stop you every time dead in your tracks. You can’t be a bully. You can’t even hit me and we all know I deserve it. John Cena, you’re gonna fail this Sunday. You’ll never be the WWE Heavyweight Champion again. You can’t beat Brock Lesnar.”

John snatches the mic out of Heyman’s hands, “If there was ever a human being on earth that deserved his face rearranged, it is you, Paul Heyman. You are the scum of this planet. You are a waste of oxygen.”

“Hit me. Hit me, one time. Let it flow, John. Become my vision of you as a Paul Heyman guy.”

Siren stood off to the side, she heard the chants of the fans screaming, “Yes!”

“No.” John stated, and the cheers quickly turned into boos. “No. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I planned this whole thing because I thought for a second you would produce Brock Lesnar and we would fight. And I show these people that I am ready for Night of Champions this Sunday. But there is no beast. It’s just you, an old, washed up, loud mouth, scumbag has-been, who doesn’t deserve the dirt off of my hands.”

“Wow. I’ll give you credit, Mr. Cena. You’re doing the right thing by walking away. I mean if I were your mother, I’d be very proud of you if my son was born with a pair of testicl*s.”

Siren sees John turn around, his limits being pushed, she cuts him off as he goes after Heyman. “This one’s on me.” She whispers to him, before turning and snatching the mic out of Heyman’s hand. “You know what, Paul, you’re right. John, isn’t a bully. He wasn’t raised that way. So, no, he’s not gonna hit you. But, I, on the other hand, my parent’s raised me differently.”

Before Paul can react, Siren clocks him in the side of his face with a right hand, sending the pudgy man rolling right out of the ring… just as Brock Lesnar’s music booms through the arena.

John pulls off his cap and shirt readying for a fight, while Siren tosses down the mic preparing to slide out of the ring. Brock walks down the ramp circling around the ring, he helps Paul to his feet and the two continue around the ring and start up the ramp. It is clear that Brock doesn’t have any intention of getting into the ring with John.

Brock walks down the ramp, handing his title to Paul, jumping up onto the apron he climbs through the ring ropes. Siren slides out just as John rushes Brock, the two manhandling one another around the ring. Brock however gains the upper hand as he delivers a German suplex to John, dropping him on the back of his neck just as he did at Summerslam.

Brock smirks at Siren as he kicks John out of the ring, he crooks his finger to her, egging her to come into the ring with him. He can see the fire in her eyes, he knows she’d love to fight him, but she knows it would end badly for her. Still, he admires the fact that she’d do it, even though he would end her.

The beast walks to the other side of the ring intent on leaving, but he’s bulldozed by John who rolls back into the ring and slams into the champ. Brock is knocked out of the ring, rolling onto the floor at Paul’s feet as John follows him to continue the beating. John tosses Brock around, slamming him into the ring apron and the barricade, before taking him to the ground and pummeling them.

Security then runs down to separate the two men, all of them holding John back as Brock retreats up the ramp checking his nose for blood.

As Brock heads backstage Siren grabs the security guards, shoving them away from John. “Let him go. Now.”

The two of them roll into the ring, saluting the fans as the crowd rages for the duo and the fight they just witnessed.

Siren went back to the locker room and changed her shirt, she then joined Roman up in the corridor for his match. There happened to be a monitor up there so they both watched Seth’s interview with Tom.

“Please welcome my guest at this time, Mr. Money In the Bank, Seth Rollins.”

“Tom.” Seth grins as he walks into the frame, cradling his briefcase.

“Seth, right now, let’s take a look back at this past Monday night on RAW.”

They show the encounter between Roman and The Authority inside the steel cage, with Siren handcuffed to the ring post.

“Seth, does the same fate await Roman Reigns tonight?”

Seth chuckles, “Oh, man. Tom. Come on. What do you think? D-don’t, don’t answer that. Of course, it does. Look, I’m not gonna take anything away from Roman Reigns. Roman Reigns is one of the most naturally gifted superstars in the history of WWE. But Roman Reigns, is nothing without me. I mean you heard the guy earlier. He was talking about beating me senseless, pummeling me until his knuckles bled, that’s the kind of barbarian we’re dealing with here. And the only reason his knuckles are gonna be bleeding is because he’s a Neanderthal. And he walks on his knuckles, check it out.”

Seth actually then squats down and acts like a monkey, “I’m Roman Reigns, I’m so cool. I’m so tough. I’m so strong. I’m gonna pound Seth Rollins into the ground.”

He stands back up laughing, “Oh, Roman Reigns is part gorilla, he’s part Samoan, and he’s part… uh, rhinoceros. Yeah, rhinoceros. Tom, you know, a rhinoceros is actually one of the most powerful animals in the entire world. The problem is, they’re not very smart. And I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, it’s brains over brawn every single time. I made Roman Reigns. I am responsible for everything he has ever accomplished in the WWE. And tonight, I take away everything he ever could be. I am the future WWE World Heavyweight Champion. And me, me, not Roman Reigns, I am the future of WWE. Believe that.”

“I hate him.” Siren said.

“Seth? Or Colby?” Roman asked.

“Both.” She growled as their music kicked on.

Siren and Roman make their way down to the ring, both of them seething and wanting to get their hands on Seth Rollins. Siren stands on the ring apron as Roman climbs into the ring awaiting the arrival of their former brother.

She watches as Seth and Roman got at one another in the ring, it is clear to her that Seth is using his head, as he gains the upper hand over Roman. Being as they were brothers, they knew one another’s wrestling styles and techniques like the back of their hands.

But brawn seemed to be overpowering the brains as Roman slammed Seth’s skull off of the steel steps, then the announcer’s table, before he threw Seth over the announcer’s table. Seth crumpled to the floor behind the table, his legs splayed across Lawler and Cole’s chairs.

During the commercial break Seth managed to get the upper hand on Roman with a sling-blade, planting Roman to the canvas. Siren was literally biting her nails as the match went back and forth between the two men, before Roman was able to nail Seth with the “Drive-by”. Climbing back into the ring he hit Seth with the superman punch, before he backed into the corner calling for the spear to end the match.

But Seth managed to counter it and nail Roman with a kick to the jaw, but Roman still kicked out of the cover. Seth climbed up to the top rope looking for the Pedigree, but Roman managed to power out of it, trying to lift Seth up for a Samoan drop. Seth was quick to counter, sunset flipping over Roman, then lifting the big dog onto his shoulders and tossing him into the opposite turnbuckle.

Siren can see blood coming out of Roman’s nose as Seth picks him up from the canvas. He tosses a co*cky smirk her way as he holds his fist up to Roman’s like they used to do in The Shield. But Roman cuts off his sh*t talking with a head butt, managing to knock him back. Seth tries to come back with a curb stomp, but Roman counters it into a spear. He covered Seth and picked up the three count for the victory.

Siren climbed into the ring, jumping into Roman’s arms hugging him tight. “Way to go, big dog.”

“Couldn’t do it without you, Babygirl.” He winked before the two of them rolled out of the ring, heading back up the ramp.

Chapter 32: Graveyard

Chapter Text

Tasha bid goodbye to everyone as she left the arena, heading to the airport to catch her flight out to California. She wouldn’t be back until Sunday at Night of Champions, Hunter and Stephanie had given her the whole week off. Since she normally filmed Walking Dead on Saturday and Sunday, and she had the pay-per-view this weekend, they agreed to let her miss Smackdown.

So as always Tuesday and Wednesday Tasha was on set with the rest of the Sons, it was getting to all of them, they were filming the last few episodes of their 7 season run, and none of them were ready for it to end. Spending seven years with a group of people, you get close to them, you become a family, and no one was ready to say goodbye to the SOA family.

Thursday she was with her Teen Wolf crew filming the last episode for her, for at least a month. The next few episodes would be focusing on the rest of the pack, so they didn’t need her to be there. Tyler made sure she was laughing and having a good time while she was there. He knew things were rough between her and Colby, and even though things hadn’t worked out between Tyler and Tasha, she was still one of his closest friends.

Friday morning she got off the plane in Georgia and went straight to set, spending a full day getting tossed around and chased by zombies. She talked to Joe that night in her hotel room, asking him how Smackdown went. She laughed as he told her how he had gotten the best of Seth once again, consequently making Rusev an enemy of Rollins as well.

Tasha was exhausted on Sunday morning when she arrived at the arena for Night of Champions. In the last five days she hadn’t slept more than four hours a day, her body was begging her to lay down, if only for a little while.

Joe noticed how tired she looked, and after a small argument that Tasha surprisingly gave into, a cause of her being so tired, Joe made her go to the locker room and lay down for awhile. He promised he would come wake her before it was time to go out, giving her time to change and have her hair and makeup done.

As promised he woke her up a few hours later when the show was getting underway. Tasha felt better than she had in several days, thanking Joe she headed to catering to get some food and a water. As she got her things she saw Colby come into the room, his eyes landing on her for the first time since Monday. As much as she wanted to go over and speak to him, she was sticking to her guns, it was his turn to make the move. He needed to decide, did he want them to work out, or did he not.

As Colby turned and walked away from her, sitting down at a table with Kane and Orton, she felt he had made his decision. Blinking back her tears she strode confidently out of the room, she had shed enough tears over Colby Lopez and she’d be damned if she let anyone see her cry.

Coming into the women’s locker room she waved to the ladies inside, the occupants, Paige, AJ, Brie, Lana, Renee and Naomi waving back to her.

Sitting down on the bench she opened her water and took a sip, hearing her phone playing a familiar song she picked it up, putting it on speaker so she could still eat.

“Hey, J. Long time no talk to.” She giggled.

“Hey, pretty girl. A phone works both ways you know.”

She could hear the teasing tone in his voice, but it didn’t make her feel any better. “I’m sorry. I know I should have called you, or at least sent a text.”

“T, stop. I was kidding. We both have been really busy. You know I’m not going anywhere, you’re one of my closest friends, no matter how often we do or don’t talk.”

“Thanks, Jared. That means a lot.”

“What’s going on, blue eyes? You sound really down.”

Tasha sighed, he always knew when she wasn’t feeling well. “Just work. My schedule is crazy right now, between WWE, Sons, Teen Wolf and Walking Dead, plus personal appearances and awards shows on top of that. I’m exhausted, Jared.”

“You sound like you could use a vacation.”

“Ha, I wish.”

“I get the feeling that’s not all that’s causing you grief.”

Tasha rolled her eyes, she hated that he knew her so well. “Relationship problems.”

“Seth Rollins?” He questioned.

“How’d you know?” She said with a smile.

“We do watch you, you know. Even when we’re on the road, Shannon records it all.”

“Gotcha. Well, it’s good to know I have such dedicated fans.” She giggled.

“Smartass. I could say the same thing about you, how many tats of us do you have now?” He teased.

“Shut up. I’m not a fan, I’m family.”

“That you are. By the way Shan, Tomo and mom all send their love. We’re watching you tonight.”

“Oh, thanks. Give them my love back and tell them I miss them.”

“I will. Now back to the question you ducked, what’s up with you and Rollins?”

“Nothing now. We started dating finally two months ago, and then three weeks ago everything changed. I haven’t spoken to him in almost a month, no calls, no texts, nothing.”

“What changed?” Jared asked wanting to help her get to the bottom of her issues.

“The bosses. They decided that us being together was a risk, since we’re supposed to hate each other for our storyline. So, they forbid us from being around one another. And that’s not even a big deal, because distance shouldn’t come between a relationship. The problem is that he didn’t defend us like he did before, he just sat there and said nothing. And now he hasn’t made any effort to speak to me. I don’t even know if we’re still together or not.”

Jared sighed, he felt so bad for her, it broke his heart to hear her so down. “I’m sorry Tash. It sounds like he’s more concerned with his career, than he is with a relationship. And, you’re right, distance shouldn’t mean anything, especially when you’re in the same place at the same time constantly. All I can tell you sweetie, is don’t give up just yet. He’s young, he’s got to have some time to figure out what he wants in life. I have no doubts that he’ll realize he needs you in his life, that he’s crazy about you.”

Tasha raised her eyebrow, “And how do you know that, oh great one?”

“Cause you’re amazing. You’re beautiful, talented, funny, smart and a good person. Any guy who can’t see that, is stupid and doesn’t deserve you in the first place.”

Tasha smiled, “Thanks, Jared. What would I do without your words of wisdom?”

“You’d be a whor* like me, f*cking anything that catches your attention.”

She laughed, “When are you gonna settle down? You’re an amazing catch, Jared.”

“Naw, that’s just not in the cards for me anymore pretty girl. But if I did settle down, it’d only be with you.”

She could hear the teasing tone in his voice, “Oh, shut up. You’re such a pathological flirt. You know damn well I don’t believe a word you just said.”

“That’s why I love you, you see straight through me.” He laughed. “But seriously, if you ever need a break, even if it’s just for a night, you’re welcome wherever we are. You always have a pass with your name on it. It’s been forever since you’ve been to a show.”

“I know, I miss it. I promise I’ll come visit and see one soon.”

“I’m gonna hold you to that.”

“Okay. I gotta get ready to go out there.”

“Okay. Be careful and have fun. We’ll be watching.”

“I will. Bye, J.”

“Bye, blue eyes.”

Tasha hung up the phone smiling, feeling better than she had in the last two weeks. She looked up to find all of the girls in the room staring at her, “What?”

“And who was that?” Renee asked her.

“A friend.” She replied cryptically.

“A friend with a deep luscious voice.” AJ smirked.

Tasha rolled her eyes with a laugh, “His name is Jared. Jared Leto.”

“You’re kidding me right?” Brie asked excitedly. “He’s gorgeous. I loved him in Alexander.”

“Nope, not kidding. It was really him.”

“When did you meet him?” Paige questioned.

“I went to one of the very first concerts that his band did when they debuted in 98. 30 Seconds to Mars. It’s a band he started with his older brother Shannon, and their best friend/brother Tomo. I got to meet the whole band and we’ve been friends ever since. I was actually in one of their videos, for the song “Hurricane,” I got to have Jared manhandle me, it was fun.”

“How did we all not know about this?” Naomi says smiling.

“I don’t know, maybe cause you never asked.” Tasha laughed. Opening up her phone again she brought up the video, Jared had sent the uncensored version to her since they wouldn’t play it on TV. Turning it on she let the girls watch it while she went into the bathroom to get ready for the match.

When she came back out she was greeted with grins from all of the girls, she knew why they were looking at her like that. “Pretty hot, huh?”

“I don’t know what’s hotter, the guys or you?” Paige said grinning.

“It was all Jared, he designed everything and directed it.”

“Multitalented. Nice.” Brie said.

“Yeah, he’s amazing.” Tasha agreed. “Singer, Rockstar, guitarist, actor, director. He wears so many hats, and he’s amazing at them all.”

“Sounds like he gives good advice to.” AJ told her with a knowing look.

“Yeah, he does.” Tasha said. “And I think I’m gonna listen.”

The girls looked up as Florida-Georgia Line was introduced, Tasha smiled as she started singing along with the song playing.

“You are such a country girl.” Lana said laughing.

“I love country, it runs in my blood. And those guys are awesome. One of my favorite bands.”

“30 Seconds to Mars being your favorite right?” Lana winked.

“Of course. That’s why I have five tattoos dedicated to them.” She said showing them the bands name in glyphs with their Triad symbol across the inside of her left wrist, the secret glyphs behind her left ear, the album name and Latin sayings across her collarbones and the symbol on the back of her neck. “I’m getting another one in a few weeks after I finish filming Sons.”

“Those are awesome.” All the girls agreed.

Tasha bid the girls goodbye as she headed up to the curtain to meet up with John for his match. Smiling as Tyler and BK from Florida-Georgia Line came walking past her.

“Tyler. BK. So good to see you.” She said kissing their cheeks and hugging them.

“Good to see you too. It’s been awhile.” Tyler told her.

“Yes it has. Too long. I hear you guys are joining us for Tribute to the Troops, I can’t wait.”

“You gonna be there?” BK asks.

“Of course. John and I haven’t missed a Tribute to the Troops since we started it. It’s literally the one show I look forward to most all year long.”

“Well, awesome. Maybe we’ll get you to sing with us.” Tyler said smiling.

“Maybe. That’d be fun.”

“Well, we brought you something.” BK smiled pulling a small case out from behind his back, handing it to her. “The first copy to be released.”

Tasha beamed as she saw their new album in her hands, the cover boasting their signatures. “Guys, this is amazing. Thank you so much. I can’t wait to hear it.”

“Well, thank you, for supporting us.” Tyler tells her.

“Always.” She said, before bidding them goodbye as she went to see John.

She only had one match to worry about that night as Joe had been admitted the previous night for emergency hernia surgery, so he would not be competing tonight. But she still had to endure Seth Rollins coming out to talk sh*t about her brother for falling ill.

Seth Rollins strode co*ckily down to the ring to boast about Roman not being there to compete in their match. He climbed into the ring grinning like a Cheshire cat as he took a microphone from one of the techs.

“Isn’t it amazing how life works sometimes? Just crazy. I mean, one minute you’re on top of the world and the next… you’re Roman Reigns. Now my former partner and brother in The Shield was scheduled to be here tonight to face me in a one-on-one contest. Well, I got word yesterday that Roman was rushed to a hospital here in Nashville. But emergency surgery is no excuse for not showing up here tonight. But in the interest of fairness and the interest of justice, I’m gonna give Roman Reigns a chance. I’m gonna give Roman Reigns ten seconds to get here and face me, otherwise I’m gonna have to accept Roman Reigns’ forfeit and have my hand raised in victory.”

He smirked as the crowd booed him, “Referee, if you would be so kind as to ring the bell.”

The ref rings the bell and proceeds to go into a ten count, ringing the bell once he’s done and having Seth Rollins declared the winner by forfeit.

“No, no, no, no, no, look, look, it’s not official until you raise my hand.” Seth says until the ref raises his hand in victory. “Look, I know you’re disappointed, all right? I understand you all wanted to see me compete here tonight. I get it, okay? Hey, I’m disappointed too. I’m disappointed in Roman Reigns. I’m disappointed because Roman isn’t half the man that I thought he was. He’s sure not man enough to show up here tonight and face me. And he kinda leaves me in a bind. He left me high and dry and I’ve got no choice, I’ve got to rectify the situation. I got to do something to make you guys happy, right? Luckily, I am an opportunist and The Authority is all about providing opportunity. So right now, in that vain, what I’d like to do is issue an open challenge. Because that’s the kind of guy I am! That the kind of competitor I am! I’m going to issue an open challenge to anybody, anybody in that locker room who wants to come out here and have a match with me right now! Anybody? Anybody? Anybody? This is the opportunity of a lifetime. I’m giving you a chance to step into the ring with Mr. Money In the Bank! Come on, anybody.”

Of course the music that comes on isn’t what he’s expecting as Siren strides out onto the stage, a mic in her hand. “Seth. Now, I can see the look on your face, and relax, I’m not answering your challenge. Even though, I would love to stomp your face into the mat and I’m pretty sure Nashville here, would love to see me come down there and kick your ass.”

The crowd goes crazy cheering and whistling for her, she laughs as she nods. “But of course, The Authority would never allow that. So, onto why I really came out here. Do you remember about a month ago when I told you that eventually Ambrose was gonna come back and when he did, there would be nowhere for you to hide? You, you remember that right? And then I told you that with him and Roman gone, that left me to make your life a living hell. Well, I’m here to make good on my promise. I’ve found the perfect opponent for you tonight, Seth. He should be arriving any minute. You know, you really should be careful about issuing challenges like that… because you never know, who might answer that call.”

Pointing to the titan-tron above her she smirked, as the camera crews showed a cab pulling into the arena. She watched in rapt amusem*nt as Seth’s face paled when he saw who got out of the cab.

“It’s Ambrose! Dean Ambrose is here!” She heard Michael Cole yell.

Dean’s music kicked on as he ran to the ring attacking Seth, knocking him out of the ring, then being thrown over the barricade into the fans. Dean followed the two men beating the hell out of one another.

Siren scoffed, rolling her eyes as Hunter and Stephanie brought security out to keep the two men apart. However Dean had other ideas as he jumped off of one of the light fixtures and took out the entire security team.

Dean continued to beat Seth back out through the crowd, before clotheslining him back over the barricade. Seth scurries away into the ring as Dean grabbed a steel chair from the timekeepers area. But before Dean could slam the chair into Seth, security scrambled into the ring and tackled Ambrose. They placed zip ties around his wrists to subdue him, while Stephanie checked on Seth to make sure he was okay.

Siren followed the security team as they carried Dean out of the arena, she making sure that they didn’t harm him in any way.

Coming back into the building she was approached by Stephanie and Hunter, her patience waning as they smirked at her. But she didn’t allow them to say whatever it was that they wanted to, her resolve breaking as she saw Seth standing stoically behind them.

“Save it.” Siren said holding up her hand, her voice slightly breaking as she held back her tears. “You win Stephanie. You got your wish. You want that coward… keep him. He made his decision.”

Through bleary eyes Siren reached up and unclasped the necklace holding his initials, flinging the object and hitting Seth directly in his chest. “We’re done.”

Siren walked back to the locker room trying to keep herself in check, no more tears would be shed for Colby. She walked in and changed her shirt, before leaving once again to go up to the curtain and meet John for his match.

“You ready for this?” John asked her as she stood beside him, he could see her wringing her hands in trepidation.

“Yeah. I’m ready.” She said, but her tone conveyed her hesitation.

“Hey, look at me.” John said taking her face in his hands, forcing her to look at him. “I will not let anything happen to you. No matter what goes down in that ring, you stay out of it. I do not want you getting hurt like last time. Promise me.”

Siren stared into her ex-husband’s eyes, in them she saw the same fear he had the night Brock put her in the hospital on Smackdown. She nodded her head, “I promise.”

Siren and John walked out to a ruckus crowd in Nashville, many of them voicing their support for the duo. Saluting the fans the two superstars ran down to the ring, sliding in and posing for the fans.

Siren felt her heart drop to her feet as Brock’s music cued up, those first notes rocking her entire body, sending her into a near panic attack. She quickly slid out of the ring as Brock jumped up onto the apron, his pyro exploding from the turnbuckles. She managed her best glare as Brock smirked down at her, but she knew he could tell that she was scared.

As the match got started Siren stood by scared for her friend, as Brock took the fight to John, quickly locking in a submission maneuver that could break John’s arm. But John managed to grab the ropes to break the hold, but Siren could tell that his arm was hurting. She cringed as Brock suplex’ John, the start of several she thought to herself, but John immediately went back on the offense.

Throughout the match Brock continued to work on John’s left arm, continuously locking in the submission hold, coupled with several suplex’.

15 minutes later Siren was literally going crazy, the men had went back and forth the entire match. John was putting up an amazing offense this time around, the crowd going crazy every time he got the upper hand on Brock. John had managed to get Brock into his submission hold, the STFU, but Brock countered it into his hold, a Kokina clutch, the move that had broke Triple H’s arm years earlier.

Somehow, even Siren didn’t know how, John powered out of the hold and managed to get Brock on his stomach, locking in the STFU once more. Stuck in the middle of the ring, Brock had nowhere to go, not close enough to reach any of the ropes.

Siren and Paul were both screaming at their clients from the ring apron, Paul desperately willing Brock to power out and Siren telling John to hold on. John could feel Brock breaking the hold, so he stood up, picking the big man up onto his shoulders and delivering the fourth AA during the match. But just as he went for the cover, the sellout Seth Rollins slid into the ring and slammed his briefcase down into the back of Cena.

“You sonofabitch!” Siren screamed as the ref rang the bell, giving the win to John via disqualification. But everyone knew that a title cannot change hands on a disqualification, so Brock was still the champion.

John got to his feet only for Seth to slam the case into his face, knocking him out of the ring onto his back at Siren’s feet. The two former Shield mates stared at one another, both glaring holes through the other.

Siren sees Seth’s attention turn to look over his shoulder, where Brock is still down on the mat, dazed from the beating by John. She knows what he’s thinking, and she’ll be damned if this is how he’s gonna cash in. But Seth doesn’t move to cash in the case as he sees Brock trying to get to his feet, instead he drops the case and delivers a curb stomp to Brock, planting him on the canvas.

Seth then jumps out of the ring with his case in hand, handing it to the ref to cash in on Brock. Siren glances over at Brock, making her decision she climbs up onto the ring apron, perching herself on the top of the turnbuckle. Before Seth can return to the ring, Siren leaps off of the turnbuckle, wrapping her legs around his neck and planting him with her signature move, the “Siren’s Call,” a hurricanrana into a DDT, slamming his head into the floor.

Seth groggily gets to his feet, climbing into the ring to escape as John follows him inside the squared circle, determined to beat the sh*t out of him. Seth manages to get out of harms way, scurrying up the ramp to the backstage area.

Siren yells to John, but it’s too late as Brock gets to his feet and delivers an F5 to Cena. John may have won the match, but Brock still walks out the champion.

Chapter 33: Fallout

Chapter Text

The next night on RAW everyone could tell that Siren’s mood, had went from a small storm to a raging tempest. As she came into the arena, tech and crew members immediately moved out of her way as she walked to the locker room.

After changing into her ring gear she scoured the halls for the two-toned traitor, wanting to plant his head into the concrete with another DDT. After an hour of looking and asking everyone she came across, she realized that The Authority must be keeping Seth under lockdown. Which on their part was smart, as in the last 24 hours, Seth had managed to piss off quite a few people who now wanted his head on a silver platter.

The show kicked off in Memphis with Dean Ambrose and Siren making their way to the ring, much to the delight of the fans who voiced their approval.

“I’m not dead.” Dean announced, both he and Siren smirking as the crowd cheered.

“Far from it. In fact, the WWE’s ugly stepchild is back. Ever since what happened to me the last time you saw me, I’ve been a little messed up in the head. I’ve been a little loopy. I’ve been replaying the incident over and over in my mind, again and again. And the more I think about it, I can appreciate the creativity of ganging up on me, two on one, and stomping my head through the cinder blocks, it was pretty cool. Yeah. In fact, let’s take a look at it again. Let’s take a look at it one more time. Just for me.”

“Seriously, Dean?” Siren said turning her back to the screen, she didn’t need to watch it again, she could still see it vividly in her mind.

Dean rubbed his neck as if he could feel it happening to him all over again. “There it was. I got to admit, I’m kind of flattered that The Authority would go to such great lengths to get rid of me, it kinda makes me feel special. But I’m not dead. I’m not satisfied and I can hold a grudge! And I’m sick of The Authority protecting that little golden child Seth Rollins. I’m kind of getting sick of The Authority all together. So, tonight, I am The Authority and I am not leaving this ring until I get my hands on Seth Rollins, because I never get tired of punching Seth Rollins in the face.”

Dean throws the mic down and rolls out of the ring, grabbing a steel chair and tossing it over the ropes. Rolling back in he opens the chair and sits down in it, smirking he looks up at Siren and pats his knee. Rolling her eyes good-naturedly Siren walks over and sits down on Dean’s knee, however the crowd cheers as he picks her up and sits her sideways on his lap.

She drapes her arm around his neck as they wait for The Authority to come out and remove the two of them. However the music that comes on is someone else entirely, and it makes Siren co*ck an eyebrow as she glances at Dean.

John Cena walks down to the ring, rolling in he nods to Siren and Ambrose, as the two stand up from the chair. He walks over and picks up a mic, pacing around the ring, anger radiating off of him in waves.

“I’m gonna be real honest with you here, John.” Dean says picking up the chair and folding it, before kicking it out of the ring. “I really, really am bothered. I really don’t like the fact that you’re standing in the ring with me right now. You’re flying real close to a flame here, brother. John, don’t give me a reason to not like you.”

Siren steps between the two men, “Alright boys. Let’s put the big sticks away, there’s enough room here for us all. And I have a feeling Deano, you’re gonna wanna hear what John has to say.”

John smirks in response to her, “Ah, Mr. Ambrose. Mr. Ambrose, what an unfortunate turn of events. You see, you and I, we have a very similar agenda. Seth Rollins did his best to try to take you out, but last night at Night of Champions, I had Brock Lesnar beat! I was the one to beat the one, until that selfish, slimy, close-minded rubber suit-wearing jackass showed up.”

“Right.” Dean nodded, he couldn’t argue with that point.

“I should be holding the WWE championship right now. But I’m not. So, tonight, I’m cashing in. I’m cashing in my ass kicking in a bank contract on Seth Rollins! And no one is gonna stop me.”

Dean laughs, which by now everyone knows is a bad thing, as he places his hand on John’s shoulder, which John immediately slaps off. “I warned you once. Don’t get in my way.”

In response John takes off his hat and shirt, tossing them into the crowd, then he removes his dog tags, before kissing them and handing them to Siren. In response to that, Dean removes his leather jacket. Siren leans back against the turnbuckle watching the two men hose down the ring with testosterone. But anything that was going to erupt between the two was put on hold, as Triple H’s music booed throughout the arena, signaling the COO’s forthcoming.

The Authority strolls out onto the stage, Triple H, Stephanie, Kane, Randy Orton, and bringing up the rear like a scolded dog was Seth Rollins.

“Relax, before you two break into a pinch fight over something that you have no control over.” Triple H informs the men. “You both wanna fight Seth Rollins, but that’s not gonna happen tonight. Seth Rollins won’t be fighting anybody. You two will. So, tonight…”

“No, no, no. Tonight, I’m just gonna go get him myself.” John says before he tosses down the mic and jumps down out of the ring.

He’s followed immediately by Ambrose, the two men rushing The Authority members. Seth rushes into the ring to escape, but forgets that Siren is in there, until she bounces off of the ropes and slams him to the mat with a sling-blade. Rolling out of the ring quickly he tries to escape through the crowd, but Dean is close on his heels, chasing the cowardly man out through the crowd and into the backstage area. John and Siren follow closely behind the two men, all three of them landing shots to Seth at every opening.

It’s a pure melee in the back as crates and boxes are tossed and knocked over, as the two superstars and diva fight one another for a shot at the traitorous man. Siren manages to land several punches and kicks to Seth’s stomach, she’s not pulling them either, so she’s hoping he’ll have some bruises in the morning.

They chase Seth into the parking garage where he tosses a superstar onto the ground, and steals the running car, flooring it out of the arena. John, Dean and Siren stood, all of them breathing heavy as they looked at one another.

Back in the arena The Authority informs Kane that he’s going one on one with Ambrose, and Randy would be taking on Cena. Neither Kane nor Randy are thrilled about having to clean up Seth’s mess.

Randy voices his displeasure to Triple H and Stephanie, “Tell uh, Mr. Money In the Bank, stop starting fires that we have to put out.”

Siren was fuming as she walked around backstage, she had never been so angry with someone as she was with Seth right now. Getting her hands on him, even just a few shots had given her such a sense of pleasure it was kind of scary. She was convinced now that she and Colby were a lost cause, the further they all went with this storyline, the harder it was coming back from it.

And even if they could get over things, it was clear that Stephanie would never let them be together.

Siren walked beside Dean to the ring, both of them calmed down, but still fuming from earlier in the night. Siren kept a vigilant eye on the crowd and ramp, she knew Seth would be back, and chances were he would interfere in Dean or John’s match.

And that’s when he would get what was coming to him.

But at least Dean got to take out his frustrations on one of the men that tried to end his career.

Just as Siren expected though, as Dean hit “Dirty Deeds” on Kane and went for the cover, none other than Seth Rollins ran to the ring and started a beat down on Dean. Siren went to climb into the ring to aide Dean, but she was caught by Kane who pinned her arms behind her back, holding her in place. She could only watch as Seth grabbed a steel chair and brought it into the ring.

But Ambrose managed to avoid the chair shot, instead clotheslining Rollins over the top rope. But as he went to suicide dive through the ropes, Kane tossed Siren into the barricade, and then hit Dean with a punch, knocking him back into the ring. Kane followed him in and delivered a choke-slam to Dean, before walking back up the ramp.

Seth however paused a quarter of the way up the ramp, turning back he glowered at Dean and Siren, who had climbed back into the ring to check on her friend. Seth walked purposely back to the ring, climbing up onto the ring apron, but he paused as Dean rolled to his knees, grabbing the steel chair that was lying next to him.

Fearing for his safety, Seth retreated back up the ramp, smirking as though he had gotten the best of his former friends.

Backstage Kane and Seth were walking and talking when they were stopped by Triple H, Siren and Dean could see them on the big screen talking.

“That was awesome right?” Seth tells Hunter.

“It all worked out just fine, but here’s your problem, dude. You need to stop putting – setting these fires, man.”

“What are you…”

“You just need to stop doing it.”

“What do you want from me?” Seth asks.

“Listen. People are getting tired around here. Look out. Look out.” Triple H yells seconds before Dean plows into Rollins, taking him to the ground.

Dean is ripped off of Seth by Kane and security, all the while he’s screaming at Seth. “I thought you were done. I thought you were done.”

Security picks Dean up to remove him from the building, but Stephanie tells them not to. Instead they lock Dean in a janitors closet, the lunatic pounding on the door from the inside. Stephanie explains to her husband that if they throw him out, he’ll just come right back, at least locked in the room, they have him under control.

Siren is pitching things and cursing as she walks around backstage, she can’t believe that The Authority had the audacity to lock Dean up. And more so that they keep protecting Seth. Well, she would prove to them soon, that they can’t protect him all the time.

Siren cursed as she and John walked out onto the stage, her eyes finding the black table that housed the cinder blocks sitting beside the timekeeper’s area. She and John saluted the crowd before they ran down and slid into the ring with Orton, their eyes warily watching Seth and Kane who were ringside.

The match got underway between Cena and Orton, Siren on the opposite side keeping her eyes locked on Rollins and Kane. Siren laughs as the crowd starts chanting, “Let’s go, Cena” and “Cena Sucks”, John jumping around the ring as it pumped him up.

For 6 minutes the two men tore into each other in the ring, eventually it spilled out to the outside. Randy slamming John into the steel steps and then slamming him back first off of the top of the announcer’s table. The fight is then taken back into the ring, Siren still watching Kane and Rollins, who so far had not interfered in the match. But she knew it was only an amount of time before they got involved.

After a DDT to John off of the top rope, Randy coils as he prepares for the RKO. But John catches him in a drop toe hold, locking in the STFU looking for the submission win. But the match is called on a disqualification as Kane and Seth rush into the ring, beating down on John alongside Orton. John tries to fight back, but the three on one assault proves to be too much for him, as Kane plants Cena with a choke slam.

They roll John out of the ring, Seth screaming for them to take John over to the cinder blocks for the curb stomp. Siren runs over to interfere, but she’s beaten to the punch as Kane lifts the black table up revealing Ambrose of all people. The lunatic jumps up and immediately tackles Seth onto the announcer’s table, fighting off Kane and Orton along the way.

Kane manages to shove Dean up onto the announcer’s table, but Dean retaliates, jumping off and tackling all three men to the ground where he proceeds to pummel Seth. He picks Seth up and tosses him back into the ring, as he enters the ropes Seth nails him sending him back first into the ropes. But that was a mistake for Rollins as Dean uses the ropes as leverage for a vicious clothesline, that sends Rollins into a full backflip before he hits the canvas face first.

Kane climbs into the ring grabbing Ambrose by the throat looking for a choke slam, but he’s deterred by Cena who slams into him, causing him to release the lunatic fringe. John and Dean then take out Kane and Orton as Seth runs like a scalded dog out through the crowd. Siren climbs into the ring with the two men, all three of them staring down Rollins as RAW goes off the air.

Chapter 34: 30 Seconds to Happiness

Chapter Text

Since she had a break from filming SOA and Teen Wolf for the week, Tasha headed to Main Event with Jon, they were scheduled as guests on Miz TV.

Despite her heart breaking, Tasha seemed to be dealing with things well, she was channeling all of her emotions into Siren’s rage against Seth. She had come to grips that there was no hope for her and Colby, so there was nothing for her to do than move on.

Siren and Dean walked hand in hand down to the ring after Miz announced them, Dean holding the ropes like a gentleman for Siren to enter. She had chosen to wear something a little sexier than her usual ring gear, mostly to show Colby what he had given up. She had on the LBD that Seth had bought her for their date and black ankle boots, her hair was down and she had light makeup on.

The two sat down in the chairs beside Miz, both of them glancing to one another in confusion as Miz spoke and Mizdow copied him like a puppet. It was really weird to sit and watch, and kind of distracting, as you didn’t know which one of them to look at.

“You know, Dean, we’ve got a lot to talk about. But take out this week, it’s been a long time since we’ve seen you. August 18^th to be exact when this happened.”

The showed the footage of Seth slamming Dean’s head into the cinder blocks once again.

“You know, uh, my inside sources say that doctors believe that you sustained significant head and spine trauma. But no one really knows for sure because you refused treatment and, all of a sudden, disappeared. So I’ve got to ask you, where did you go and what kind of antipsychotic drugs did they put you on when you got there?”

Dean smiled, which was usually a very bad thing. “You think you’re funny, Miz?”

“He is funny. Very, very, funny.” Damien said, backing up his boss like a good little stunt double.

“You think that’s a joke?” Siren snapped, tossing an icy glare Miz’ way.

“No. But your skull was put into a pile of concrete which should have shattered your entire head. But somehow you just walked away from it.”

“A normal person, doesn’t walk away from that. But I’m not a normal person. I’m Dean Ambrose. I might go down. But I don’t stay down. And you might not think it right now, but The Authority has picked a fight that they can’t win.”

“You know what I think?”

“Oh, please Miz, tell us. Because we all care so much about what a B-list celebrity thinks.” Siren snarked, her sarcasm rolling off her tongue.

“I think you’re both insane. I think that everyone here thinks that you’re both insane. And I’ll prove my theory. Last Monday on RAW, nothing could stop you from getting to Seth Rollins. Not even a locked room, being shoved in a locked room, being guarded by The Authority’s personal security team. Then you escaped which leads to this.”

Dean is laughing, biting his thumb nail, as they watch him taking the fight to Rollins and Kane last night.

“Y’all like that?” Miz asks and the crowd cheers. “They seem to like that. But what I want is the breaking news. You can trust me. How did you get out of the room? Did you blow it up? Did you have an accomplice? Did Siren trick the guards to leave? Give me the scoop. Talk to me. How did you get out? How did you pull it off?”

Dean and Siren glanced at one another, before Dean shrugged, “It’s simple. There was a back door.”

“A back door. Gee, thanks. That’s--that’s the big scoop? That’s, that’s it?”

Dean chuckles, “That’s all I’ve got for you. The Authority put me in a room with two doors. I mean I’m not Houdini, you know. Sorry if you feel cheated.”

“Cheated?” Miz says getting testy.

Siren rolled her eyes knowing this was going to start a tangent about him losing his title to Dolph last night.

“Oh, you think this makes me feel cheated? You think this is me being cheated? No, no, no, no. What happened on Monday Night RAW, that is the Miz getting cheated because Dolph Ziggler cheated to take my Intercontinental championship! He cheated!”

Dean is so confused by Damien copying Miz, that he’s not even paying attention to Miz’ ranting.

“He cheated! He grabbed the tights! You saw it. They saw it. Dolph Ziggler knows it. The referee saw it. I will start a petition, a petition to The Authority. That is being cheated! That is what cheating is all about! Do you hear me? Do you get it through your thick skull?”

Siren sits back in her chair smiling as Miz gets up in Dean’s face, a second later she’s clapping her hands and laughing as Dean head butts Miz right in the forehead. He gets up and tosses Damien out of the ring, before grabbing Miz and delivering “Dirty Deeds” and the man, planting him on the canvas.

Siren laughs out loud as Dean touches his forehead, yelling out, “Ow!”

She watches him pick an unconscious Miz up and set him back in his chair, placing his sunglasses on and putting the mic in his hand.

“Thank you, Miz, you’ve been a great host. We’ll see you next time on Miz TV.”

Dean and Siren smile as he helps her down out of the ring and the two walk back up the ramp to the backstage area.

Tasha spends her days off hanging out with Jon, Renee and Nick, otherwise known as Dolph Ziggler, he and Tasha had been hanging out quite a bit in the last week. The four of them going out sightseeing, the two women going out shopping while the guys went to the gym. It was relaxing to not worry about what was going to happen on Smackdown, nor think about Colby.

As they were walking into the arena in Little Rock, Arkansas, on Thursday for Smackdown, Tasha saw Colby down the hallway, she couldn’t help but smile as she saw the small bruises that littered his torso from her punches and kicks on Monday. Those dark little marks gave her a sense of peace and contentment for the time being.

Kicking off the show was Siren and Dean coming down to the ring for his match against Miz. After what had happened on Main Event, Miz wanted retribution against Ambrose.

Siren kicked back leaning against the barricade chatting with the fans behind her, watching as Dean embarrassed Miz throughout the match. Miz constantly trying to escape the ring, to avoid Ambrose’s wrath, and the punches to his money-maker face. Every time Miz rallied, Dean was right there to knock him back down.

As nonchalant as she looked Siren was watching the match carefully, keeping her eyes on Mizdow in case he decided to get involved. And when he did Siren was quick to run over and take the man’s feet out from under him, knocking him down to the floor.

As Miz went for the figure-four, Dean countered it, bouncing off the ropes and clotheslining Miz to the canvas. But his attention was taken off of the match, as was Siren’s as they both saw Seth Rollins and Kane walk out onto the top of the ramp. Miz tried to take advantage of the distraction going fro his “Skull Crushing Finale”, but Dean was quick to counter into “Dirty Deeds”. Staring at Seth as he delivered it and covered Miz for the pinfall.

Siren moved around the ring as Kane and Rollins continued their walk down the ramp. Climbing up on either side of the ring, the two men stalking Ambrose. The two men climbing in and immediately attacking Dean, who fought back the best that he could against the two on one attack. Again he hit Seth with a clothesline, nearly taking his head off, sending him flipping 360 degrees.

A grin split Siren’s face as she saw Seth’s briefcase lying on the mat unprotected. Forming a plan in her mind she casually walked around the ring and picked up the case. Whistling at Dean to catch his attention, she held up the case, Dean grinning as he rolled out of the ring. The two hopped over the barricade, running up the stairs into the crowd, the case in Siren’s hand. Seth stood on the second rope glowering as he held his aching throat, screaming at Siren to give him the case back.

Smiling bright she held the case up over her head, loving the look of anger and hatred Seth was throwing her way. Finally he felt like she did a week ago.

Dean and Siren laughed as they went backstage, both of them ducking into Siren’s locker room before Seth could find them. The two of them were done for the night, so they quickly changed and then headed out to the rig to wait for their companions to finish their night.

Once Smackdown was over Renee and Nick joined the two in the rig, the group chatting and laughing as they drove to Chicago for RAW, Seth’s briefcase sitting like a trophy on the table.

When they arrived in Chicago Tasha got an unexpected phone call from Jared, his band happened to be playing a concert there on Saturday.

“So, will you please come?” Jared asked.

Tasha laughed as he drew out the “e” in please, like a little kid wanting to get their way. “I’d love to. Do you mind if I bring a few friends?”

“Not at all, the more the merrier. How many passes do you need?”

“Five including me. Please.”

“Done. I’ll see you on Saturday pretty girl. Shayla will meet you at will call at 6, we go on at 8.”

“Sounds good. I’ll see you then, J. Bye.”

“Can’t wait, pretty girl. Bye.”

So on Saturday Tasha dolled herself up, her outfit consisting of black leather pants, red high-top Converse sneakers that Jared bought her and a red 30 Seconds To Mars racerback tank top. She brushed out her hair and let it hang down her back, putting on some mascara to highlight her blue eyes and pulling on a black and red 30 Seconds To Mars hat backwards.

Gathering up her friends they headed out to the car and Daryl drove them to the arena. Tasha had tried to convince Daryl to join them, but he declined, concerts weren’t really his thing.

When they got out of the car the group followed Tasha up to the will call area where a pretty blonde woman greeted them. “Tasha, so good to see you again.”

Tasha smiled hugging the woman, “Hey, Shayla. Good to see you too. These are my friends Joe, Jon, Renee and Nick. Guys this is Shayla, she’s the one that keeps this crazy band in line.”

They all chuckled as they shook hands in greeting, Shayla then passed them their passes and lead them into the arena. “The guys just finished sound check so they should be in the green room relaxing.”

Sure enough when Shayla opened the door Tasha found the three guys sprawled out on the couches inside. Jared jumped up immediately as he caught sight of his friend, “There’s my pretty girl,” rushing over and gathering Tasha up in his arms. She laughed as he swung her around, a squeal leaving her mouth as both Shannon and Tomo ran over and joined in on the hug, squeezing her body between them.

“Alright, guys, I missed you too. Can’t breath.” Tasha said laughing as the guys released her from their hold.

“We’ve missed you blue eyes.” Shannon said kissing the side of her head.

“I’ve missed you guys too. Let me introduce you to my friends. This is Joe, Jon, Renee and Nick. Guys, this is the best band and friends in the world, Jared, Shannon and Tomo.”

After the introductions were made the group sat around chatting, the band confessed how they watched every RAW, Smackdown and pay-per-view, and Renee was embarrassed as Jon announced that she had seen all of Jared’s movies.

By the time 8 rolled around the two groups were hanging out like they had been friends for years. Jared took Tasha’s hand, leading the way up to the side of the stage where they would watch the show from. Tasha danced and sang along to the songs as the band played, her friends joining her, they were all having an amazing time.

When the concert hit halfway Jared took the stage alone holding his acoustic guitar. “So, before we sing the next couple of songs, I want you guys to meet someone. Hey, Siren, come here.” He held out his hand towards the side of the stage.

Tasha shook her head smiling as she walked out onto the stage, those in the crowd that recognized her started cheering. She took Jared’s outstretched hand allowing him to pull her into his side.

“So, for those of you who don’t know who this beauty beside me is, allow me to introduce you to my best friend, Siren. She is a manager for World Wrestling Entertainment. She’s also has starring roles on Sons of Anarchy, Teen Wolf and The Walking Dead.”

Tasha smiled and waved to the crowd as they cheered for her. Jared pointed to the stage beside him, indicating for Tasha to take a seat, which she did.

“Siren’s been having a rough time over the last couple of months, so, these next two songs are dedicated to her.”

Tasha smiled as Jared started to play “Hurricane” the video of which she had participated in. She held up her phone and videotaped that as well as his next song, her favorite, which was called “The Kill.”

After the songs she waved goodbye to the crowd as she went back over to the side of the stage with her friends. They stood around enjoying the rest of the songs, taking pictures of one another.

At the end of the concert they all stood on the stage with the band and the crowd in the background, as Shayla took pictures of them all. Then she took one of just Tasha with the band and one of Tasha and Jared by themselves.

By they time they bid goodbye to the band and headed back to the hotel, Tasha was feeling better than she had in over a month. It was amazing what good friends could do for your mood.

Colby was laying in bed in his hotel room scrolling through his Instagram feed when he saw that Tasha had posted pictures. He couldn’t help but feel like he was an outsider looking in, as he looked through the photos of her with their friends. He had to smile as he saw her blue eyes and bright smile as she stood with Jared and the band.

He watched the videos she posted of the two songs Jared dedicated to her, he felt as though the lyrics were being sung straight to him. He liked all of the photos and videos, he wanted to comment, but he knew that would only bring heat to her from The Authority. He fell into a restless sleep that night wondering if he had lost the thing that meant more to him than anything, for good.

Chapter 35: Architect's Surprise

Chapter Text

Colby was standing in the parking lot on Monday, removing his bags from his rental car, when he heard a melodious laugh coming from behind him. He knew that laugh no one sounded like her, he looked over his shoulder to see Tasha’s rig parked about twenty yards from him, his blood boiling at the sight that met his eyes.

His girlfriend on the back of the Intercontinental Champion, Dolph Ziggler, his title fastened around her waist as he piggybacked her into the arena. Behind the twosome was Jon and Renee, both of them laughing as Tasha spurred Nick on like a horse.

‘She’s not your girlfriend anymore. You made that decision.’

Colby growled, his internal voice mocking him as he watched Tasha laugh, her legs wrapped tight around Nick’s waist, his hands gripping her thighs. He couldn’t help but wonder, if he won the World Heavyweight title how she would look with it around her waist. Slamming the trunk of his car shut, he drug his bags inside the building to his locker room.

Seth was having a horrible night, first he was disrespected by Paul Heyman, who told him that the next time he tried to pull one over on Brock Lesnar, that he would not be dealing with Paul Heyman, but the beast incarnate himself. Then he was told by his security that they couldn’t find Siren or Dean anywhere in the arena, so they hadn’t found his case yet.

Then as Seth walked out of the office he got the worst blow of the night, as he caught sight of Siren standing by the curtain with Dolph. His heart dropped to his feet as he saw her lean up and place a kiss on his cheek, wishing him luck before he went out to defend his title.

He stood in the shadows of the hallway, watching her throughout the match as she cheered for Dolph. He couldn’t help but wonder if that’s what she looked like during his matches, before he screwed up. He admired her new shirt she was wearing in honor of Susan G. Komen partnering once again with WWE. It was a hot pink crop top t-shirt, the words “Summon the Storm” across the front and her symbol, an intertwined S & R on the back.

Staying back so she couldn’t see him, he watched as she congratulated Dolph on his win, kissing his cheek once more before they walked away down the hall.

The Authority had been searching for Siren and Dean Ambrose all night long, even threatening to fire J&J Security if they didn’t find them and return the briefcase.

However Dean and Siren at that moment were out in the ring, Dean setting up a table, while Siren set the case down on it. While Dean grabbed a mic, Siren sat on the edge of the table, her hand stroking the golden case beside her.

“Hey for those of you who were looking for us earlier, we were up in the concession stand the whole time. You walked right by us and we waved, but I think you were eating a hot dog or something. Anyway, while my girl and I were up there we decided, we don’t like the way The Authority runs their merchandise stands. So tonight right here in Chicago, we’re gonna have a Dean Ambrose and Siren clearance sale.”

Dean opens up the duffle bag he had with him, pulling out a whole stack of t-shirts, some Ambrose, Siren, Reigns and even Rollins merchandise.

“Everything must go.”

“Yes. Everything except for this of course.” Siren said holding the briefcase. “This is priceless.”

Dean nods in agreement with her, “In our short time together, me and this briefcase, have gotten—well, we’ve gotten really close. I went through this briefcase earlier and I found some of Seth Rollins’ personal items. And when we were in The Shield we were close, we were like brothers, but I never knew you had that side to you, Seth.”

Siren clapped her hand over her mouth, she was trying so hard not to laugh, but she couldn’t stop herself, and most of the audience couldn’t earlier.

“Now, I know why you want this back so bad, but you’re not gonna get it. Everything else though, up for sale. Somebody make me an offer? What do these things go for? 19.99? I’m a very cheap man and I enjoy the inexpensive things in life. So let’s start the bidding at one dollar. Buck for a t-shirt—we got John Cena t-shirts if you’re a—if you’re into that sort of thing.”

Dean hears the crowd booing, thinking it’s because of the t-shirt he frowns, “Let’s put that down then.”

But Siren points to the real cause of the boos, J&J Security walking down the ramp to the ring, the two men looking like two mini trolls in cheap suits.

Dean continues talking picking up one of his tank tops and reading the front, “How dare they call me unstable, what is this? Uh-oh, they sent the Cruiserweight division out to get us. Oh, no.”

The two climb up on the apron, not stupid enough to get into the ring with the two lunatics. “You want me to throw it?” Dean asks pointing to the case. “I’m not gonna throw it. It’s very valuable, I’m not gonna throw the briefcase. Okay, you guys are gonna have to stop being so intimidating, all right, if you wanna get through to me and reach me. Bring it down just a tad, and if you guys want this briefcase, that’s fine. Come in here and get it.”

Both Dean and Siren stare down the two men, neither of them looking like they want to get into the ring with the lunatic fringe or the storm. They jump down off of the ring heading back up the ramp, while the two lunatics smile.

“All right. I forgot what I was charging for these things, and I stole them all, anyway. So, what the hell? You want ‘em for free?”

Both Siren and Dean take handfuls of the shirts and start flinging them out into the crowd. By the time they were done Seth’s music kicked on, and the man they had been trying to get their hands on for weeks walked out onto the stage.

Of course he wasn’t gonna come in the ring and get it himself, and neither were the two trolls, no, they brought out a gaggle of security guards to retrieve it.

“We’re busted, darlin’.” Dean said smirking as the security stood in front of the ring. “I don’t know, though. Are you guys real security? Because I could’ve sworn you were rosebuds last week. All right, all right, all right, all right. All right. We’ve had our fun, I’m sorry, all right? Take your briefcase back, all right? We don’t want any problems, take it. Take the case, Seth. You’re Mr. Money In the Bank, take the case, I’m sorry.”

Dean takes Siren’s hand as they slide out of the ring, “We don’t want no problems.”

Seth climbs into the ring as Siren and Dean hop over the barricade and move up through the WWE Universe, the two of them still apologizing as they climbed up the stairs.

Seth opens the case, still looking over his shoulder at his former friends, wondering why they were giving up so easily. But, when he looked back down at the case as he opened it, he got his answer as a mist of green slime struck him in the face.

Both Siren and Dean looked mortified as they stood on the stairs, however Siren’s mouth was hidden behind her hands as she started laughing.

“I had nothing to do with that I swear. I’m sorry.” Dean said laughing as he held his hands up.

However Siren proudly held up her hand, revealing her as the culprit. “Nope, that was all me.”

The two of them continue laughing as Seth goes into a complete temper tantrum in the ring, ripping off his jacket, his beard covered in the green slime.

Siren and Dean walk backstage to the cheers and applause of their fellow superstars, the ones that had also had enough of Seth Rollins and The Authority.

“Thank you. Thank you very much.” Siren says giving them an extravagant bow.

John Cena shook his head laughing as he pulled Siren into his arms. “You are an evil bitch.”

“Well, what’s that phrase about a scorned woman?” She grinned, making everyone around her laugh.

“That was amazing.” Dolph told her as he gave her a high-five.

“I’ll bet Seth’s thinking twice about ever crossing you.” AJ told her, very upset with the way that Seth was acting with her friend.

Siren’s face adopted her infamous feral grin, “Oh, you guys, that was just the beginning. I am far from done with Seth Rollins.”

Back in the office Seth is complaining to The Authority about what just happened to him. Triple H is hiding his face in his hand, trying so hard not to laugh.

“I could have been permanently blinded, okay?”

Orton and Kane however had no problem as they burst into laughter.

“What you think this is funny? You think this is funny?”

“Oh, yeah.” Randy says laughing harder.

“All right. All right.” Hunter says calming Seth down. “Calm down, all right. Your eyes are burning? Just get to the trainer, get him to rinse your eyes out, all right.”

“And it’s not funny.” Seth snaps before he walks out of the room.

“Where’s Siren and Ambrose?” Triple H asks Kane.

“Last report had them headed to John Cena’s locker room.”

“Well, that’s great. So find somebody to go inform Ambrose and Mr. Cena that they’re gonna be competing in a tag team match against the two of you.”

“Oh, no, wait a minute.” Randy says putting up his hands. “Hold on, buddy. We—this last week, we got to fight Seth’s battles again this week?”

“Did you just see Seth? Obviously, he can’t compete. And after what Cena and Ambrose did to you two last week, I would think you would be chomping at the bit to get back at them. No?”

Randy and Kane both glance at one another in reluctance, suddenly Randy hears some sort of buzzing sound that catches his attention. “What’s that sound? That you?”

“No. It’s not my phone.” Hunter says.

“I don’t have mine.” Kane tells them.

They all look at Stephanie and she holds up her phone in her hand. “It’s not mine.”

All eyes in the room move to the briefcase sitting on the table, it’s shuddering as the buzzing is coming from inside of it.

Suddenly Seth comes back in and grabs the case off of the table, glaring at them all for the insinuation they had in their minds. “It’s an electric razor.”

“You really think it was a razor?” John asked as he sat in his locker room with Ambrose and Siren, the instant grin that lit up his ex-wife’s face told him she knew what it was. “What did you do?”

“I may, have added, something else besides the slime.” She grinned.

“Like what?”

She started laughing, “I may have put a vibrator inside the case.”

The three of them literally doubled over in laughter, as they thought about what Seth’s face would look like when he found that in the case.

Just before their match that night John and Siren are being interviewed by Renee Young. “John, tonight, you’re pairing up with Dean Ambrose to take on Kane and Randy Orton. How do you think that’s gonna work out for you tonight?”

“Well, after listening to the WWE Universe here tonight. I love this place. They are always, always loud and proud. If I can quote old blue eyes, this is my kind of town. But tonight…” John can hear the roaring of the crowd and he laughs. “…tonight, the Windy City, well they seem kind of unstable, because you and I both heard that the entire WWE Universe here tonight chanting his name Ambrose, Ambrose, Ambrose, Ambrose. So, as far as tonight’s concerned, well, I’m glad I’m fighting with him as opposed to against him.

But that’s just for our tag team match with Randy and Kane. See, Dean Ambrose and I have the same target in our sights, and that’s Seth Rollins. And if he’s unstable enough to get…”

John sees Dean walk up out of the corner of his eye, standing behind Renee and Siren as he wraps his hands. “…in between, Mr. Ambrose, would you like to add something?”

“Oh, not really. No. Just that, after we’re done with Kane and Orton tonight, Rollins is mine.”

“If Seth Rollins dare show his face tonight before, during, or after our match, he’s got a beat down coming by my hands. And I’m cashing in.”

“Right. Just remember, John. Nobody takes food off my plate. Not even you. See you out there.”

Siren waves to the fans as she and Dean make their way down to the ring for the tag team match. John follows them down, both men pulling off their t-shirts readying for the impending fight.

Kane comes down first followed by the Viper, as Siren rolls out of the ring taking her place by the apron, as the match gets underway with John and Randy starting things off.

Randy and Kane manage to isolate John for most of the match, keeping him away from his corner. Siren can see Dean foaming at the mouth to get into the match, as he’s pacing up and down the ring apron beside her.

Finally John manages to flip Randy over the ropes, giving him a breather, and an ample opportunity to get to his corner and tag in Dean. Siren slams her hand down on the canvas, trying to will John to his feet to make the tag.

John finally makes the tag to Dean, the lunatic explodes out of the corner taking the fight to Kane and Orton. Delivering a vicious clothesline to Randy Orton, followed by “Dirty Deeds”, Dean goes for the cover and the win. But the count is halted by Seth Rollins, who slides into the ring and attacks Ambrose, causing the disqualification.

Dean manages to knock Seth out of the ring, while Cena takes the fight to Kane, who he knocks over the top rope. Siren slides into the ring, giving a glance over to Dean she nods, the two bounce off of the ropes and suicide dive through the opposite side onto the two men. Siren takes out Seth, her body crashing into his torso, knocking the wind out of him. But Ambrose isn’t as lucky, as Kane recovers enough to back up a step so that Ambrose barely grazes him, sending Dean falling to the floor hard.

Both Dean and Seth get back to their feet, Ambrose chasing Rollins around the ring. Seth suddenly finds himself caught between a lunatic and a soldier, both of them itching to get a piece of the Architect. The two men toss Seth back into the ring where they both fight over the man, literally shoving one another aside just to get a punch in.

Siren slides into the ring, handing Seth’s briefcase to Ambrose who had just tossed Cena outside to the floor. Her eyes filled with angry tears as she stared down Seth, who was now pleading with the two not to attack. From behind Randy hits Dean with the RKO, while outside Kane nails Cena with a huge right hand.

The diva stands alone in the ring, Ambrose at her feet, with three men surrounding her. Staring down Seth as he stands in front of her she eggs him on, “Come on. Come on, Seth. Do it you coward!”

Seeing that he wasn’t going to do what was necessary, Kane took it upon himself to grab Siren and choke slam her to the mat. He then grabbed Dean and delivered a choke slam to him as well per Rollins orders.

“Let’s finish him.” Seth tells Randy and Kane.

“What do you want to do man?” Randy asks him.

“Bring his ass over here.” Seth says placing the briefcase on the mat.

Randy and Kane hold Dean’s head over the briefcase, as Seth bounces off of the ropes and curb stomps his head off of the metal case. John gets back into the ring trying to take on the three men, but an RKO from Orton, followed by a choke slam stops him in his tracks. They then hold John while Seth curb stomps his head into the case as well.

Tasha cracks her neck as she walks from the arena to her rig, alongside her Jon and Renee are silent. None of them have spoken about what happened in the ring.

Daryl drops Tasha off at the airport for her flight to Cali, then he drove the other two to the next town for Smackdown.

Tasha reveled being on set with the Sons, it gave her a release from her frustrations caused by Colby. Not only was her head still aching from the choke slam, but her heart was aching as well. No matter what he did, Tasha could not change how she felt about Colby. She had never felt this way about another man, not even John, she loved Colby with all of her heart.

Try as she might to hate him, she knew that she couldn’t, her heart wouldn’t allow her to. She had been trying since they had split to forget about him, but as soon as she started to, she had to go right back to work and see him.

Chapter 36: This Is Goodbye, My Heart

Chapter Text

When she arrived at the arena in Milwaukee for Smackdown, she was greeted immediately by Nick, who handed her a big fluffy black teddy bear.

“What is this for?”

“Every girl needs a teddy bear when she’s feeling down.” He told her with his crooked smile.

Tasha smiled in return, giving him a large hug and a kiss on his cheek. “Thank you. I’m so lucky to have a friend like you.”

Nick nodded his head as he walked with her towards the locker rooms, “So, has he pulled his head out of his ass yet?”

“Nope. Still nothing.”

“He’ll come around. He’ll realize that he made the biggest mistake of his life when he allowed the bosses to dictate his life, and in turn lost you, the best thing he ever had.” Nick told her as they arrived at the women’s locker room. “But, until then, I will keep hanging around you and making him as jealous as we possibly can.”

Tasha laughed, “I love you, thank you. You’re such a good friend.”

“I know I am.” He laughed kissing her cheek, before bidding her goodbye.

As Smackdown kicked off John was in the ring bitching about Ambrose and Rollins, when Dean and Siren came down to the ring to interject their opinions.

“Sorry to disappoint you, John, but in case you haven’t noticed, you’re not the only one who has issues with authority. I got a lot of issues, actually. Especially as it pertains to Seth Rollins, but I plan on working those issues out because I plan on making Seth Rollins pay.”

“Alright, enough. Enough. Mr. Ambrose, I don’t wanna do this with you.”

“You’re right. You don’t wanna do this with me. And I don’t wanna do this with you, I don’t need to, but Seth Rollins is kind of my thing. Monday night, you got in my way.”

“Oh, I got in your way? That’s how you see it. This is how I see it. You’ve been on some hard times, and you’ve been here for a while, and you’ve had a few matches, congratulations. But you have no idea what it’s like to step on a canvas and face Brock Lesnar, and I do. And I had Brock Lesnar beat. I had the beast slayed. And Seth Rollins took that from me.”

“You lost one night. I almost lost my whole career. I got my head put through cinder blocks. And I’ll be damned if I’m gonna let anybody else wipe that smug look off of Seth’s face for good, but me, especially you.”

John smirked as the crowd cheered, “You got guts, Mr. Ambrose. And there’s no reason we should waste our time beating the crap out of each other. We both want Seth Rollins and sooner or later one of us is gonna get him. But if we keep running around doing this crap, all we’re gonna do is get left laying by The Authority just like we did Monday on RAW. I’ll tell you what, truce.”

John holds out his hand, Siren can see the irritation on Dean’s face as he tosses his mic to the ground.

“Truce. You get to him first, you get to him. I get to him first, I get him. But we stay focused. Truce.”

Dean curses under his breath as he contemplates his choices, finally holding his hand out. But before he takes John’s hand, they turn hearing Randy’s voice on the big screen.

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t my new favorite bromance. And Siren, the venom to my viper.”

Siren rolls her eyes as Randy hits on her, something that isn’t new to her, he’d done it a lot over their years of friendship. On the screen beside him stands Kane and Seth, the battered briefcase in his hand.

“You know, I think I speak for all three of us when I say we are very happy, very happy indeed to see you two working things out. You know what? I always thought that you, Dean and John, you guys needed a friend and frankly, you guys deserve each other.”

“Dean, Seth told us what you used to say about John when you were in The Shield. What was it? Something like—I remember. You said that John was nothing more than an overhyped action figure who couldn’t wrestle his way out of a box of cereal.”

Randy nodded in agreement, “You know what Kane, I do recall that. I also seem to recall, John, a while back in the locker room, you saying some things about Ambrose as well. You said that Ambrose was a nut job, who was gonna self-destruct just like every other wannabe who’s thought that he could get over in this business by pretending to be crazy.”

“Now, Randy, I’m sure that neither John nor Dean cares about what the other has said about them in the past. Right, guys? So, if you’ve really mended fences. If you’ve really learned your lesson from last Monday, let’s put it to the test by putting the two of you in a match against me and Randy Orton later tonight. And we’ll see if you can work as a team for a change, or if the Lunatic Fringe and Cenation destroy each other. I know where I’m placing my bets.”

Kane glances over to Rollins who has stood stoic the entire time, his knuckles turning white as he clutches the briefcase in his hands. He says nothing, just glares at the three people in the ring, hatred in his eyes.

Backstage Siren scoffs, “Well, it’s good to know that they haven’t grown up at all. Seriously, who still uses the he said this about you tactic? What are we in high school again?”

Both John and Dean chuckled, they both knew they hadn’t said anything about the other one, they actually admired the other for his work ethic.

Dean and Siren had an interview with Renee just before their match with John. Renee smiling as the two walked up and stood beside her.

“Dean, how do feel about teaming up with John Cena again tonight?”

“I got nothing to say about John Cena. I got nothing to say to John Cena. But, let’s talk about the guy that’s in all three of our crosshairs, Seth Rollins.” He says glancing over at Siren who stands beside him, her jaw muscles clenching at the traitors name.

“Now ass kicking’s a part of our business, Seth knows that’s what he signed up for. But embarrassing Seth Rollins, stealing his Money In the Bank briefcase, spraying him with a mysterious green mist, that’s the kind of thing an egomaniac like him just can’t stand. And while that’s fun for us, no amount of embarrassment we can put Seth Rollins through will erase the memory of my head being driven through cinder blocks. So, I will go through everybody The Authority wants to put in front of me. Kane, Randy Orton, Jamie Noble, Joey Mercury, the bunny, the gator, all of them. Nothing will get in my way, nothing will stop me from getting to Seth Rollins.”

Kane and Orton entered the ring first for the tag match, followed by John Cena, then Dean and Siren who received the biggest pop from the crowd as they came out on stage. Both former members of The Shield looked ready for a fight, more than ready to throw down in and out of the ring.

Siren stood outside the ring watching as the match got underway, her eyes flicking from the ring to the ramp. She knew Seth would make an appearance at some point, when the best opportunity presented itself. And so far, John and Dean seemed to be getting along fine, each of them tagging one another in and out, and even pulling some double teaming on Kane and Orton.

As they neared the end of the match things got interesting, in the fact that John deserted Dean as he caught sight of Rollins on the ramp and gave chase after the two-toned man, leaving Dean to fend for himself. In the ring Kane struck Dean in the face with a boot forcing the referee to call for the disqualification, giving the win to Cena and Ambrose.

But they weren’t done there as the two Authority men laid into Ambrose, pulverizing the lunatic as he laid defenseless on the mat. Randy smirked at Siren who stood outside the ring as Kane delivered a choke slam to Dean, followed by an RKO from Randy. They both stood over the man, Randy motioning for Siren to get in the ring, which to his surprise she did, but before the two men could do anything to her, Cena ran back down and slid into the ring.

Kane and Orton retreated back up the ramp, smiling, having got the best of John thanks to Seth Rollins.

In the ring John looked up at Siren, her face contorted in anger, but now her anger was directed at him. John saw her raise her hand, he knew what was coming and he didn’t try to stop her, he had it coming. Her hand whipped across his cheek, sending a shock of pain through his face.

At that moment Seth Rollins walked out onto the stage, smirking as he caught sight of Siren slapping Cena. The three Authority men laughed, knowing they had bested Ambrose, Siren and Cena, and knowing that this would add another complication to the new bromance.

Tasha left the arena that night, more angry than she had been when the night had started. As she flew to Georgia to film, she did something that she hadn’t done in years. She pulled out a piece of paper and wrote a letter, to Colby. She may not always be able to say what she wanted to out loud, but if you gave her a pen and paper, she could write in detail every thing that she was feeling.

After she finished the letter, she actually felt a small weight lifted off of her shoulders. Writing down every single thing that she wanted to say to Colby’s face, gave her a sense of pleasure. Whether or not he actually read it was up to him, but at least she now could tell him how she feels.

Daryl, Jon and Renee picked her up on Monday afternoon at the airport, then drove to the arena for RAW. Tasha had the letter for Colby in the back pocket of her jeans, she could hear the paper wrinkling as she walked. She wasn’t sure when she’d give it to him, not having seen him besides out in the ring and she wanted to avoid that scandal if she could.

After going to the women’s locker room and changing into her outfit for the night, she took the letter in her hand and set out to find Colby. However as it neared show time she resigned herself to the fact that she was going to have to wait until later, as she hadn’t seen any sign of him at all. She knew he was supposed to kick off the show, so she waited by the curtain, she would hand it to him as soon as he came back from the ring.

Since he had no problem breaking her heart on RAW, then emphasizing it at Night of Champions, she saw no reason not to give it to him now, instead of waiting until after the show was over.

Seth Rollins made his way to the ring to kickoff Monday Night RAW, he was irate, his body language conveying his irritation at what Ambrose and Siren had put him through last week.

“Kill it! Kill that music right now!” He screamed into the mic as he paced the ring like a caged animal.

“You think that’s funny, huh? You think what Ambrose and Siren did to me last week was funny?”

The whole crowd started chanting “Yes!”, which only served to piss Rollins off some more.

“Do you know what I think is funny, the real highlight from last week, role that footage, why don’t ya? Huh? Show ‘em the real highlight.”

They show the footage of Seth delivering a curb stomp to both Dean Ambrose and John Cena last week.

“That’s what happens when you disrespect me. Now, I’m a patient man, I stand for a lot of things, but one thing you do not do is embarrass Seth Rollins.”

At that point Joey Mercury and Jamie Nobel came down to the ring, trying to get Seth’s attention as he continues talking.

“I am Mr. Money In the Bank. I am the living, breathing, future of the WW…” He finally notices the two men trying to get his attention from outside of the ring. “What, what? You want me to leave? What, you don’t think—you don’t think I understand what I’m doing out here? You don’t think I get that I’m a marked man, that I put a target on my back? Oh, I get it. I get it and I’ve got news for you. I’ve got news for you. I love it. I love it. This is what I live for. Look at me, standing here in the center of this ring, all eyes on me. Everybody wants a piece of Seth Rollins. Ambrose, your beloved Ambrose, he can’t wait to get his hands on me. And Siren, oh she wants a piece of me in the worst way.”

Before he could continue talking sh*t Cena ran down to the ring and slid inside, immediately going on the attack against Rollins. However, Seth managed to create space between the two, giving him time to roll out of the ring and escape through the crowd, laughing as he went backstage.

But his fun was short lived as he turned to his right to find both Dean Ambrose and Siren standing beside him. His co*cky smirk immediately fell as the two jumped him, forcing him to run back over towards the barricade, where John grabbed him and hurled him back over onto the floor. The two men were then tackled by Dean, who leapt off of the barricade taking them all to the floor.

Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury quickly jumped on Ambrose and Cena, giving Rollins a chance to get off of the floor. But just as he got to his feet, Siren, who had jumped back over the barricade and climbed up onto the turnbuckle, jumped down on him delivering her “Siren’s Call” and planting him on the ground.

Getting back to her feet she climbed up into the ring, bouncing off of the ropes she suicide dove through the other side taking out Noble and Mercury in one fell swoop. Getting back into the ring, Siren climbed up onto the turnbuckle once more, sitting down on it, as Dean sat on the ring apron below her. Behind them John stood in the ring, all three of them proud that they’d got a piece of Rollins… but they still wanted more.

At that moment Triple H’s music came on and the COO of the WWE, came walking out onto the stage with his wife, Stephanie.

“We are not letting this show dissolve into chaos before it even gets started.” Stephanie says, her eyes locked on Siren as she stared the young Diva down. “Now, we told Seth Rollins if he came out here, the three of you were gonna get involved, but he let his ego override his brain, something the three of you know a little bit about.”

“And I’m just gonna go out on a limb after what we saw on Smackdown and say you two weren’t working together on this little tandem attack here. But it is clear that you both want the opportunity to get a piece of Seth Rollins. And it is a well-known fact that there is one thing The Authority stands for and that is opportunity, right, Steph?”

“That’s right, Hunter. And since the two of you wanna get your hands on Seth Rollins and Seth Rollins says that he welcomes the challenge, I throw it to all of you. WWE Universe, would you like to see John Cena and Dean Ambrose get their hands on Seth Rollins?”

The crowd roars in response and Hunter shakes his head, “No. I’m sorry. She said would you like to see John Cena and Dean Ambrose get their hands on Seth Rollins?”

The crowd roared even louder this time and Hunter nodded. “Well, then if you want it—if you want it, then we’re gonna give it to you right here in that very ring tonight. It will be John Cena and Dean Ambrose taking on Seth Rollins.”

“Oh, please, Hunter. We may be crazy, but we’re not stupid.” Siren says from her spot on the turnbuckle. “I know that you would never put your precious golden boy, Seth Rollins, in harms way like that. So, what’s the catch?”

Hunter smirked, “Oh, you’re not just a pretty face, Siren. They’ll be facing Seth Rollins… and his partner, Kane, and their partner, Randy Orton, in a handicap match. Careful what you wish for boys. Have a good night.”

Backstage Seth heard his name called as he headed for The Authority’s office, his real name, and the voice was the last person he expected to be calling his name, let alone talking to him at all.

He turned around to find Siren approaching him, fire in her eyes as she stopped in front of him. But it was the emotion he saw behind the fire, that had him dropping his head in shame; sadness. He had hurt her, he had broken her heart, and the worst thing was, he never wanted to do that. He loved her. It was only after a strong conversation with Stephanie that Seth had to make the decision.

He waited for the words of hate to flow from her mouth, but nothing came. He heard the rustling of a paper and when he looked up he saw her holding a folded piece of paper in her hand. He took it from her, and just as quickly as she came, she was gone, disappeared from his sight.

Instead of going into the office he walked over to a deserted corner down the hallway, sitting down on a crate he opened the paper, his heart breaking at the first words he read.

To the guy who should have realized what he had.

I know that it’s not as black and white as I make it out to be. I know that there were things that we never talked about, things that we tried our best to cover up. I don’t know which is worse. Giving you a chance and knowing in the back of my mind that you would blow it, or trying to make sense of why you did.

It’s not that I hate you, or that I blame you. I just thought that you cared more about me than that. I know I did. It wasn’t going to be forever, I had hope that it would be, but I thought it would last a little longer than this. Because there was something about you that was good, even if you still can’t see it. You wanted to make a change, and I was different.

Maybe I just mistook your interest for selfishness. I know that we all have to love ourselves, but did you, for one moment, think about what you were doing to me? I meant every word I said. I meant it when I told you I would be there. I meant it when I said that you were important. I made room for you in my world, my daughter’s world, no matter how scared I was to do it. I still tried.

I didn’t want to put out the fire before it even had a chance to start, but we were just on two different pages. So when you left, it didn’t come as a shock. But it still hurt. Don’t think for one minute that I’m going to let this go so easily. Maybe it’s my pride that’s getting in the way, or maybe it’s because you know me well enough to know that you need to think before you speak. Because words aren’t just words when they are coming from you to me. I thought you understood that.

It’s painful to tell someone everything, all the things that have hurt you in the past, and then have them turn around and do the same things to you. Even though they know how weak you are, how hurt and how small you feel. That’s what you did. I’m not saying I fell in love with you because I didn’t. But I could have. And I’m not saying that I wanted you more than anything, because I didn’t. But I did want you.

But despite all that, this still hurts like hell. I gave you my trust, not my heart, which I’m starting to think is just a little worse. I never wanted to play games. I was honest with you from the start, but maybe this is all on me. Maybe I should have known better than to think that someone like you was going to change. That a guy like you would take something seriously, that you wouldn’t get too freaked out and run away. I used to think you were this great guy, and now, from where I stand, you don’t look like a man at all, but a scared little boy.

And that’s okay. Maybe you need to grow up a little bit before someone like me comes into your life. But I’m going to let you know right now, I hope you know that watching me walk away is going to be hard. Not for me. But for you. Because if it’s one thing I’ve learned from all of this, it’s that you really don’t know what you have until it’s gone.

I would have been there to take care of you because that’s what my heart wanted. I would have been there to protect you, to make sure that you were doing okay. But now I can’t even look you in the eyes. I don’t want to. And every time something comes out of your mouth, I have to stop myself from running away.

I don’t know if you’re a really good liar, or if you don’t see the difference between lies and truth. Whatever the answer is, I don’t want to know anymore. I hope that you get to where you want to be, Colby. I wish you all the best in this world. I don’t wish you any bad things, but I want you to take some time and think about what it is that you’ve just done. Because I know that one day, when you look back on this, you’re going to feel an overwhelming guilt. And try as you might, you’re never going to be able to fix this. Not this time.

Because when I said we’re done, I meant it.

Yes it was hard. Yes, I wanted to be able to give you a different answer but I couldn’t. I’ve spent enough time waiting for someone like you, only to find out that I was just a stop along the way to their final destination. So go ahead and take a bow, Cole, I bought your act hook, line and sinker.

So this is goodbye, my heart.

Seth felt like he couldn’t breath, it felt as though a giant anvil had been placed on his chest and it was crushing him. He could feel the hot tears springing to his eyes, blinding his vision until he blinked them away. This was never how it was supposed to be. He never wanted to hurt her, he never wanted to break her heart. The hardest thing for him to do was watch her walk away from him.

And the worst part about it all was that she would never know. She’d never know that he loved her, that he wanted her, that he never wanted to let her go. And she’d never know that he had done it all to protect her.

Dean and Siren strode to the ring, both of them filled with rage and anger as they got into the ring.

“Yeah. We couldn’t sit back there any longer. I’ve been kicking something around in my head for the last hour or so and something is really, really bothering me. See, lately, John Cena—yeah, John Cena lately, he’s been kind of up in my space. And I don’t think I like it. John Cena’s my partner tonight just like he was supposed to be my partner last week on Smackdown, I thought, and then this happened.”

They replayed the footage from Smackdown where John left Dean high and dry during their tag match, leaving him being double-teamed by Kane and Randy Orton.

“I told John Cena, “Don’t give me a reason not to like you.” And I’m trying, John. I’m trying… real… hard, but before we go to battle together tonight, why don’t you just come out here right now and why don’t we just settle this issue face to face right now? Let’s hash it out. Please, John. Indulge me with your presence.”

John shows up moments later to acquiesce to Ambrose’s request, making his way down to the ring. The crowd shows how they feel about John, which is not that good, as Dean stalks across the ring towards him.

“Thank you, WWE Universe, for a very raucous Brooklyn introduction. I’m sure it’d be the same way if you guys were rooting for Dean Ambrose. Am I right? Dean Ambrose. The Unstable Dean Ambrose. The same Dean Ambrose right before that match happened that went on-air and said you want to embarrass Seth Rollins. You want to get your hands on Seth Rollins and you will do anything to do so. The very same Dean Ambrose that launched himself at me earlier on today, that Dean Ambrose. Well, good. Because I actually agree with you. Because if you all understand Dean Ambrose’s actions, then y’all understand mine and so do you which means we’re clear.”

John moves to get out of the ring, when Dean started talking. “Yeah. We’re clear. You’re right. I would have done the same thing to you, because I don’t give a crap about you. And you don’t give a crap about me, but if there’s one thing we have in common, John, we don’t care what other people think of us. I don’t like you and you don’t like me. Now that that’s all out in the open, maybe we can coexist for one night, but if—if not, that’s fine. I don’t care, because I have no problem dropping you where you stand right now, and taking on The Authority by myself.”

John sighs and climbs back in the ring, “You’re gonna take on The Authority by yourself? Let me clue you in, Einstein. The last time you did that, The Authority put your head through cinder blocks and you were out for five weeks. You know—you know what though, Mr. Ambrose? I got to admit. You got something that no other WWE Superstar has, something I haven’t seen in a long time, guts. The guts to say and do whatever the hell you want. Just remember, saying and doing whatever the hell you want has consequences, because when you say what you want to a man standing in this ring that has got zero problem with dropping your ass right here… Well, I’ll put it so that you can understand it, Mr. Ambrose. You’re giving me a reason not to like you. Don’t give me a reason not to like you.”

Dean stands for a minute, trying to decide whether to knock John out or let it go. Finally, he makes his decision with a shrug, “I’m kinda hungry. I think I’m gonna get out of here. I’m gonna hop in the Q train and I’m gonna head to Coney Island, maybe take a ride on the Cyclone, maybe grab a hotdog, check out the wonder wheel. Good luck tonight.”

Dean slaps his mic into John’s chest letting it fall to the mat, holding out his hand to Siren, she hops off the turnbuckle, taking his hand the two of them head up the ramp and backstage, literally getting on the Q train and leaving Cena high and dry.

John happens to be walking backstage, trying to process Dean and Siren walking out on him, when Triple H walks up to him.

“The champ is here. I’m sorry is that awkward? It probably is right now. I’m sorry. It’s so uncomfortable, but look at these kids nowadays, huh? Just between you and me, these kids like Dean Ambrose, what’s it? They don’t even understand the opportunity being put in front of them. I don’t know. What doesn’t he get? Dean Ambrose, we give him the opportunity, to main event Monday Night RAW and partner with the John Cena.

And what does he do? Leaves his partner hanging to what? Go get a hot dog? That’s how—that’s how he treats John Cena? And what about Siren? She’s supposed to be your best friend and your manager, and she leaves with Ambrose. I mean, just kind of leaves you hanging now in this three-on-one handicap match. I feel bad. And no, don’t get me wrong. I know how you are. I mean, I know you’ll have the whole Cenation just riled up behind you. They’ll have your back, but, I don’t know, just doesn’t seem right, three-on-one handicap match.”

“You know, I know what you’re trying to do, protect Seth Rollins at all cost. I don’t care what kind of match I’m in tonight. Seth Rollins is gonna come to a point where he cannot run away. As far as tonight’s concerned, to get to Seth Rollins, if I got to go through Kane, if I got to go through Randy Orton, that’s what I’m gonna do.”

“You know what, John? That what I admire about you. That’s what I have always admired about you. It’s that resolve, it’s that determination. And I’ll tell you what I’m gonna do. Just to make sure you get a piece of Seth Rollins, when that bell rings, when that match starts, Seth Rollins is gonna start that match. I’m gonna make him, Seth Rollins will start that match with John Cena when that bell rings. And we all know you’ll get a piece, even though it is three-on-one. Good luck tonight, John. And, uh, remember, keep calm and never give up.”

“Great.” John says shaking his head as Triple H mocks his shirt.

So while The Rock comes in to set Rusev straight, Dean and Siren were literally at Coney Island. They had gotten a few hot dogs and something to drink, before they went on the rides.

While they were on the Ferris wheel Dean turned to Siren, seeing the sad look on her face. “It’ll be fine, darlin’, you and Colby will work this out.”

“No, Jon, we won’t. It’s over.” She said, her voice low and downtrodden.

Dean hated to see his best friend like this, wrapping his arm around her he pulled her close to him, tipping her face up with his finger. “Colby loves you, that much I am sure of. He would never just up and leave you, unless he had an absolutely good reason for doing so. There has to be something more going on that we’re not seeing.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because, I’ve seen the way he looks at you, the way he looks at your daughter. He wouldn’t look at you two like that, if he didn’t love you more than anything. He gave you a key to his house and made you a partner in his business, and he hasn’t asked to take any of that back. Now, I’m not saying that you should forgive him for walking out on you, but I think you should give him an opportunity to explain why he did it.”

Siren thought about what Dean said, playing the whole situation over in her mind. He was right. Why would he do all of that, just to leave her a few weeks later.

“Since when did you become such a Seth supporter?” She asked wryly.

“I’m not, but I am a Colby and Tasha supporter. You are my friends no matter what happens. I want you both to be happy, and I’ve never seen both of you happier than when you’re together.”

John Cena was in big trouble at the arena, the three-on-one handicap match had turned into an all out melee and he was being eviscerated by Kane, Orton and Rollins.

Just as Randy was coiled and looking for the RKO on Cena, Ambrose’s music cued on and the man in question walked out onto the stage, pushing a hot dog cart. Siren walked in behind him, smiling at the thoroughly confused looks on the faces of Kane and Orton. Rollins was lying in the corner behind them clutching his face, she assumed John had gotten in a few good shots before they overpowered him.

Dean pushes the cart down to the bottom of the ramp, while Siren walks around the ring to check on John, Dean faces off with Kane and Orton. Pulling two bottles out of a holster around his waist, he sprays both of them in the face with ketchup and mustard, before nailing them with the hot dog cart. He slides into the ring to beat down on Seth, before Orton and Kane come to Rollins’ aide.

But Cena gets back to his feet and assists Ambrose in dispatching Kane and Orton. Then Ambrose bounces off of the ropes and suicide dives, taking out Rollins at the bottom of the ramp as he tried to escape. He then starts taking the food off of the cart and dumping it onto Rollins, containers of mustard, pickles and sauerkraut all over the former Shield member.

Then as Rollins finally succeeded in getting to his feet, Dean grabbed a pair of tongs and grabbed Seth where the sun don’t shine. The entire audience as well as Siren “oohing” in pain, but Kane managed to intercede and nail Ambrose forcing him to release Seth’s testicl*s.

Cena, Ambrose and Siren stand tall in the ring, as Seth scrambles back up the ramp to safety. John laughing as he commended Dean on his actions with the hot dog cart. But their fun was short lived as Triple H and Stephanie came out to address the trio.

“That’s an impressive mess. Who would’ve thought Ambrose and Cena back on the same page again? And here’s the thing, you still wanna fight Seth Rollins. Well, you’re gonna get the chance to fight Seth Rollins, but first, you’re gonna have to fight each other. At the pay-per-view, Hell In A Cell, John Cena will go one-on-one with Dean Ambrose. The winner will not only get to face Seth Rollins, but will get face Seth Rollins inside Hell In A Cell.”

“Which means either way, either John Cena or Dean Ambrose will go straight to hell.” Stephanie said grinning.

And to emphasis the point of who will win the match, Dean grabbed John and planted him with “Dirty Deeds.”

Tasha left the arena before she could seek out Colby, she needed to give him time to read her letter, and then figure out what he wanted to do about them. She was going to take Jon’s advice, she was going to give Colby the benefit of the doubt.

She only had a few more episodes of SOA and Teen Wolf to film, so she was in a down mood when she returned to Smackdown on Thursday for the 15^th Anniversary.

Chapter 37: When They Think of Me, They Think of You

Chapter Text

As soon as she walked into the arena she saw Colby leaning against a crate about 10 yards from her. He looked up and caught her eyes, she could tell by the look on his face that he had read her letter. And it had hurt him.

As much as that should’ve pleased her, it didn’t, she didn’t want to cause him pain. Pausing for a moment, the two just staring at one another. Tasha sent him a small smile and a nod, which he returned before she turned down the hall to the locker rooms.

She sat in the locker room watching Seth’s match with Kofi later that night, she noticed that he seemed to have a new fire inside of him, and she wondered if she had anything to do with that.

She watched him secure his win with an emphatic curb stomp to Kofi, and she had to admire his guts. He never gave up and always found a way to win.

At the close of the night Siren accompanied Dean down to the ring for Miz TV and his interview alongside John Cena. While she was both men’s manager, she and Dean had a vested interest in Seth Rollins, that ultimately trumped whatever John could bring up. She supported both of them, but she knew that only Dean was going to give Seth the beating that he deserved for his betrayal of them.

Siren took her seat to Miz’ left as John was introduced, taking his time to greet the fans in the audience.

“Let’s get this started.” Miz says motioning the two men to sit down, which Dean does, however John stays on his feet pacing the ring. “Dean, you embarrassed John Cena last Monday Night on RAW. You left him flat on his back. Why would you do something like that?”

“I planted John Cena’s head into the mat on Monday so that he knows I don’t care who he is, what he’s done, or what he thinks he’s entitled to. Nobody crosses me. Now, John Cena lives by a code. I live by a little code of my own. I don’t take crap from anybody.” Dean states getting to his feet. “Nobody pushes me around. And if you do me wrong, I will hunt you down and I’ll make you pay for it. Seth Rollins crossed me. He was my brother and he stabbed me in the back. And I can’t live with myself until I set that right. Seth Rollins inside Hell In A Cell belongs to me. And John Cena is coming dangerously close to stealing that from me. And John, nobody steals from me. I don’t care how high up on the food chain you are.”

John moves the chair beside him to the side out of his way. “I’m impressed, the WWE Universe is impressed and I’m just not talking about being left unconscious on Monday Night RAW. I watch everything that goes on this ring and I listen to every single sound the universe makes. And ever since you stepped foot in the WWE, the little decision makers behind the curtain, oh, they’ve been worried about you. Oh, yeah. Unstable is what they call you. You know why?

Because give you a microphone, they don’t know what you’re gonna say. You say whatever the hell you want. You do whatever the hell you want. And if somebody stands in your way, you will scratch, fight, and claw to get what you want because you love this business and you will not stop until your success. And goofs like The Authority waste so many precious resources on all the BS to look for the next guy who has “IT.” Well, Monday, by leaving me unconscious, you proved you got “IT.” I just got my own definition for “IT”, these.”

John says pulling out a pair of baseballs from his pocket and holding them up for everyone to see. “This is what it takes to be a success in this—Don’t you look at these. You don’t even know what these things are.” John tells Miz, making Dean and Siren crack a smile in response.

“Congratulations, Mr. Ambrose. You impressed me. It’s what I want to see and quite frankly, it’s what they want to see. Because for years and years and years of bringing in past Hall of Famers or mercenaries from the outside, they want to see somebody with a set of these that’s gonna step up to me and say, “I don’t give a damn if you’re John Cena. I’m gonna knock you down right where you stand.” All that means, at Hell In A Cell, you’re gonna make me earn it. Just remember, when you step into that ring in that no holds barred match at Hell In A Cell, we don’t see eye to eye, but you’re damn sure gonna be looking in a mirror. We are cut from the same cloth.

I have been to Philadelphia for the past 12 years and there is a reason. There is a reason, night after night, opponent after opponent, match after match, I can walk down that ramp into this ring with my head high and a fighting smile on my face. Because I proved to the entire WWE Universe that after 12 years in this world, I got two things, these and my word, and I don’t break ‘em for nobody. Bring your a-game at Hell In A Cell. You may not give a damn of who I am now. After that match, you will know my name. I like my chances.”

“You like your chances.” Miz says finally getting back into the conversation. “He said he likes his chances. Yes, he said he likes his chances.” Miz backs up as Dean tosses the other chair he was sitting in. “He is a 15-time champion. He is a legend. He is a soon to be top build Hall of Famer. He has defeated everybody in his path. Do you really think that you have a chance against the John Cena?”

“Yup.” Dean states, his eyes never leaving Cena’s.

“Well, how do you think you’re gonna do it?”

“I don’t think I’m gonna do it. I know I’m gonna do it.”

“Did you hear that?” Miz says, he’s purposely trying to instigate a fight between the two men. “He said he’s gonna beat you at Hell In A Cell. This rookie said that he’s going to beat you at Hell In A Cell.”

“Shut your mouth before I slap the glasses off your face and you hide in your own shadow.” John said shutting the Miz up, much to the delight of the fans. “I’ll see you at Hell In A Cell.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. That’s it?” Miz questions as both men head for the ropes to exit the ring. “That’s—I’ll see you at Hell In A Cell? You’ve been on Miz TV before. This is the 15^th Anniversary of Smackdown, John. That’s not how this works. You come out here, I ask the questions, I stir the pot, you get mad at him, he gets mad at you, you guys start fighting, breaking stuff, throwing things around, the ratings go high, you two are ruining Miz TV. This is my show, I’m the star of it, and this is what people want to see.”

John looks over at Dean and Siren, who both shrug. “You may be right. They want to see John Cena and Dean Ambrose fight. On the 15^th Anniversary of Smackdown, the city of Philadelphia wants to see John Cena and Dean Ambrose fight. Here’s where you got it wrong, Miz. They don’t want to see us fight each other. I reckon the city of Philadelphia right now wants to see Dean Ambrose and John Cena fight you.”

And with that said, both John and Dean start wailing on Miz. John then hoists Miz up onto his shoulders, locking eyes with Dean, John makes a decision. He quickly drops Miz and shoves him over to Ambrose who plants Miz on the canvas with “Dirty Deeds.”

But as Dean turns around, John lifts him up and plants him with an AA, giving Ambrose a little payback for Monday Night RAW.

Siren gives a chuckle as John sits down in the chair smiling, shaking her head, she had to give that one to him, Dean had it coming.

Tasha sat at the airport after Smackdown waiting for her flight to Georgia, she had her Black & Brave sweatshirt on with the hood pulled up over the ball cap on her head. Her Black & Brave legging clad legs were pulled up underneath of her, her right ear occupied by an ear bud. She was comfortably waiting for her flight to board, as she listened to Jared’s band, 30 Seconds to Mars singing her favorite song “The Kill” in her ear. She had listened to this song a lot over the last month, it always made her think of Colby.

She felt her phone vibrate with a text message, pulling the phone out of her pocket she was surprised at the name on the screen as she unlocked the message.

My Heart - ‘Have a safe flight.’

She was shocked at receiving a text from Colby, but it also made her smile, thinking to herself, ‘He does still care.’

‘I will. Thank you for caring.’

‘I’ll always care for you.’

Tasha took a big chance with her next text, but she had to know if he still wanted to be in her life.

‘I miss you, Cole.’

‘I miss you too, Tash.’

As she was typing another message to him, he sent her one first.

‘Sometime soon, we need to talk. I need to explain.’

‘Okay. I’d really like that.’

‘No matter what happens from now on, please remember that whatever I’ve done, it was always to protect you.’

The whole flight to Georgia, Tasha replayed Colby’s text in her mind. Protect her from what? Did someone have it out for her? Was someone threatening to hurt her because of him?

So many questions swirled in her mind, she could only wait and hope that when they got the chance to talk, he would tell her exactly what he was protecting her from.

Walking into the arena on Monday for RAW, Tasha forced herself not to go looking for Colby. She had to hold herself back and let him come to her, when he decided that the time was right for them to talk.

But she couldn’t help but wonder, exactly what he was protecting her from.

Tasha busied herself with getting ready for the night, putting on her gear, before heading to makeup to have the girls do her up for the show. Usually she did her hair and makeup herself, but she needed time to sit and ponder things between her and Colby. While she was sitting in the chair, the young makeup artist trying to figure out what to do with her makeup, a strong voice from behind sent a tingle down Tasha’s spine.

“Line her eyes with black, it makes her blue eyes pop.”

Looking up from her phone into the mirror before her, Tasha caught Colby standing behind her chair. The makeup artist smiled and thanked him for the good idea, and he was right, black eyeliner always made her blue eyes stand out dramatically.

Colby caught Tasha’s eyes in the mirror and sent her a wink, she smiled nodding her head at him. With a light squeeze of his fingers on the back of her neck, he continued walking down the hall. Behind him Tasha sighed happily, she knew what his touch conveyed to her, she hadn’t lost him.

Dean Ambrose strode to the ring alongside Siren, their presence starting off Monday Night RAW, and Ambrose was less than pleased about Cena’s actions on Smackdown. Siren perched herself up on the top of turnbuckle like usual watching Dean pace like a caged animal.

“There’s nothing I’d like more in this world than to be locked inside Hell In A Cell with Seth Rollins. Locked inside the devil’s playground, all that steel, all that danger, nowhere to run. Just Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins inside that cell, so I can brutalize him, pummel him, so bad that he wishes he never even met me. Seth Rollin wishes he never even heard the name Dean Ambrose.

Before I get there, I have a little something standing in my way and it’s really stressing me out. It’s really pissing me off. It’s a little matter to deal with of a 15-time WWE Champion. A little matter to with of the face of WWE. I have to get through John Cena first. In a no holds barred contract on a pole match. Now, I told John, I have no problem dropping you where you stand last week here on RAW. And I did. Cena felt the same way on Smackdown and he did the same to me.

So it’s quite clear what The Authority is trying to do. They want me and John Cena to tear each other apart so there’s nothing left of either of us. It’s all about protecting, protecting golden boy Seth Rollins. You know it’s fine. I decided there’s only one way to do this. I’m gonna go to Hell In A Cell. I’m gonna grab that contract off that pole. I’m gonna rip that pole down. And I’m gonna beat John Cena senseless with it!

Then I’m gonna go into that cell and I’m gonna bounce Seth Rollins’ head all over that cell like it’s a basketball. And there’s nothing The Authority and there’s nothing John Cena can do about it.”

And about that time he comes the man in question himself, John Cena.

“So this is why they call it Hotlanta, huh?” John says grinning as the crowd cheers. “Excited! Y’all are up and y’all are ready. And so are you. You need to relax. You need to relax because this match is made. This match between John Cena and Dean Ambrose is made. But it’s two weeks from now and it’s in Hell In A Cell. This is a match obviously by the noise in this arena tonight the WWE Universe wants to see. Because they know you’ve got a chance. They know I’ve got a chance. So they want to see Hell In A Cell to see who finally is going to get a chance to get their hands on Seth Rollins.

But yet you’re out here beating your chest. You’re out here talking trash. Why? Why? So I can come out here and maybe you can leave me unconscious again? Or maybe you walk out of here, or maybe you don’t.”

Dean smiles as John threatens him, Siren knows it’s only a matter of time before Dean snaps and God help John when that happens.

“I’m gonna do you a favor. I’m gonna give you a little veteran advice. You’ve got the match of your life coming up at Hell In A Cell in two weeks. Shut up. Instead of coming out here and acting all crazy, you your two weeks to get ready for the biggest match of your career. Because I’m gonna bring it at Hell In A Cell.”

“Thanks for the veteran advice, big brotha. But I’ve got news for ya. I am ready. I was born ready. I’ve been ready to whoop your ass for years. Don’t talk to me like I’m some kind of chump. And don’t come out here and act like you care about me. Don’t act like you give a damn about me. And don’t act like I should trust you for one second.”

“It is your instability that is going to ruin your opportunity. Go ahead! Throw it all away. Lose your temper. Take a shot at me and try to drop me right here and you’ll see why I’ve been to the mountaintop 15 times. You will see who I am and what I stand for. And you will realize that you are way out of your league and way over your head, son. I’m giving you a chance. You’ve got a hell of a match coming up in two weeks. Pipe down and use your time to get ready.”

As Dean tosses his mic down ready to clock John in the face, Triple H’s music rings through the area. “Oh, sh*t.” Siren grumbles as she slides off of the ring post and moves to stand beside Dean, this wouldn’t be good for any of them.

“Slow down guys. Slow down.” Hunter says as he and Stephanie stand at the top of the ramp. “You’re getting ahead of yourself here. You’ve still got two weeks until Hell In A Cell when you can rip each other apart. You know, Hell In A Cell where you have the no holds barred contract on a pole match to see who gets to face Seth Rollins inside Hell In A Cell. Which by the way all of you can see on the WWE Network for just $9.99.”

“That’s right.” Stephanie nods, tossing her evil smirk to Siren. “And for our own personal amusem*nt, how about we see the two of you in tag-team action tonight?”

“Whoa, Steph. You mean Ambrose and Cena as partners? I don’t—I don’t think as partners they could get along for five minutes before they beat the hell out of each other.”

“Why? Because of all this, you know, blustering back and forth, oh, you’re unstable, oh, you’re the veteran. All that stuff. That’s just talk.”

“You don’t think they’re gonna fight?” Hunter asks her.

Stephanie scoffs, “No, I think they’re afraid to fight each other quite frankly. In fact, I think the only person in that ring with a set of balls is, Siren.”

The dark haired Diva smirked as she lifted her mic for the first time that night, shooting the princess a sugary sweet smile. “Awe, are you still mad that mine are bigger than yours, Steph?”

“You might be right.” Hunter says ignoring Siren’s comment, mostly because he was trying not to laugh. “They might be afraid of each other. I’ll tell you what. You want to see tonight? You want to bet about that? Because I think they’ll rip each other apart.”

“Let’s bet. Standard?”

“Standard.” Hunter agrees as the two shake hands.

“So tonight the two of you will be competing in tag-team action. Get this. A triple threat tag-team match against the Uso’s and the tag-team champions Gold and Stardust.”

While Steph and Hunter walk backstage, Siren tries to calm tensions down between Ambrose and Cena, as the other tams make their way down to the ring. Siren winks at Jimmy and Jey, being Roman’s cousins they have become very close friends of hers, the two send her smiles in return.

For most of the match Dean and John seem to getting along pretty well, managing to put their issues aside for the sake of the match. Things break down halfway through the match as a melee breaks out between all three teams, ending with Dean launching off of the top rope to take out everyone on the outside.

He picks up Stardust and Cena tossing them back into the ring, where John delivers an AA to Stardust, just as Dean hits “Dirty Deeds” on Goldust. John covers Stardust and the unlikely team pick up the victory.

Siren climbs into the ring and holds up both of her guy’s hands, but she knows the peace will only last for a short while. And she’s right as Triple H and Stephanie again make their way out to the stage for another announcement. She’s knows the two bosses are trying to push Ambrose and Cena as far as they can until one of them snaps on the other.

“Well, Seth, uh, Steph, as much as it pains me to admit, you were right. They were able to get along. One dollar.” He says handing his wife a dollar bill. “You know how much I hate to lose, though. Maybe they just lacked the proper motivation. Maybe you two just need that spark to make this all go down. You both want a shot at Seth Rollins inside Hell In A Cell, right? Well, I say why wait until then to find out who gets it. Let’s do this. Let’s hang a contract on a pole in that corner and no holds barred, John Cena, Dean Ambrose! Tear each other limb from limb, rip flesh, break bones, I don’t care. Only one of you is going to get the chance to face Seth Rollins inside Hell In A Cell. It’ll be the man that takes that contract down. And you will tear each other apart to get that right. John Cena, Dean Ambrose, tonight hell starts for both of you!”

Siren walks backstage alongside Dean, she doesn’t like picking sides against her clients, but she knows that Dean has the pure motivation to win the match. And frankly, Dean and Siren are due for payback against Seth Rollins.

A grin works onto her face as she sees Randy Orton standing behind the curtain watching Seth Rollins match against Jack Swagger. She had seen Seth go down to the ring for Orton’s match against Dolph Ziggler, none too happy about what Randy had said to the bosses, about Seth not being able to beat Cena or Ambrose.

Deciding to play off of the rage that she knew the Viper possessed, she motioned to the camera crew to film as she walked over and stood beside Orton.

“Aren’t you getting tired of protecting that co*cky little brat, Randy?”

The Viper clenched his jaw as he looked down at his former manager, who he had dropped when he had joined The Authority.

“Come on, Randy. I know you. You are Randy Orton. Third generation superstar. Legend Killer. Former WWE Champion. You’re the Viper. You don’t play second fiddle to anyone, let alone a rookie who couldn’t on his best day, lace up your boots. I know being in The Authority has its perks… but so did Evolution, and look how that turned out for both of us. Do you really think that Triple H wouldn’t turn on you again? Do you think for a second that he would pick you to back, instead of the golden boy, future of the company, Seth Rollins? The Authority, is going to fall, Randy. The question is… are we taking you down with it? You and I both know, there’s only one man in The Authority that deserves to be champion, and his name, is Randy Orton.”

Dean Ambrose reiterates Siren’s point later that night when he has an interview with Renee.

“Dean, you’ve already competed once tonight in tag-team action. In tonight’s no holds barred contract on a pole match it’s going to test your stamina and it’s gonna test your will, this is against John Cena. What can we expect from you tonight?

“Well, let me tell you what not to expect. Don’t expect me to go out there and be a nice guy. Don’t expect me to go out there and be nice to John Cena because I’m not a nice guy. Triple H knows that. Triple H has known me for a long time so he should know by now when I say anytime, anywhere I mean it. If you’re big star bound it’s a long hard ride and the way I see it, I get to the next stop two weeks early. I get to put John Cena in his place two weeks early, and at the Hell In A Cell pay-per-view I’m sending Seth Rollins straight to hell and Cena, stamp your ticket, you can sit right next to him. Cena and Rollins both are on the highway to hell!”

Siren lead Dean to the ring for his match, noticing Stephanie and Hunter sitting ringside, which only spelled disaster for all of them. John was already in the ring, still smarting from the words his best friend had said to him earlier, it was clear who Siren was backing for this match, and it wasn’t Cena.

And of course Seth Rollins himself had to come down to the ring, as well as Randy Orton, as they both had invested interests in this matchup. But, of course they couldn’t come without their backup in Kane. Now Siren, Dean and John were outnumbered, no matter who won it was gonna be bad for them all.

However as the match got underway, it was the wink that Orton sent Siren that made her mind wander. What the hell did that mean?

The two men laid into one another, but every time they had the other one down, they refused to go for the contract, almost as if they had something to prove to one another.

Outside of the ring The Authority stood, talking sh*t to both Ambrose and Cena. John grabbed Dean by the back of his shirt and threw him into them, taking down Orton, Kane and Rollins. Which was not smart on his part, as the three men then climbed into the ring, causing the match to turn into a brawl.

John and Dean cleared the ring of The Authority, but as John was preoccupied with Kane, Dean snuck his way to the pole and took the contract in his hand. Waving his hand in front of his face mocking John, Dean pulled the contract down into his hands.

“Yes!” Siren screamed as she rolled into the ring, jumping into Dean’s arms. Finally, they were going to get the retribution that they deserved against Seth Rollins.

John nodded his head, clapping for Dean, he had to give it to him, he’d played that one smart. His attention turned to Orton who stood outside of the ring, John pointing to him to make sure he knew that he’d be going to hell in two weeks time.

Dean and Siren had their attention on the top of the ramp where Seth Rollins stood, his face a mixture of anger and fear, as he realized that he would be locked in a cell with the lunatic fringe.

But it was what happened after RAW went off of the air that had the whole world talking. John picked up a microphone and addressed Dean.

“You won tonight because you were the better man. You deserve to go to Hell In A Cell. You deserve to kick the holy dog crap out of Seth Rollins. Earlier today, I gave you some veteran advice. Right now, I’m gonna give you veteran respect.” He held his hand out, which Dean took, and John raised Dean’s hand up high as the crowd went ballistic.

Before Tasha’s flight out to Cali she, Jon, Renee and Nick headed to the bar to celebrate Dean’s victory that night. Most of the roster was there when they arrived, and Tasha couldn’t help but look around for Colby, wondering if he was there.

She was sitting at the bar with her friends, people that were friends with both her and Colby, having a drink when she felt the mood around her change. Looking to the front door she realized why, Colby had just walked in with Randy and Kane. Their eyes locked over her whiskey glass, and she gave him a sad smile.

Colby couldn’t help but smile as he sat down a the table with Orton and Kane, taking in Tasha’s strapless red dress and black cowboy boots. No matter how much the WWE tried to change her style, trying to make her wear fancy dresses and high-heels; there was no changing her from the country girl that she was and that was just how Colby liked her.

His favorite times were seeing her in the morning with no makeup, her long dark hair pulled up in a messy bun and wearing his Black & Brave sweatshirt. She looked her best when she wasn’t trying. And while he loved seeing her all dolled up for RAW or Smackdown as Siren, Colby’s heart skipped a beat every time when she took it all off and was just Tasha once more. She didn’t need a lot of makeup or fancy clothes to make her beautiful, she was stunning at all times.

It was clear within a half hour that their friends felt the same way about their relationship ending as Tasha and Colby did. There was an unspoken rift going through the roster, everyone believing that the two would spend forever together.

As a familiar song came on, Tasha’s eyes locked on Colby’s from across the room, the two just staring at one another while the song played. The lyrics hit both of them hard, as it did their friends that were secretly watching the exchange between them.

[Verse 1 - Chris Young:]

I walk in on Friday nights

Same old bar, same burned out lights

Same people and all the same faces

So why in the hell does it feel like a different place?

[Verse 2 - Cassadee Pope:]

Meet my friends for a girls' night out

Seems there ain't much to talk about

Same drinks that we're all raising

But all of the toasts just don't feel the same

[Chorus - Both:]

We used to be the life of the party

We used to be the ones that they wished they were

But now it's like they don't know how to act

Maybe they're like me and they want us back

It's like there's always an empty space

Those memories that nobody can erase

Of how bright we burned

Well now it hurts, but it's true

When they think of me, they think of you

[Verse 3 - Chris Young & Both:]

They keep asking how I am

But they're really asking where you've been

I can read between all of the lines

It ain't just us missing all of the times

[Chorus - Both:]

We were the life of the party

We used to be the ones that they wished they were

But now it's like they don't know how to act

Maybe they're like me and they want us back

It's like there's always an empty space

Those memories that nobody can erase

Of how bright we burned

Well now it hurts, but it's true

When they think of me, they think of you

[Bridge - Chris Young & Cassadee Pope:]

Ain't it funny how a flame like that

Oh whoa, when they think of you

It can burn when it's in the past

[Chorus - Both:]

We used to be the life of the party

We used to be the ones that they wished they were

But now it's like they don't know how to act

Maybe they're like me and they want us back

It's like there's always an empty space

Those memories that nobody can erase

Of how bright we burned

Well now it hurts, but it's true

When they think of me, they think of you

[Outro - Both:]

Oh, they think of you

When they think of me

Baby, baby, oh, oh

Oh

When they think of me, they think of you

Renee sighed from her seat at the bar beside Jon, her eyes watching the longing stares from her two friends across the room. “Jon, she’s miserable.”

Jon glanced over to where his girlfriend was looking, seeing the pure sadness on his best friend’s face. His eyes then drifted over to Colby who’s face mirrored Tasha’s own. “I know. So’s he.”

“Maybe you should ask her to dance? At least try to put a smile on her face.”

Jon nodded kissing her cheek before he stood up from his stool and made his way across the room to the table where Tasha sat. She turned her head as she felt him stop beside her, he held out his hand and gave her a crooked smile. “Dance with me, darlin’.”

Tasha let out a laugh knowing full damn well that Jonathan Good didn’t dance, but he was willing to look completely stupid to make her happy. She nodded before placing her hand in his and allowing him to lead her out onto the floor. She giggled as he spun her around and pulled her against him, his right hand resting on her hip while his left held hers as they swayed to the song; it was a little up tempo but Jon proved that he could keep time pretty well. Tasha was starting to wonder if he had been lying all these years when he said that he couldn’t dance.

Colby couldn’t help but feel a flicker of jealousy in his gut as he watched his brother dancing with his best girl. But he squashed it quickly when he realized that Jon was simply trying to get her to smile and take her mind off of the pain that he had caused her by leaving. But the atmosphere and alcohol weren’t helping to lighten his mood as he thought they would, and as he started to listen to the words of the song playing, he felt as though he’d been stabbed in the chest with a knife.

[Lucy:]

If I close my eyes, and Imagine you are here.

It'll last for awhile, before you disappear.

So I close my eyes, cause the only thing I fear

Is waking up one day, forgetting you were ever here

[Joe:]

Darling, It's you I remember with your Red Dress on,

Dancing in the moonlight till the break of dawn.

It's you I remember dancing with your Red Dress on

[Lucy:]

And Baby it's you I remember when I hear that song,

Singin' out the chorus till your voice was gone

It's you I remember every time I hear that song

[Joe:]

Not a day goes by, without thinking that I see,

your face in the crowd, turning away from me

So the days go by, like a recurring dream

Where every night ends with the same old memory

[Lucy:]

And Baby it's you I remember when I hear that song,

Singin' out the chorus till your voice was gone

It's you I remember every time I hear that song

[Joe:]

Darling, It's you I remember with your Red Dress on,

Dancing in the moonlight till the break of dawn.

It's you I remember dancing with your Red Dress on

Dancing with your Red Dress on

I don't know the game were playing,

You and I were on to something

How did we fall apart, without asking ourselves why?

[Lucy:]

Lookin' back I can't help thinkin'

That some where I had just stopped runnin'

I would have held you close, and never said goodbye.

[Joe:]

Darling, It's you I remember with your Red Dress on,

Dancing in the moonlight till the break of dawn.

It's you I remember dancing with your Red Dress on

[Lucy:]

And Baby it's you I remember when I hear that song,

Singin' out the chorus till your voice was gone

It's you I remember every time I hear that song

[Joe:]

Darling, It's you I remember with your Red Dress on,

Dancing in the moonlight till the break of dawn.

It's you I remember dancing with your Red Dress on

[Lucy:]

And Baby it's you I remember when I hear that song,

Singin' out the chorus till your voice was gone

It's you I remember every time I hear that song

[Joe:]

Dancing with your red dress on

[Lucy:]

Woah

[Joe:]

Dancing with your red dress on.

When the song was finished Colby watched Tasha laugh as she hugged Jon, before they went back over to the bar for a drink. Suddenly he wasn’t feeling like being social so he said goodbye to his companions before he headed back to the hotel. He had to get her back and he knew just how he was going to do it; he knew he could be costing himself his career, but right now, he didn’t care what The Authority would do to him. She was the only thing that mattered.

Chapter 38: Sell Out

Chapter Text

After a long an emotional two days filming the second to last episode of SOA, Tasha returned to Birmingham, Alabama for Smackdown.

She and Colby hadn’t spoken about what he had insinuated, since the last week when he had text her. And try as she might to be patient, it wasn’t one of her virtues and she wanted to know what the hell was going on. She debated going to the bosses, but since it seemed that they had it out for her, she knew that wasn’t such a smart idea. However, just like The Authority, she always had a plan B.

Taking out her phone she dialed a number she was well aware of, having called it quite often during her tenure with the WWE. Smiling, she heard the gruff voice on the other end of the line. “My adopted daughter, what can I do for you?”

“Hey, Vince. You got some time to talk?”

Smackdown started off with Seth Rollins, the man in everyone’s crosshairs, coming down to the ring to air his grievances. Gone was his co*cky smirk, in fact, he looked a little worried about his upcoming match with Dean Ambrose.

As usual the crowd started chanting “You sold out”, however unlike the other times, Seth didn’t get pissed off, instead he started chanting along with them, “I sold out.” Surprisingly the crowd lost their luster and quieted down.

“Come on. Come on, Keep it coming.” Seth egged them on. “You’re damn right, I sold out. Look, look, all right. When you’re young and you’re naïve, lofty principles, integrity, honor, these things mean the world to you. But let’s, let’s be honest with ourselves guys, let’s be honest, okay? Honor doesn’t pay the bills. And if any of you cowards had any guts, you would realize that you’d sell out your mother. Yeah. You’d sell out your dad. You’d sell out your dog, you would. You’d sell out your grandparents’ guaranteed. You would sell out your brothers. You’d sell out your best friends. You’d sell out the woman you love.

You would sell out anyone and everything. You’d sell your soul for an opportunity to be anything like me. The major fault in that logic is that you will never be like me. No, you will never look like me. You won’t. You won’t and I’m sorry. You’ll never look like me. You’ll never talk like me. You will never be as successful as I have become. And why? Why, you might ask? Because you will all never realize what I’ve come to understand and that is that selling out is the best thing you could ever do in your life. I mean, look at me. I’m better than I’ve ever been. I’m Mr. Money In the Bank. I’m the future of the WWE. I’m the future of the WWE. And that brings me…”

The crowd starts chanting “you sold out” again and this time it seems like it might be getting to Seth.

“That brings me to my Hell In A Cell match with Dean Ambrose. Now I’m only going to say this once so I’m gonna make myself very clear. Dean Ambrose, you do not belong at Hell In A Cell. You belong in a straightjacket. And you may walk into Hell In A Cell, but I guarantee you, you’re going to be carried out. Mark my words, Ambrose, when I am finished with you, all your hopes and dreams, everything you ever wanted to become, will be left in a pile of rubble in that cell. And you, you, Dean Ambrose will be nothing more than a hot, sweaty, smelly mess. Yeah, I sold out. Dean Ambrose, I sold you out. But at Hell In A Cell, I’m going to put you out.”

Dolph who is scheduled to face Seth momentarily comes out, but first he has something to tell Rollins.

“You hear that sound, Seth? That’s the sound people make when they want to see someone. But you wouldn’t know anything about that, Dean Ambrose or Siren isn’t out here. You see, Seth, the thing is, when you sell out, you get the money, you get the fame… but there’s one thing way more important than that, that you just can’t get and it’s priceless. You get self-respect. Sorry, bro.”

“Respect, Ziggler. Really? Does anybody really care about respect? Come on. Hey, hey, did respect do anything for ya when I curb stomped your face into oblivion on Monday Night? No, it didn’t. And guess what? Respect isn’t gonna save you tonight, neither is showing off for all these people, pal.”

Dolph nodded, then hit Seth with a drop-kick that sent him to the mat.

It was an easy win for Seth given how angry he was with Ziggler, as he planted Dolph with a curb stomp for the win. But his victory was spoiled as Dean Ambrose and Siren walked out onto the stage, Ambrose holding the Hell In A Cell contract in his hand. The two walked down to the ring, climbing inside as Seth climbed out of the opposite side.

“What are you running for, Seth? What are you running for, Seth? We’re just here to talk. Let’s chat, brother. Let’s chat about this. I finally got what I’ve been foaming at the mouth for and that’s you trapped inside Hell In A Cell, the most demonic structure in WWE history, and I’m gonna make the most of it. I’m gonna turn you inside out. I’m gonna rip your face clean off. I’m gonna take my left boot. I’m gonna jam it down your throat. I’m gonna take my right boot, that’s my lucky boot, and I’m sticking that one where the sun don’t shine and after that… after that, what I’m gonna do next, I can’t even say on this show.”

The moment between the three is interrupted by Kane. “Dean, it’s true that you are competing with Seth inside Hell In A Cell. But I don’t get to have a match, which has me feeling aggressive. You see, I like hurting people. Their shrieks of terror help me sleep at night. And I would very much like to hear you scream in pain… tonight, during the main event, when you face me.”

By the end of the night Siren was positive that there was something Seth wanted to talk to her about, but every time they were in the same vicinity, some member of The Authority showed up to intercede the two. It was like The Authority was deliberately trying to keep them apart.

However the phone call with Vince made Siren feel much better about the near future. She just had to hang on until Vince worked his magic, and hope that Seth didn’t get caught in the crosshairs of The Authority because of her.

During the match at the end of the night, Siren stood on the opposite side of the ring from Seth. The two tossing glares and insults to one another from across the canvas, while Kane and Dean battled inside.

Dean was antagonizing Rollins throughout the whole match, sitting on the ropes to invite Rollins inside, planting Kane to the canvas with an emphatic look at Seth.

But it was Seth that got the best of Dean as he ripped him down off of the canvas, then both he and Kane started with the double-team. Kane brought a steel chair into the ring, Rollins kicking it over beside Dean’s head. As Seth bounced off of the ropes, he never saw Siren run in and shove Dean out of the way, taking her brother’s place. As Seth’s foot came down planting her head off of the steel chair, a wave of sheer terror and guilt rippled through his body as he realized what he’d done.

Getting to his feet Dean saw what Seth had done, white hot rage poured through his body as he knocked Kane to the floor. Picking up the chair he stalked towards Seth, who was crawling backwards towards the corner. Kane came in to try and stop Ambrose, but he was rewarded with a steel chair to the gut and back, as Seth escaped to the safety of the ramp.

Dean picked Siren up and carried her to the back, taking her straight to the trainer’s office. Leaving the room so that they could check her out, he found Seth pacing outside of the room. The man looked up as the door shut, his eyes locking with Dean’s, and Ambrose could see the fear in his wide eyes.

“I-I-I didn’t mean to, Jon. You gotta believe me. I didn’t mean to. I didn’t see her until it was too late. I didn’t mean to hurt her.”

Dean laid his hand on the younger man’s shoulder, he knew he wasn’t just apologizing for what had happened in the ring tonight. “Colby, man it’s okay. She’s gonna be fine. It wasn’t your fault. You had no idea she was gonna do that. She’s gonna be okay.”

“Rollins!” From down the hall came Stephanie’s shrill voice, commanding his attention.

“Tell her I’m sorry.” Seth said with a frown as he hung his head and walked down the hall to the boss.

Tasha really was okay, thanks to Seth pulling his move at the last second, her head had barely hit the chair. It was enough to sell it to the fans, but not enough to actually injure her, although she did have one hell of a headache for a few hours.

Her weekend with Walking Dead went by quickly and before she realized it, she was flying to Kansas City for Monday Night RAW. Once again it seemed that The Authority was deliberately trying to keep her and Colby apart, as when he had tried to come talk to her, Stephanie had immediately called him back to the office.

As the show got underway she managed to get a small message to Colby, via Brie, who pretended to hug him saying how much she had missed him.

“She wanted me to tell you that she’s okay. She’s not mad at you and when you’re able to, she’s ready to listen. And she wanted me to tell you to lose the tie, you look better without it.” Brie smiled as she gave him a kiss on his cheek. “That’s from her.”

Seth Rollins grinned as he made his way down to the ring alongside The Authority, minus his tie, which he felt did actually make him look better.

The ominous structure Hell In A Cell hung above the ring, as the group climbed the steel steps and stepped through the ropes.

“Welcome to Monday Night RAW.” Triple H announced. “In what I’m sure will be an epic night, a night that The Authority can be proud of. Proud of all of you, because tonight, these three men, Seth Rollins, Kane, Randy Orton will compete in this ring in a three-on-two handicap match street fight. Against the team of John Cena… and Dean Ambrose. Now, should Ambrose and Cena make it through tonight, then quite literally, hell is hanging over their heads, because this Sunday night, Ambrose and Cena will go straight to hell. Hell in a cell to be more specific, the most ominous and destructive structure ever designed in the WWE.

Unspeakable things will happen inside this cell on Sunday. And you can see them all live on the WWE Network for just… $9.99. Now, take it from someone who has been inside Hell In A Cell, it changes your life. It is not the kind of match that you win, even though I must say I have won more Hell In A Cell matches than any other man alive. But, that really is not my point. My point is it’s not the kind of match you win, it’s the kind of match you survive. This Sunday, this cell will put an end to two of the WWE’s most heated rivalries. In one cell, it will be the face of the WWE, The Viper, Randy Orton facing off against the 15-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion, John Cena.

And in the other Hell In A Cell match, it will be the unstable Dean Ambrose… competing against Mr. Money In the Bank, Seth Rollins.”

Seth takes the mic from his boss cackling, “You know, Hunter, I really like that nickname, that moniker actually, Mr. Money In the Bank, it always has a great ring to it, but…”

He pauses as the loud chant of “you sold out” comes from the crowd and he shakes his head.

“Mr. Money In the Bank has a great ring to it, always has, but I was actually thinking about a new nickname, check this one out. Wanted to get your thoughts on it all of you guys actually. Undisputed future of the WWE, huh? It’s got a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? What? What? What? Look, the key word here is future, you got to understand, future, because that is something Dean Ambrose will no longer have after I beat him in the main event this Sunday.”

Seth is cut off by Randy who takes the mic out of his hand, much to the chagrin of Rollins. “Seth, I’m sorry, but the true main event this Sunday at Hell In A Cell is going to involve a couple of superstars that have been around the WWE longer than a hot cup of coffee. Yeah, you heard me. I’m gonna beat John Cena at Hell In A Cell this Sunday. And I will end the decade-long rivalry once and for all.”

The two men start bickering like a couple of school girls, and Hunter gets in between them, taking his microphone back from Orton. “No, no, no, no, you’re both right. No, no, hey, you’re both right. You’re both in the main event. It is a double main event. That’s right. And while the whole world wants to see Seth Rollins destroy Dean Ambrose which he will inside Hell In A Cell, what I am about to say right now might very well put your match over the top, Randy, because your match this Sunday inside Hell In A Cell against John Cena won’t just be about putting an end to your decade-long rivalry, no. It will be about opportunity, because the winner of your match with John Cena will receive an opportunity with the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, Brock Lesnar.”

“You know what, today is turning out to be a very good day indeed.” Randy says after hearing that news. “You know what, Hunter, I’m gonna make you so proud, you know, unlike Kansas City and their Royals who haven’t won a championship in 29 years. And you won’t win one this year probably, or one for another 29 years. I’m gonna make you proud, H. You watch, I will beat John Cena and go on to face Brock, and I will beat him too.”

“Randy, I know you will make me proud. I know Seth Rollins will make me proud. I know Kane will make me proud, not only right here tonight in the three-on-two handicap match street fight, but this Sunday at Hell In A Cell, all of you will make me proud, will make The Authority proud, because unlike all of you, The Authority always wins. And that—oh, yeah, that is best for business.”

After being informed by Triple H that the winner of his match at Hell In A Cell facing Brock Lesnar was Seth Rollins’ idea, Randy goes in search of the younger man to thank him. As he turns a corner to a particularly deserted hallway he hears a melodious laugh, anyone backstage knows who that laugh belongs to. He turns to find his vivacious ex-girlfriend, splayed over the top of a crate to his right.

“Something amusing, Siren?” Randy says turning to the Diva, licking his lips as he admires the short hot pink crop top and low slung black skintight jeans that show off her toned stomach and cut v-lines. It wasn’t long ago he remembered having that athletic body pressed up against his, the thought alone making him groan.

She rolled over onto her side, leaning up onto her elbow and propping her head up on her hand. “You really are a fool, aren’t you, Randy?”

“How so?” He said crossing his arms over his chest.

“Why do you think Seth Rollins of all people would suggest a title match for you if you win on Sunday?”

Randy shrugged his shoulders, not that he didn’t have his guesses, but he wanted to hear her opinion. He’d became champion when she was his manager, she’d never lead him wrong yet.

“I’ll tell you why, the reason is an 8 x 11 stack of papers, locked inside of a gold rectangle case, permanently attached to his hand. He wants you to beat John on Sunday, he wants you to face Brock Lesnar. So that he can cash that contract in and beat you for the World Heavyweight Championship.”

“I don’t think he’d do that. He’s not that stupid.”

Siren smirked as she sat up and hopped down off of the crates, pressing herself up against Randy as she looked up at him. “I never thought he’d betray his brothers or me, but… ta-da. He’s not stupid, Randy. In fact, I think Seth Rollins is the smartest superstar I’ve ever worked with. He’s brilliant and methodical in ways that no one else could ever imagine. It’s something I admire about him. He is the future of this company, Randy, and not because he’s the best, but because he has the best backing him. Mark my words, Randy, if you do anything to jeopardize The Authority’s precious golden boy… They’ll knock you all the way back down to NXT. Just something for you to ponder.”

Randy clenched his jaw as she walked down the hallway, his mind swirling with her words.

“Oh and Viper…”

He looked back up to see her smiling at him. “If you ever want a real manager again, who actually gives a damn about you, you know my number.”

Continuing on his way Randy finds Seth in the locker room, admiring the briefcase in his hands.

“Hey.”

“Hey. What’s going on, Randy?”

“Oh, you know, I just want to say thank you personally, because Triple H told me that this whole thing was your idea.”

“Yeah, man. No problem. Don’t mention it twice. I’m just looking out for you, ya know.”

Randy can still hear Siren’s words in his mind as he rubs his temple. “And therein, lies the problem I’m having, man. Why would you look out for me?”

“Oh, The Authority, I mean, I’m a—I’m a team player.”

“You know what, I don’t need you on my team. In other words, just stay out of my business. I can take care of myself.”

“Take it easy. All right. Think about it. This Sunday ay Hell In A Cell, you have a golden opportunity to defeat John Cena, end your rivalry with him for good. And if by some miracle, and trust me, it would be a miracle, you were to go on and defeat Brock Lesnar, you’ll become the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion. From there, I mean, the future kind of takes care of itself, huh?” Seth says holding up his Money In the Bank briefcase.

“Yeah, the future will take care of itself.”

Siren stood in the back watching Randy out in the ring with John Cena and Paul Heyman, having a conversation on who would win their match on Sunday, and go on to face Brock Lesnar. It ended with Randy delivering two RKO’s to Cena and Heyman.

She smiled as he walked back behind the curtain, clapping her hands. “Nicely done, Randy.”

“Thanks for your advice, it’s always so helpful.”

“Anytime you need more, just let me know.” She laughed before kissing his cheek and heading off to the locker room.

In one of the backstage rooms Siren is curled up on a black leather couch beside Dean, they’re eating popcorn and watching a movie on the TV beside them. They both jump, startled as John Cena walks into the room, looking at them with a perplexed face.

Dean stands up beside John as the older man asks, “What are you doing?”

“Doing some research for our match tonight.” He says shutting off the TV. “See No Evil 2 starring Kane, this guy is sick, twisted, sad*stic.”

“This is—this is what you do, this is your plan? This is your strategy, movie night?”

“Come on. See, me and you, we’re kind of like a comic book movie, it’s like superman teaming up with batman. You stand for truth, justice, and the American way, nice American square jaw on you. I like to beat up scumbags. I’ve been known to wear a cape. But really, we just don’t mix.”

John is so lost, “What do you even—we got a match tonight. And the three people in that match are gonna do whatever they can to take both of us out of commission before Hell In A Cell. How are we gonna handle it?”

Dean pats him on the shoulder, “Relax, this might surprise you, but even though I am undefeated in contract on a pole matches, handicap street fights are my specialty. So, here’s how we’re gonna handle it. We’re gonna throw punches at anything that moves. And if they insist on taking us down, we’re gonna take as many of them down with us as we can, that’s how we handle it.”

“I like it. I like it.” John says nodding. “The whole batman thing is not for you. You are much more like the Joker.”

John walks out and Dean looks over at Siren, “Why so serious?”

After the cameras cut John walks back in laughing, he looks at Siren shaking his head as Dean gets back into the movie. “How do you cut a promo with him and keep a straight face?”

“It’s an acquired talent.” She says smiling as Dean jumps again.

About an hour before the main event match, the cameras show Siren walking through the backstage area towards the curtain, behind her is Dean carrying a large gray duffle bag over his shoulders. The WWE Universe can only wonder what is in the bag as Dean and Siren make their way down to the ring.

While Dean grabs a chair and a mic, Siren hops up onto the turnbuckle, draping herself across both sets of ropes and relaxing.

“For the last four months, I’ve been having dreams, visions about what I would do when I finally got my hands on Seth Rollins. And this Sunday, I finally get what I’ve been craving. I get that no good, backstabbing, half hair-dyed, power ranger suit sellout inside Hell In A Cell.”

Dean drops the mic and starts to pull stuff out of the bag, Siren has no idea what is in it, so she laughs out loud along with the universe as Dean pulls out a dummy that he’s made to look like Seth and sits him in the chair. Siren is crying by now as Dean starts to have a conversation with dummy Seth.

“Look at you, Seth. Look at what you’ve become. You’re nothing but a puppet for The Authority, doing The Authority’s dirty work for a pat on the back, pat on the head, and a big fat paycheck. Actually, dirty work isn’t right, dirty doesn’t quite suit you because we both know that you’ve never liked to get your hands dirty.

So, I’m gonna do you a favor this Sunday at Hell In a Cell because I don’t want you to think that I don’t care about you anymore, okay? The first body part of yours that I rip off inside that cell, so you never have to get your hands dirty again, will be your hands.”

Dean actually pulls off the lower right part of dummy Seth’s arm, holding it in his hands, before he starts hitting the dummy in the face with the hand. “See what you made me do? Do you think I like it? Huh? Huh? You feel good about yourself? Sold out to The Authority, huh? Huh? I mean, Seth, you’re a smart guy. Look at you, you’re no dummy. You should know what I do…”

He opens up one the black duffle bag that was inside of the other one, pulling out a plethora of miscellaneous tools and objects until he finds a screwdriver.

“…To people who screw me over. I screw them back harder.” He jams the screwdriver into the dummy’s face and rips it around trying to puncture a hole into it.

“And, Seth, just to hammer this point home.” He picks up a hammer and proceeds to bash the dummy’s face in repeatedly.

“Just to hammer this point home, I’m gonna tell you about how I saw something in my dream last night.” He then pulls out a saw and grips it into his hand. “I saw myself chopping your testicl*s off in the middle of the Hell In A Cell. And then I remembered that you already sold your testicl*s to The Authority, so I can’t do that.”

As he roots around in the bag, Siren has by now dropped to the mat and sat down in the corner because she is laughing so hard that she’s crying. She laughs even harder as he pulls a set of tongs out of the bag and holds them up, clapping the ends.

“So, let’s see how much testicular fortitude you have left.” He grabs the dummy’s testicl*s with the tongs, and Siren dies, lying down on the mat as she laughs until her stomach hurts.

“Oh, you don’t need to have kids anyway.” Dean says picking the dummy up and delivering a tombstone to it, causing the wig on it to fall off.

But just as her laughter started, Siren’s stopped as Seth Rollins himself walked out onto the stage. She immediately got to her feet and readied for a fight. Gone was the carefree laughing young woman, in her place was a vicious storm ready to unleash on Seth Rollins.

“Congratulations, Ambrose, you’ve done it. You’ve finally found an opponent that you can relate to on an intellectual level. I mean, look, we all know you’re never ever gonna be able to beat me. But, hey, on the bright side, at least you can parlay this into a comedy career. You could open up for uh, carrot top, right, or Gallagher or Louise C.K., or anybody like that. I mean, what’s next? You’re gonna bring out the watermelons? What do you got, the balloon animals in there? What’s the deal, huh?”

“Let’s all give a big hand to the world’s biggest sellout.” Dean snaps tossing the amputated arm at Seth, who side steps it as it hits the ramp.

“Oh, okay. All right, this again, right?” Seth says as the crowd once again chants, “You sold out.”

“I sold out. I sold out. You’re damn right I sold out. But you know what, to be honest with you, it kind of stings a little bit coming from you guys, because guess what, just like all of you, I grew up in the Midwest. Yeah, yeah. I’m a Midwestern kid too, but you know what, that is where the similarities between all of you and me come to a very abrupt end. Because I knew unlike all of you that from a very young age, I was destined to be more than some pathetic Midwestern piece of trailer park trash. None of you losers will ever have any idea what it’s like to be me, you understand? I am famous, I am rich, I am somebody. And that’s why—hey, that’s why you’ve all got your cameras out right now, taking pictures and videos of me. You’re calling me a sellout now but later you’re gonna be posting those on Twitter and Instagram. You’re gonna be hash-tagging by in, telling me that I was the best part of RAW tonight just like I am every single week. So yeah, I sold out. So, what? I sold The Shield out. I sold Dean Ambrose out, so what?”

Dean pulls an electric drill out of the bag, with a very long drill bit on the end of it. “Hey, we got a main event tonight and everything. And I’m saving the worst for Hell In A Cell, but I got no problem giving the people here in Kansas City a little early preview if you’re not gonna shut your mouth.”

Seth slowly climbs up the ring steps to the apron. “You know I don’t sweat you, Ambrose. I don’t sweat that drill in your hand.” His eyes move directly over to Siren and a grin forms on his face, “But I’d be happy to do a little sweating with you, Siren.”

He tosses her a wink as the crowd surprisingly cheers at his admission, clearly they like the thought of Seth and Siren together. Siren however, looks like she wants to throw up at the thought.

“I don’t sweat Hell In A Cell. You see, Dean, I’m on…”

Seth is interrupted by none other than the hardcore legend himself, Mick Foley, as he comes down to the ring to address the two men. Nobody knows more about how dangerous Hell In A Cell is than Mrs. Foley’s baby boy. He climbs into the ring, pausing to kiss Siren on her cheek before he address the two men.

“Excuse me if you will, but I just came by to visit an old friend.” He says pointing up at the cell hanging above the ring. “And to congratulate both of you for fulfilling your destinies. Because I remember the Foley children coming back from the Barclay’s Center after seeing The Shield in action for the first time. And they were raving about you. My daughter said, “Dad, The Shield is amazing.” So I set that bar of expectations very high the next night on RAW, because I though I do not grace your screens very often, I’m watching RAW every Monday night. I’m watching Smackdown every Friday. I even subscribe to the network for an undisclosed monthly sum. And she was right, The Shield was dominant, as dominant a team as I’ve seen in this generation. And you chose wisely when you got in my opinion, the greatest manager in the business today, Siren.”

The woman smiled and nodded her thanks as he continued to address the men. “But as great as you were as a cohesive unit, I visualized the day when you, Seth Rollins, would go face to face with Dean Ambrose. And Dean, I’m gonna be honest, as great as you are, as disturbingly poetic as I find you to be, in almost every scenario face to face, I envisioned Seth Rollins coming out victorious.”

Seth laughed as he climbed into the ring, “Now, we’re talking. Now, we’re talking. That’s what I like to hear. Just when I thought you had no redeeming left in your body, just when I thought you were an old dinosaur who dresses up as Santa Claus for a living and you have made a mockery of everything you ever did in this ring, I realize you still got some good thoughts in that half-working brain of yours.”

“I think you missed out on the key word in that sentence.” Mick tells him patting him on the shoulder. “I said in almost any scenario. That’s no ordinary scenario.” He says pointing up at the cell. “That’s Hell In A Cell. I’m saying that Dean Ambrose has made his intentions very clear. He wants to—he wants to rip your face off. And this structure, this instrument of evil gives him the tools in which to do it. Now, you mentioned my Santa Claus shirt and guess what? You’re right. It’s the 300^th consecutive day that I’ve worn Santa Claus themed attire. You know why? Because I cling to the last vestiges of my innocence, the ones that weren’t stripped away from me 18 years ago. You’ll find the scars that night left on me, I’m proud of that. The tooth that was knocked out, this blue one right here. Take a good look at it, the one that was lodged inside my nose, I’m proud of that. I look at it every morning and I remember the contribution that I made to this business. But the man who’s been here, done that. Heed my words. The scars you will not heal from, the scars that will haunt you for a lifetime are the emotional wounds that will not heal.”

“Thanks, Mick.” Dean says. “But with all due respect, hardcore legend, I lost my innocence a long time ago in more ways than one. And I’m not worried about adding more psychological scars on top of other psychological scars. There are more scars in my body on top of other scars in my body. I’m not worried about losing anymore teeth, you know what I’m saying? Nobody in this company, with the exception of my lady, Siren, understands me back there, all right? But you, if there’s anybody on this planet that might get me just a little bit, and be able to look into my eyes right now and know that I’m ready for Hell In A Cell. And, Seth Rollins, that’s a question you’re gonna have to ask yourself Monday morning from a hospital bed. Was it all worth it? Were you ready for Hell In A Cell? Ask yourself. Ask… yourself.”

“All right. Okay. All right. I get it. You’re both crazy. You’re both out of your minds. But if you—if you two think that that’s what it’s gonna take to win on Sunday at Hell In A Cell, okay, then you really lost all your marbles, because it’s got nothing to do with how crazy you think you are, Dean Ambrose. And I know you better than anybody. You are out of your damn mind. But I’m gonna beat you. And I’m gonna do it the same way I’ve been beating everybody along the way. It’s because you guys are down here and my brain and me are way, way above you. You understand that? You get that? It’s not about how crazy you are. It’s about how smart you are.”

“It’s about how smart you are, huh?” Mick asks Seth. “A very wise man once said that that which does not kill you makes you stronger. With all due respect to German philosopher, Frydrych Nietzsche, he was never thrown off a cell. He didn’t realize that this match, whether you realize or not, will go on to define you the same way it did me. I look at my life in two very distinct phases, pre-cell and post-cell. And I’m not sure either one of you are prepared for the life that awaits you on the other side of that cell. In some ways, I look at the two of you and you remind me of the audience here tonight. You see, tomorrow, the people here, right here in Kansas City, Missouri. They get the game they’ve been waiting for 29 years. But on Sunday night, October 26, when that cell door slams and you’re locked inside it, the two of you, you get the match you’ve been waiting for your entire lives. Have a nice day.”

Mick climbs out of the ring as Seth and Dean stare one another down, until Seth turns his back and Dean nearly hits him with the steel chair. He then picks up the dummy and slams Seth with it, knocking him down off of the apron.

By the time came for the main event everybody backstage was on the edge of their seats to see what happened. John entered the ring first followed by Dean and Siren, then Kane, Randy Orton and finally, Seth Rollins.

As soon as the bell rang it was an all out melee as the two teams of men rushed one another. It ended up being Dean and Seth starting things out once the others were knocked out of the ring.

It didn’t take long for the tables and chairs to come out to play, but so far nobody had been hit with one, or put through one. Dean however thanks to Kane, had been bashed in the face with the steel steps. Seth picked up the table that John had put in the ring, propping it up against the turnbuckle. But a quick offense from John kept him from going through the table just yet. But it wasn’t long as Kane got him back into the ring and slammed him back first through it.

Siren stood at the bottom of the ramp a slight panic enveloping her body, but it turned into a full blown panic attack as the cell above the ring started to descend. “Oh, sh*t.” Not thinking about her safety or whether it was rational, Siren grabbed Dean by the shirt and drug him over to the ring… just as the cell met the floor, enveloping them inside of it.

Now there was no escape.

Dean got up onto the apron just in time for John to tag him in, and he leapt off of the turnbuckle tackling all three Authority members to the mat. Dean then knocked Kane and Rollins to the outside, while he focused his attention on Randy. Bouncing off of the ropes to avoid Randy, Dean hit Seth with a dropkick that sent Seth flying back first into the steel of the cage.

Dean then laid Randy out with a clothesline, before rolling out of the ring and searching underneath it for another weapon. He found Siren’s weapon of choice and grinned at her, as he laid into Randy like he was playing baseball. Dean then grabbed a steel chair and climbed up onto the second rope, jumping off he planted the steel chair into Randy’s face with an elbow drop.

Randy got to his feet and tried to rush Dean, but the lunatic sent him flying over the top rope into the cage. Rollins tried the same thing and ended up flying over the ropes, hitting both the cage and Randy Orton. Dean then bounced off the ropes and suicide dove into Seth, slamming both of their heads off of the steel.

As the battle between Randy and Dean raged on, Kane caught Siren as she was checking on John, threading his fingers through her hair he lifted her up, preparing to slam her back first into the steel. But to the shock of the WWE Universe, Siren and Kane, Seth Rollins got in between the demon and the cage. Shaking his head Seth told Kane, “No! She doesn’t get hurt! Let her down, now! I’m calling the shots! Put her down!”

As Kane set her down she backed up behind Seth, putting distance between her and the demon. Seth turned around to face her, their eyes meeting, a silent conversation between them. The crowd went crazy for this, it was clear they loved the combination of Seth and Siren.

Meanwhile Dean and Randy rolled back into the ring, Randy coiling up looking for the RKO, when he was caught by John. But before John could deliver an AA to Randy, Kane interceded and choke slammed John. But he was then caught with “Dirty Deeds” by Ambrose as he turned around. Randy got to his feet and caught Dean with an RKO, going for the cover and picking up the win for his team.

But the shock of the night came from Seth Rollins who climbed back into the ring and slammed Randy’s head to the mat with a curb stomp.

His victory was short lived as he turned around and was hit with the “Siren’s Call”, planting his head into the mat. The crowd went ballistic as Siren stood over Seth, her chest heaving with anger as she stared down at him.

As RAW went off the air, Siren stood tall amidst the carnage.

Chapter 39: Hell In A Cell

Chapter Text

Tasha headed out to California that night to film the last episode of Teen Wolf for the season and the second to last episode of SOA. As usual she reveled being on set, it was so much easier than WWE. She didn’t have to deal with all the bureaucracy and bullsh*t, it was read the script, follow the cues and if you screwed up, do another take.

When she arrived in Wichita, Kansas for Smackdown she was in a slightly better mood, crew members not running to get out of her path as she walked by. She quickly got changed because she and Dean were up first, they had some grievances to air with Seth Rollins.

The two strode down to the ring, both of them looking very angry as they got into the ring, both of them grabbing a mic as the universe started chanting Dean’s name.

“I think I’ve proven that the law of physics don’t apply to me. What goes up must come down, but I don’t stay down. They hit me with chairs, I get back up. They choke-slam me and I get back up. Seth Rollins and The Authority, they curbed stomped me through cinder blocks, and I get back up. So the question then becomes why do you keep getting back up? I could tell you that I’m indestructible, that I can’t be hurt, or I could tell you the truth, all that stuff hurts. My bones hurt, my body hurts, fighting The Authority, standing up to The Authority can be a very painful thing.

Night in, night out. The reason I keep getting back up is the key difference between me and the guy who came out here on RAW to warn me and Seth Rollins of the dangers of Hell In A Cell, Mick Foley. Mick Foley was “The Hardcore Legend.” But deep down, deep down, Mick Foley was always a nice guy. I’m not a nice guy. I don’t have a loving family to go home to, and I don’t have anything else to live for, except putting pain on the people who put pain on me.

That hole in my stomach, that thirst for vengeance is what keeps me moving forward to Hell In A Cell. The day I’ve been waiting for ever since Seth Rollins put a knife in my back and said it was just business. This Sunday, Seth Rollins learns the cold hard fact, no matter how fat your pockets get, you can’t take your money with you when you’re knee-deep in your own personal hell. Seth, if you got anything to say about that, I suggest you leave your little office and you come out here and say it.”

Instead of coming out Seth appears on the big screen his eyes burning into Siren’s, which only serves to make her smile. “Seth, how’s your head, honey?”

Seth cackles, “Oh, Siren, the bane of my existence. Congratulations, you got one over on me on RAW. And after I saved you from Kane.”

“Oh, please. You didn’t do it for me. You knew that if Kane threw me into that cell, my rage for you would only grow, and fuel my desire to destroy you. You weren’t protecting me, you were protecting yourself, Rollins.”

Seth shook his head, knowing he was never going to convince her that he did care, so his attention turned to Dean. “Ambrose, Ambrose. Hey, Ambrose, let’s get one thing perfectly clear. You do not tell me what to do. You don’t call me out. That’s not how it’s ever been, and nothing’s changing. I tell you what to do and I call you out. As a matter of fact, later tonight, that’s exactly what I’m going to do. But you know what, since we’re out here and you’re kind of talking about the past, let’s take a stroll down memory lane. Let’s remember how I spoon-fed you all those catch phrases that you thought were the backbone of our “brotherhood.”

What kind of idiot are you to believe in that? Look, just as you thought we were building something special in The Shield, no, no, no, it was me, Ambrose. It was me all along planning my moment. You get that? My moment and you’re out here talking about vengeance like it’s some sort of jackpot, like you won the lottery. Vengeance is cheap. And just like you, it’s not worth a damn. You know what? You know what’s priceless, Ambrose? The future. Now, yours ends at Hell In A Cell. But mine, no, my future truly begins when I dispose of you this Sunday. And then, when the time is right I will cash in my Money In the Bank contract and solidify myself as the future of WWE.”

“You always had a way with words, Seth , I’ll give you that.” Dean says as he paces the front of the ring. “When that cell drops on Sunday, you can’t talk your way out of nothing. I don’t care of it’s my last match, my last night in a WWE ring, in Hell In A Cell, we’re gonna burn together. But you, you’re gonna perish alone.”

At the end of the night, Seth Rollins made good on his promise to call Dean Ambrose out. But first he had to go out and show off his plethora of tools, just as Dean did on Monday.

“Dean Ambrose, you came out here on RAW earlier this week, and you thought you were the only one with a bag of tricks. But as usual, Ambrose, I am one step ahead of you. You see, I taught Ambrose everything he knows. And he can call me a sellout till he’s blue in the face. You all can call me sellout till you’re blue in your faces.”

So obliging him the fans start chanting, “You sold out.”

“Hey, hey. I admitted I sold out, but the truth is, I bought into a concept that is extremely foreign to every single one of you. And that is winning. You see, I am a winner, all right? I am a born winner. And this Sunday at Hell In A Cell, I am going to win. Now, I may have never participated in a Hell In A Cell match. Yeah, I understand that. But I am a student of The Game. And I understand that there is only one rule inside Hell In A Cell, and that is that there are no rules.

So without further ado, let me give you a little preview of what I’m going to do to Dean Ambrose this Sunday at Hell In A Cell. Ooh, where do I start? Where do I start? Where do I—Oh, perfect. Handcuffs.”

He picks up a set of handcuffs from the table and dangles them from his thumb. “Ambrose, you uh, have made a habit out of surprising me by popping out of some very unexpected places, like, I don’t know, a birthday present, underneath tables, all sorts of good stuff. So, maybe I will use these handcuffs here to bind you to that cell, so I can see the look on your face when you realize you have nowhere to run and nowhere to hide.

But as much as that would please me, if I’m being honest, I’d much rather use these handcuffs on the beautiful, Siren. Oh, yeah.” He says nodding as the crowd cheers, mostly the men. “What man in America wouldn’t love to handcuff her? However, this ring wouldn’t be my first choice of where to do it.” He tosses a wink to the camera knowing Siren is backstage watching, before he puts down the handcuffs.

“Or maybe, yes, a screwdriver. Maybe I’ll use this here, screwdriver, to deflate Dean Ambrose’s oversized, overblown ego and prove, prove that he’s been a screw up all along. What else? What else? What else? We got some good stuff up here. Oh, yeah.” He says picking up a lead pipe. “You know, Ambrose said he was indestructible. Nobody is indestructible. And I am gonna use this pipe on Sunday to beat Ambrose into a pulp.”

He chuckles as he tosses the pipe down and grabs a steel chair, something they are all very familiar with. “You know what, I saved the best for last. Remember this little ditty, Ambrose? You remember how this felt, huh? Let’s take another trip down memory lane, should we? To the night I decimated you with this chair and proved why all along I was the leader. I was the backbone of The Shield.

Now, we can do all that. We can do all that or you know what else we can do? How did you put it earlier, Ambrose? How did you put it? We can finish what we started on RAW. We can settle this, right here, right now. Yeah, let’s do that Ambrose. Let’s do that because I’m gonna do what I told you I was gonna do earlier tonight. Ambrose, this is me calling your ass out. Come on, Ambrose. Come on. Where you at? I’m right here, all by myself, center of the ring. Yeah, yeah. He ain’t coming out here. He ain’t coming out here just like I thought. Ambrose is all talk. Ambrose has always been all talk. But you know what, maybe, maybe actually he did learn a thing or two from me while we were in The Shield. Maybe he’s smarter than I gave him credit for.

He doesn’t wanna come out here. Ambrose doesn’t wanna come out here because he’s afraid. And I get it. I understand. If I were Ambrose, I wouldn’t want what happened on RAW to happen again to him tonight. Because for me, the future is a very, very bright place. But for Dean Ambrose, it is what it has always been, a long ride straight to hell.”

Seth replayed the video of himself curb stomping Dean on Monday night, but much to his chagrin, Ambrose’s music came on. However, it wasn’t Ambrose that stepped out onto the stage, but Siren.

Rollins eyed her, wondering why she was just standing at the top of the ramp, but his other thought, where the hell was Ambrose? He received his answer as she grinned, then a blinding pain shot through his back as Dean, who had entered through the crowd unloaded on Rollins with a kendo stick.

Siren ran down to the ring as J&J Security slid into the ring to help Seth, but they were thwarted by Ambrose who turned his rage towards them. Rollins escaped as both Siren and Dean fought off J&J Security, the diva planting Noble on the canvas with the “Siren’s Call”, while Dean planted Mercury with “Dirty Deeds.”

The crowd was chanting “tables”, so Dean obliged them sending Mercury through a table with an elbow drop from the second rope.

“One more time.” The crowd chanted.

Dean picked up Noble and laid him on the table, but instead of climbing the ropes, he pointed to Siren. The crowd cheered for her, it had been a long time since they’d seen her get extreme. She was no stranger to it, having grown up in ECW and battled alongside the Hardy Boyz.

Smirking she climbed to the top rope, perching on the turnbuckle she blew a kiss to Seth, before she leapt off performing a Swanton Bomb, the move made famous by her close friend Jeff Hardy, onto Noble splitting the table in half.

Seth was beside himself as he fumed on the stage, ripping off his t-shirt, but he made no move to come down to the ring. Dean and Siren stood tall as Smackdown went off the air.

Tasha headed out that night to Georgia for the Walking Dead, she had two days to film before she had to be at the arena for Hell In A Cell. She actually finished her shooting early Saturday night and took an earlier flight out, so she had a relaxing night spent in her hotel.

The tensions surrounding the Hell In A Cell pay-per-view were palpable as Tasha entered the arena in Dallas, Texas on Sunday night. Her mind was wandering with what The Authority had planned for both Dean and John that night. There was no way that the matches would not be interfered with, she could almost bet on that.

After changing into her ring gear Tasha was informed that the bosses wanted to see her. Gritting her teeth she walked to their office, knocking loudly on the door. When she entered she found Hunter sitting behind the desk and Stephanie perched on the side of it. Sinking down into a chair, Tasha hung one of her legs over the side, showing her “I don’t give a f*ck” attitude.

“Who the hell do you think you are?” Stephanie asked her point blank.

Tasha smiled, “I could ask you the same thing.”

“How dare you bring my father into something that he has no business being a part of.”

This time the brunette beauty smirked, “I’m sorry, but last I checked, your father was the CEO of the company. So, technically, his business is everything. And I didn’t tell him anything that wasn’t going on. He asked how things were going and I told him. I have never sugar coated or lied to him about anything, did you think I would start now?”

Stephanie scooted off of the desk and stood over Tasha, leaning down in her face. “Seth Rollins, made his decision. He doesn’t want you, he wants nothing to do with you. So, you need to leave him alone and focus your attention on your clients.”

Tasha didn’t bat an eye about Stephanie’s threats or her proximity to her face. She stood up shoving Stephanie backwards, “If all of that was true, Steph, why do you and The Authority keep running interference every time Colby tries to talk to me? Are you afraid he’s gonna tell me something that I shouldn’t know? Or maybe something that you shouldn’t have done?

You know what I think, Stephanie, I think you’ve got a thing for the golden boy, and I think it pissed you off to see him so happy with me. But you couldn’t break us up without having to fire Colby, like he told you. So, you did the only other thing you could do, you threatened him. You’re holding something over his head and he had no choice but to walk away from me.”

Neither Hunter nor Stephanie said anything and Tasha knew that she was right. She shook her head as she looked at the two people she used to trust, that she used to look up to.

“I cannot believe you two. You know I was there when you two started dating, I was there when you got engaged, and I was a part of your wedding. I admired you for the way you stood up to Vince, not letting him dictate the two of you being together. And here you are, doing the same thing to me and Colby. We told you from the beginning that we would not interfere with the storylines, and we haven’t. No one outside of this company knows that we were together. I’m not stupid, you both know that. I would never do anything to jeopardize my job, I love this company, it is my life.”

A thought suddenly came to her and she scoffed, “And you know that. That’s what you did. You threatened my job, didn’t you? You knew that Colby would never let me lose this. You threatened to fire me if he didn’t break things off, didn’t you? Didn’t you!?”

Tasha was livid by now, they had done this same thing back when she married John, they had forced her to quit the company to save her husband. And here they were doing it again.

“Yes, Stephanie, I called your dad. I told him everything that the two of you have been doing, using this company and the superstars as your own personal puppets for your amusem*nt. I have seen you rip couples apart, ruin relationships including my own just for the sake of ratings. But I will not, let you take Colby from me. I will not quit. If you have to fire me, then you go ahead and fire me! But we both know Vince, will never allow you to do that. I’m going to be with Colby, so go ahead, make my life as miserable as you want, I don’t care, I can take it. But you hear me now, if you do anything to Colby… you will see a side of me that will make Satan, look like a saint.”

About a half hour before show time, Tasha was walking down one of the back hallways. It was deserted, no one around, she needed some time to herself to calm down before she ended up in jail. As she passed one of the office doors a hand covered her mouth as another hand wrapped around her waist and drug her back into the room.

She knew exactly who it was by the feel of the hands and the smell, so there was no reason for her to panic. She turned around as the hands released her, leaning against the now closed door.

“Colby. What are you doing?”

He smiled at her feeling kind of foolish, that he had to resort to basically kidnapping her just to talk. “Sorry. I just didn’t know any other way to give us some time to talk. The Authority’s been watching my every move.”

“I know. I just had a meeting with Stephanie and Hunter earlier.” She reached down and took his hands into hers, giving them a squeeze. “I know what they did.”

“They told you?”

She shook her head, “No. I figured it out myself. After what Stephanie said to me, it was all too clear, it didn’t take me long to put all of the pieces together.”

“I’m sorry.” He said stepping forward and leaning his head against hers. “I wanted to tell you. Stephanie threatened to fire you if I didn’t break things off. I never wanted to do that, but I know how much you love your job and I couldn’t let you lose it. I thought losing me would be easier.”

“I would rather lose my job, than lose you.” She admitted, lifting his head up to look at her. “You are the reason why I love my job. If you weren’t here anymore, I wouldn’t have a reason to be. I love my job, and the fans, but without you, it’s all meaningless.”

“They’re gonna make your life hell.” He said, he knew they wouldn’t do anything to him, not so long as he was a part of The Authority.

“I know. And I’ll endure it. I want you, Colby, and I will take whatever they throw at me. I will not allow them to dictate my life and take away my main reason for being here.”

Colby didn’t know what to say, there were no words that he could come up with right now, that would tell her how much she meant to him and how much he needed her. So he did the next best thing, he leaned down and captured her lips with his. Gripping her hip with one hand, he ran the other up and rested it on the back of her neck, holding her to him as he ravaged her mouth.

Minutes passed but the two had no intention of pulling apart, desperately making up for their time spent apart over the last month. Sliding his hand down her leg, Colby reached under her thigh and lifted her up, her legs automatically wrapping around his waist.

His hand ran up from her neck, threading his long fingers through her hair, as he clenched his fist in her dark locks. Hearing her moan in response was the best thing Colby had heard in weeks. While most guys liked to spend their time f*cking their woman, which Colby was sure he’d enjoy when they got to that point, his favorite thing to do was kiss Tasha. Her lips and tongue were so soft and moist, her kisses were a drug and he was addicted. He could spend the rest of his life just kissing her, and die a happy man.

After several more minutes the two finally parted, their oxygen levels nearly depleted. They stood there just smiling at one another, Colby still holding her up against the wall, her fingers drawing lazy circles on his neck.

“God, I missed you.” He said breaking the silence with a sigh.

Tasha giggled, “I missed you too, Cole.”

“Never again.” He stated. “Never again will I lose you.”

“Never again.” She agreed nodding her head.

Colby released her legs, letting her feet touch the floor before he stepped back to give her some room. They both heard the pyro going off, signaling the start of the show, which meant the end of this for now.

“We better go.” She said, dejection clear in her voice.

“Hey, it’ll be okay. I’m leaving here with you tonight, and there’s not a damn thing they’re gonna do about it.” He stated, his tone holding no room for negotiation.

“Okay.” She turned around to open the door, but stopped short as she felt Colby slide something around her neck. Looking down she saw the necklace with his initials setting in place on her skin.

“This doesn’t ever come off again.” He growled into her ear.

Smiling she turned around and pressed a long slow kiss to his lips. “Never.”

Opening the door Colby took Tasha’s hand and stepped out of the room, their hands and fingers remained in touch until they were forced to let go, both of them walking away in different directions.

The night started off with the Intercontinental 2 out of 3 falls match between Dolph Ziggler and Cesaro, with the Showoff picking up the win with a “zig-zag.”

Nikki then managed to pick up the win over her sister Brie, forcing the latter Bella to be her sister’s personal assistant for the next 30 days.

The next match was for the tag-team titles, The Uso’s against the currant champs, Goldust and Stardust, who retained with the win.

Up next was the first of two main event Hell In A Cell matches, featuring John Cena and Randy Orton, the winner going on to challenge Brock Lesnar for the championship.

Siren stood backstage alongside Nikki, who was worried for her boyfriend, but Siren tried to keep her calm. Having been alongside John in previous Hell In A Cell matches, Siren knew he could handle himself. John had specifically asked Siren to stay backstage for his match, and she had agreed knowing there was nothing she could do for him once the cell door locked.

As the match went on, the ladies were joined by more and more superstars and divas who crowded around the monitor in the back. The two men beat the hell out of each other with their bodies, tables and chairs, but still neither man seemed to have the advantage. Both Siren and Nikki cheered as John picked up the victory after delivering an AA to Randy through a table.

Both women congratulated John as he came back through the curtain, Siren stepping aside to let Nikki smother her boyfriend with kisses.

The next matchup was for the United States title with Sheamus retaining his title over the Miz and Damien Mizdow.

Following that was Rusev versus Big Show, which the Russian won by locking in the Accolade for the submission win.

Up next was a promo from Dean Ambrose and Siren, the two looking more than ready to destroy Seth Rollins.

“Earlier today I was asked about my Hell In A Cell match tonight with Seth Rollins. And only one thing came to mind. Halloween. Here in the states, Halloween is this Friday. The most popular costume this year, the Seth Rollins, because when I’m done with Seth Rollins inside Hell In A Cell tonight, he’s gonna look like a zombie from The Walking Dead. And then of course I’m gonna hand him over to my zombie killing huntress over here.”

Siren smirks, she loves it when she gets to plug her TV shows on national television. “Oh yes, my bow and I will put him out of his misery for good.”

“You know what we’re saying? You understand us? It means we don’t give a damn. Tonight Mr. Money In the Bank pays the price for his actions and we both burn in hell.”

Siren laughs as the cameras go off, “Thanks for the plug, Jon.”

“Always. It’s a great fricking show, better cause you’re on it, darlin’.”

“Suck up.” She giggled as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

His attention fell down to her chest, she knew what he was looking at and for once it wasn’t her chest. “You guys worked it out?”

“Yeah.” She said fingering her necklace. “He pulled me aside earlier tonight and we talked. He’s gonna leave with us tonight after the show, if that’s cool with you.”

“Of course. Providing that both of us can still walk after our match.”

Siren laughed, “That’s true. Well if we have to, I guess Renee and I will have to carry you guys.”

“Ha, yeah, I wanna see that.”

Siren smiled as AJ locked Paige into the “Black Widow” for the win, retaining her Divas Championship.

Feeling a pair of arms curl around her waist she looked over her shoulder to find Seth standing behind her. Smiling she turned around and kissed him, her eyes conveying her love for him, but also her fear for this match. “Please, be careful. Both of you.”

“We will. This is what we live for.” Seth smiled as he looked over at Dean. “You ready to go to hell, bro?”

“Let’s go steal the show, brotha.” Dean said knocking fists with Seth.

“Please, be safe. I can’t watch you get hurt.” Seth told Siren.

“I promise.” She said giving him one last kiss before Dean’s music came on.

Finally it was time for the final main event of the night, the cell slowly lowering into place over the ring.

Dean and Siren came down to the ring first, the roar of the crowd was nearly deafening as they walked down the ramp. Dean was brandishing a kendo stick strapped to his back, he walked into the cell and proceeded to throw several chairs into the ring, as well as a table on the outside. As he stared up at the top of the cage a thought came to him, he rolled out of the ring and walked back outside of the cell.

Smirking at Siren he yelled to the fans, “We’re all gonna die tonight!” Then he climbed up the side of the cell and stood on top of it swinging his kendo stick around.

Siren stood down by the referee looking up at Dean laughing, he truly was a lunatic, but that was why people loved him. She turned to see Seth coming down to the ring with J&J Security, screaming up at Dean to get down from the top of the cell.

Looking over to Siren who gave him a “put up or shut up” look, he yelled at Ambrose. “You wanna start up there?”

Noble and Mercury stood in front of Seth, telling him that he was not going up there. Finally after hearing Seth argue with them for several moments, she roughly shoved the two men out of Rollins’ path. “Stay out of the man’s way.” Raising her eyebrow she stared down Seth, “You all in or not?”

Seth growled as he walked past her, but just as he placed a foot on the cell, he thought of a better idea. Turning to his security, he ordered them to go up to the top and get Ambrose down.

Up top Dean laughed as he watched the two men scale opposite sides of the cage, oh this was gonna be fun. Dean gave them a round of applause as they made it to the top, both men still kneeling on the cage, terrified about the height of the structure they were standing on.

As Dean dealt out punishment to the men with the kendo stick, Siren saw Seth sneaking up the opposite side of the cell from her. “You slimy sonofabitch.” She muttered before she looked up at Dean, knowing he was about to be outnumbered. “f*ck it.” She said, the crowd going crazy as they saw her ascending the side of the cell, getting to the top just as Seth came over the opposite side.

“Dean, on your 6!” She yelled.

As Seth and Dean duked it out, Siren grabbed the forgotten kendo stick and laid into Noble and Mercury as they tried to get ahold of Dean. “Not happening boys.”

But she was outnumbered three to one, with Dean on the ground from Rollins’ attack. Seth hit her with a forearm to the back of her head, sending her sprawling across the cell. Grabbing the kendo stick, Seth laid into Dean and Siren, sending waves of pain across their backs. When he felt they’d had enough he held the kendo stick out over the edge and let it fall 20 feet to the floor below.

As the three men tried to toss Ambrose off of the top, Dean fights his way out of it. His attention turning to Seth who tries to climb down the side of the cage.

Up top Siren watches in horror as the two men hang onto the side of the cage, both of them laying punches into one another. She screams as both Dean and Seth fall from the cell, crashing into the announcer’s tables with a sickening crash.

Despite the pain wracking her body, Siren quickly climbed down the cage, jumping the last ten feet to the ground, her body jarring in pain with the landing. She knelt down at Dean’s side, fighting with herself to not rush over to Seth’s side as she heard the ref’s say “he can’t breath.” She watches the medical crew strap Seth to a backboard, but he’s trying to sit up so that’s a good sign for her.

By her leg Dean starts to stir, he shrugs off the medics as they try to put a collar on him. They manage to get him strapped to a backboard, Siren’s eyes following Seth as they start to wheel him around the cage. She can hear the fans around her cheering as they notice where her attention is, and she’s really thinking about saying “f*ck The Authority” and going to check on him.

As the medics get Seth to the bottom of the ramp, Dean fights off the medics surrounding him, unstrapping himself from the backboard. He hobbles up the ramp and unbuckles Seth, shoving him off of the gurney to the ground.

Siren keeps the medics and refs back as Dean sends Seth into the side of the cage, before tossing him inside and pulling the door shut.

“Lock it!” Siren and Dean both scream to the ref, who does as they say and chains the door shut.

As Siren stands outside of the cell, she can see Seth clutching his abdomen, his breaths coming in short ragged gasps. She guesses Seth might have a broken rib, she knows she has to warn Dean, so she yells to him. “Dean!” He looks up at her, she taps her ribcage and glances to Seth, Dean nods as he gets what she’s telling him.

“You stabbed me in the back you sonofabitch.” Dean screamed before he started unloading on Seth with the chair.

Siren could hear Seth screaming in pain every time the chair connected with his body, Seth begging Dean to stop. As Seth crawled to the outside apron, Dean nailed him and sent him slamming off of the cell to the floor. Siren gasped covering her mouth, she knew she was supposed to reveling in Seth’s misery, but she also knew that the fans would understand how she could be feeling bad for Seth. The fans were smart enough to know that she had once been friends with Seth, close friends, and things like that are not easily forgotten.

Dean then pulls out the legs on one side of a table, propping it up against the side of the cell. He picks Seth up over his shoulder, but Rollins manages to avoid the hit by wiggling off of Dean’s shoulder. Escaping into the ring Seth tries to get away, but he’s grabbed by Dean and thrown over the top rope. Dean then bounces off of the ropes and suicide dives, driving Seth’s back into the cage.

Rolling Seth back into the ring, Dean stacks up a bunch of chairs intending to throw Rollins onto them, but Seth reverses it and slams Dean back first onto the stack of chairs instead.

Siren freaks out when she sees Seth pulling a table out from under the ring, propping it up between the ring and the cage. He leans over the ropes and grabs onto Dean, he tries to flip him over onto the table. But Dean grabs Seth and snaps his neck off of the ring rope, Seth falls back on top of the table. Siren knows he’s in perfect position for Dean, and the lunatic knows it too as he climbs to the top rope.

She covers her mouth in shock as Dean delivers an elbow to Rollins through the table, splitting it in two, leaving both men in a heap on the floor. Dean picks Seth up and grinds his face into the side of the cage, until a blast of white mist hits him in the face.

Kane stands on the outside of the cage holding a fire extinguisher, clearly The Authority doesn’t believe Rollins can win this match on his own. Taking advantage of his opponent, Seth picks Dean up and slams him through the table.

Rollins basically drags Dean’s limp body into the ring, pulling himself up with the help of the ropes, he nails Dean with a curb stomp. But in a move that shocks everyone, Dean manages to kick out of the cover.

Seth then climbs out of the ring and grabs his briefcase, picking up a steel chair he unloads on Dean’s body with it. Positioning Dean’s head over the briefcase he goes for another curb stomp, only for Dean to counter it with a kick to the stomach. He tries to lock in “Dirty Deeds”, but Seth powers out, shoving Ambrose back against the ropes. Dean uses that, bouncing himself off of the ropes and hits Seth with a clothesline that sends Rollins into a full backflip.

Dean grabs Seth’s briefcase and slams it off of Rollins’ face, quickly covering him, but Seth powers out with what little energy he has left. Ambrose laughs as he rolls out of the ring and searches underneath for something else. He brings two cinder blocks into the ring and sets them up behind Seth. Picking Seth up he holds his former friend’s head over the blocks, backing up to the ropes as he prepares to deliver Rollins’ curb stomp.

Suddenly the lights go out, the arena left in pitch black. Siren yells for Dean and Seth, but no one answers her. Bray Wyatt’s eerie voice echoes through the arena, repeating some sort of mantra, which sends a chill down Siren’s spine. A lone beam of light and smoke from Bray’s lantern, lights up the ring inside of the locked cell.

Dean stands, backed into a corner ready for a fight, suddenly through the light and smoke comes Bray Wyatt.

“Dean!” Siren yells.

When the lights come back up, Dean is motionless in the ring as Bray stands bent over backwards in the corner. Walking backwards on his hands and feet, Bray waits until Dean gets to his feet and hits him with a back drop.

Seth taking advantage of the moment, crawls into the cover and picks up the win. He quickly rolls out of the ring to avoid being attacked by Bray himself.

He tries to stop Siren as she runs to Dean’s aide, but she throws his hand off of her arm as if his touch had burned her. She locks eyes with Bray as he picks up Dean and nails him with Sister Abigail.

After changing into her Black & Brave leggings and sweatshirt, Tasha wrapped an arm around Colby’s waist and helped him hobble out to her rig. Behind the couple Renee did the same with Jon, both men in immense pain from their match.

True to his word, Colby left the arena with Tasha and Jon, much to the chagrin and annoyance of Stephanie, who tried to stop them as they left.

“I’m going with MY woman, Stephanie, if you don’t like it, fire me.” Colby stated as they pushed past the princess and continued to the parking garage where Daryl was awaiting them.

The four sat on the couch and benches as Daryl drove them to their hotel in San Antonio. Once there they made sure that there were no fans lurking around, before they checked in and took the elevator up to their rooms.

Bidding Jon and Renee goodnight, Tasha took Colby to their room, setting down their bags she was holding and easing him onto the bed. She took one look at him and frowned, seeing the pain etched on his face.

“I’m gonna run you a hot bath, you’ve got to loosen your muscles up or you’ll be worthless tomorrow.”

She headed into the bathroom and started the water letting the tub fill up, before adding some aroma therapy oil to help Colby relax.

Walking back out into the bedroom she found Colby trying to take off his shirt, but she could tell by the clenching of his jaw muscles that it was proving to be difficult for him. Sighing she stepped up beside him and grasped the hem of his shirt, gingerly pulling it over his head. She took off her own sweatshirt and helped him to his feet, leading him into the bathroom where she leaned him back against the sink. She aided him in taking off his sweats and briefs, it was nothing to her to see him like this, she had seen all of The Shield boys in the buff at one time or another.

Taking his hand she guided him into the tub, easing him down into the water. “I’ll check on you in a little while, my heart. Just try to relax.” She leaned down and kissed his lips.

However as she turned to leave Colby saw the angry red marks littering her back. “Oh my God. Did I do that to you?”

She frowned, she was so concerned with caring for him, that she had forgotten about the welts from the kendo stick. Turning around she smiled at him, “Yes. But I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not.” He argued, holding out his hand to her he said, “Come join me.”

“That tub is not big enough for us both.” She argued.

“Either get in here or I’m getting out.” He stated raising his eyebrows.

Tasha sighed with a smile, “Fine.” She slipped her sports bra over her head, then peeled off her leggings and boy-shorts. Taking his outstretched hand she carefully stepped into the tub and eased down into the water, situating herself between his legs. Sighing as the hot water soothed her tight muscles, Tasha sank back against Colby’s chest.

She must have fallen asleep at some point between Colby’s hands running through her hair, and his heartbeat against her back. She woke up when she felt Colby lifting her out of the tub, opening her eyes as he stepped onto the rug.

“Sorry, Cole. Guess I was more tired than I thought.”

“Well, between your schedule and the toll your body took tonight, I don’t doubt it. It’s okay, though, I got you.” He said with a smile as he wrapped a towel around her body.

“You always do.” She smiled back as she handed him a towel as well.

Once the two had dried off, Colby pulled on a pair of shorts, while Tasha slipped on a pair of booty shorts and one of Seth’s t-shirts. Climbing into bed despite the pain in his body, Colby rolled onto his left side and pulled Tasha close to him, wrapping his arms around her.

“Goodnight, my soul.”

Tasha smiled, content more the first time in a month. “Goodnight, my heart.”

It was the first time in several weeks that the two of them had fallen fast asleep, no nightmares, no overthinking, just lying with the one they loved.

Chapter 40: Prepare For War

Chapter Text

The next morning Colby and Tasha snuck down to the rig where Joe, Jon and Renee were waiting for them inside. The group laughed and chatted as Daryl drove them to the arena, pulling into the parking garage so they could walk in without being seen.

As they walked down the hallways towards the locker rooms Colby saw Stephanie and Hunter up ahead, smirking he lifted up Tasha’s hand that was in his, kissing the back of it as they passed the bosses.

Tasha shook her head as they entered his locker room, “You are gonna get us in so much trouble.”

“Screw ‘em. What more can they do to us?” He said setting his bag down.

“Dude, don’t say that.” Joe warned him as they all chuckled.

RAW kicked off live from San Antonio, Texas that night with everyone feeling the after effects of Battleground.

Of course The Authority had to make their presence known as soon as the show started, no doubt to brag about how Seth triumphed inside of the cell. Which of course they did, after saying how Randy Orton let them down as he lost to John Cena, before they introduced Seth.

“But then there was this man, the man that we have referred to over and over again as the future of the WWE, a man who is quickly becoming—with performances like last night, quickly becoming the standard bearer of the WWE. Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome Mr. Money In the Bank, Seth Rollins!”

Backstage Seth leaned down kissing Siren’s lips and shooting her a wink, before his music kicked on and he made his way to the ring.

Seth strode co*ckily to the ring, albeit with a small limp, a parting gift from his battle inside of the cell with Dean Ambrose. Behind him J&J Security flanked him, making sure no one came out to attack Seth from behind.

Seth climbed into the ring, shaking Triple H’s hand before he holds up the kid’s hand. Stephanie smiles as she lifts her mic, “I couldn’t quite hear you, guys. Let’s hear it for Seth Rollins.”

Surprisingly there were a lot of cheers for him in the building tonight which made him smile, as Stephanie handed him her microphone. However the usual “you sold out” chants started up and he couldn’t help but laugh.

“Man, you guys are the best. Thank you so much. I can’t thank you enough. I—no, thank you so much. Look, I just—I wanna say finally, finally, finally, finally the Lunatic Fringe, Dean Ambrose is out of my hair once and for all. Look, look, Ambrose is no longer a thorn in my side. Last night, I proved once an for all that intellect conquers every single time, over unbridled mayhem perpetuated by a madman who should be institutionalized, every time. And now that I’m done with Ambrose, on my horizon, I see the man who soundly defeated Randy Orton last night at Hell In A Cell.”

The crowd starts chanting for Ambrose and Siren, and Seth shakes his head. “No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Hey, didn’t you guys hear me? I said I’m through with him. I’m through with her. I’m moving on, I’m moving on to John Cena.”

The crowd then interrupts him as they start chanting for Cena, Seth grits his teeth and sets his briefcase down. “Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Look, later tonight, I’m gonna be able to see John Cena, just like all of you will be able to see John Cena when I leave him like I left Dean Ambrose last night at Hell In A Cell, lying in a puddle of his own failure.”

Seth’s music kicks on as he celebrates in the ring, however it is cut off as a disgruntled and angry Viper, makes his way to the ring.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry to break up this little love fest, I really am sorry, but pardon me, what did you—what did you say? What did you say, you’re the self proclaimed future of the WWE? What are you, the standard bearer of the WWE—do you really think that’s what you are, the hell with that, you know what, I got a little question for you, why? Why have I already heard twice tonight that John Cena beat Randy Orton at Hell In A Cell? Why did I hear that Randy Orton lost to John Cena at Hell In A Cell? You know what, think about it for one second, maybe, maybe I lost last night, because last Monday Night on RAW, you took it upon yourself to curb stomp me. Now, you’ve got one hell of a finish, kid. I’m still seeing stars. As a matter of fact, I feel like checking myself back in to anger management like I did in ’06 for real but I’m not, you know why? Because I’m here, I made a promise to myself. I made a promise to myself that if The Authority didn’t handle it, if The Authority didn’t deal with you, then I was gonna deal with you, then I would eventually deal with you and that’s why—”

Randy dropped the mic and rushed Seth Rollins immediately attacking him, The Authority scrambling to pull the two men apart as they fought to get one another.

“Enough, Randy! Enough, Seth! We’re not doing this! Back up! We are not doing this!” Hunter says screaming at both Randy and Seth. Orton is livid and desperately trying to shove off J&J, while Seth is grinning as Kane holds him back.

“We are not doing this here. We are not doing this tonight. Hey, listen to me, listen to me. Randy, Randy, calm down. You need to listen to me.”

“I’ll calm down when that bastard is dead!” Randy shouts, the crowd hearing him over Triple H’s mic. “I’ll calm down when he’s dead!”

“Listen to me, calm down. We are not doing this tonight. Relax. Hey, look at me, calm. Calm down. Shut up!” He yells to the crowd that are encouraging Randy to kill Seth.

“Calm down. Relax, okay? Hey, this is you and me. We’re not gonna do this. You’re gonna take the night off, get on your bus, get on your bus, get something to drink. Relax, take the night off, Randy, alright? When the time is right, we will deal with this, but this is not the night. Emotions are too high. Hell In A Cell is over with, we—”

Randy’s heard enough as he shoves past Triple H and plants Rollins with an RKO, before he slides out of the ring and heads to the back.

J&J pick up Rollins whose eyes are rolling around in his head, he has no idea where he is at this point. He rolls out of the ring wobbling on his feet up the ramp to the back, The Authority following them.

Siren is sitting in the locker room when Seth slams the door open, hurling it shut behind him as he throws his briefcase across the room. He rips off his jacket and shirt, the buttons flying around the room, Siren ducks as one whips past her face. She sits quiet as Seth paces the room, his anger radiating off of him in waves.

Taking a chance she holds out her hand, waiting for Seth to notice her, which he does after a few minutes. Sighing, he takes her hand allowing her to pull him down onto the couch beside her. Not saying a word she positions herself behind him and starts to massage his shoulders and neck. Within seconds Seth’s anger dissipates, his head rolling back as her fingers worked the tension right out of his body.

Leaning back against her chest he sighed contentedly, her arms coming up to wrap around his neck holding him to her. She rested her chin on his shoulder, pressing her lips to the side of his neck. Seth turned his head catching her lips in a kiss, smiling as he pulled back from her.

“Thank you.”

Siren smiled, “You’re welcome. I’m guessing you had no knowledge of what Randy was gonna do?”

“Nope. Apparently creative opted to leave me out of that.”

“Yeah. They do that to us a lot.” She nodded, agreeing with him.

The two sat and watched the show together, including an interview with Roman saying that when he was medically cleared, he was going to return and make Seth Rollins the past.

Siren kissed Seth once more after she pulled on John’s t-shirt, then giving him a wink she headed up to the gorilla position to meet up with John.

John and Siren saluted the fans as they ran down the ramp and slid into the ring to the massive cheers of the WWE Universe. Siren sat up on the turnbuckle as John grabbed a mic to address the fans.

“Lot of excitement in here tonight, how about that? You guys are acting like you’re raising some sort of championship here tomorrow. Congratulations on that by the way.”

Siren and John both laugh as the crowd starts chanting, “Let’s Go Spurs.” They’re set to win their fifth championship tomorrow night and the WWE Universe is clearly proud of their team.

“Indeed, go, Spurs, go and congratulations. Congratulations on hopefully an epic night tomorrow night. Last night was also an epic night, it might not have been the last chapter in John Cena versus Randy Orton, but it was certainly one of the best. Two men last night went through hell for an opportunity, a single opportunity to face the beast, an opportunity to be the best. Last night at Hell In A Cell, I defeated Randy Orton. And I have earned the opportunity to face Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship.

Now, while Brock Lesnar sits at home, thinking he’s a champion, I am here every night fighting like a champion. And whenever it is that Brock Lesnar decides to come on back to the WWE, he’s gonna realize one thing, the next time he stands in the ring with me, he will lose. So until then, every single thing I do is going to be a statement to Brock Lesnar, just like last night. Go through hell against a 12-time champion and a future Hall of Famer and survive, check. Tonight right here in San Antonio, Texas… a city of champions, gets a main event worthy of San Antonio.

The Authority’s standard bearer, Mr. Money In the Bank, the self-proclaimed future of the WWE, gets a first class wakeup call. Because if Seth Rollins is the future of the WWE, well, the future ain’t tomorrow, the future ain’t next month, and the future ain’t next year. I’ve often said the future goes through me. Tonight, I go through the future! Because Seth Rollins is about to go face to face with the man that runs the place.”

Siren rolls her eyes, hopping down from the turnbuckle to stand beside John as Stephanie’s music plays and the Billion dollar Princess herself walks to the ring.

“First of all, John, I’d like to congratulate you on your victory last night. And I must say I can’t wait for tonight’s main event as you so eloquently mentioned against the standard bearer of the WWE, Seth Rollins. But I also can’t wait for Survivor Series where we will see a traditional tag-team elimination match for the low, low price on the WWE Network of…”

“I got this.” John says holding up his hand to stop her. “$9.99.”

“Okay.” Stephanie nodded, her eyes moving over to Siren and smirking, while the young woman glared back at her. “But, John, I actually—well, I have a business proposition for you. For both of you actually. Because of course, as much as you irritate me Siren, you are one of the best managers in this company.”

Siren again rolled her eyes, she knew damn well that an offer from Stephanie also came with a rope to hang to yourself with.

“You work so hard. You work so hard to win these people over, you have to pander to them, “Go, Spurs, go, yay.” Why? To get them to cheer you? I mean, God, you don’t have to do this, John. You know, your mantra—see, even I can do it. See, go, Spurs, go. It’s so easy. You know, you just tell them what they want to hear and they repeat it back, you know, but you don’t have to do that.”

“NO, no, no, sorry, Steph. I’m just—I’m just listening to the people, something you might want to think about doing.”

“So, John, let me ask you, when you listen to these people, do you hear them chanting, “Cena sucks”? Do you hear that? Because I sure do. And my point is not to upset you. I don’t want to offend you, John. My point is to try to talk you into doing what is best for business. Oh, yeah, that’s so moving to you, right? One arena chants your name and that’s going to move you after the years and years and years of them chanting against you. You know, I’m sorry, but these people don’t matter, okay? What they care about is seeing you on the mat. They care about seeing you tear yourself apart, leave it all on the line. They care about seeing blood and guts and people tearing each other apart. Something that you do every single night, you leave it all out here. And why? For their appreciation? It doesn’t have to be that hard, John. You could join The Authority—”

The crowd erupts with a mixture of boos and cheers to Stephanie’s admission, however both John and Siren look at one another and mouth the words, “What the f*ck?”

“I know this sounds crazy, but you could come to a place where you are loved and appreciated and above all, respected. We care about what you do. I mean, think about it, John. You are going to face Brock Lesnar for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, a man who has handily beat you time and time again. And not only beat you, but beat you up, both of you, left you laying, left that carcass laying to these people’s cheers. But I think maybe The Authority could offer a little bit of insurance. Maybe we could help guarantee, a victory. Just think about it. I mean even, John, maybe even tonight, your match against Seth Rollins, the winner of that match could be the captain of Team Authority.

And Siren, you could have the opportunity to manage the greatest superstars in this business. We can give you the power that you so desperately deserve. You deserve the respect, you deserve the accolades, you deserve to be a part of a family.”

John shakes his head, “Steph, you want to know what I deserve? All I deserve is a chance to come down that ramp, step in this ring every night, and tell all of these people how much I love doing this, this is what you got this whole thing upside down. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, you sit here and you want to try to tell me that these people are here to see me left laying, to see me battered, broken, and busted. No, no. We show up every Monday night. We show up to WWE Live all the time because we are all a part of this. Do you hear that? Do you hear that? You tell me that they are not a part of Monday Night RAW. They are not here for us. We are here for all of them. And you’re asking us to turn our backs on them.”

“Yes.”

“And you’re asking us to sell out and join The Authority so John can be your glorified team captain? And I can manage a bunch of spoiled, entitled punks?” Siren says shaking her head.

“I’m asking you both to ensure your legacies. I’m asking you to join The Authority and to be a part of something bigger for the rest of your lives, because when you lose, when you’re set—gone, these people won’t care, they’re not gonna chant your name, they won’t even remember John Cena.”

“You mean like they still chant CM Punk? I don’t think they’ve forgot about him.” Siren snarked, smirking at Stephanie as the crowd starting chanting Punk’s name.

Stephanie glared at Siren, but she tried to ignore the crowd as she continued talking to Cena. “But we can make sure they do, John.”

“Yeah, yeah. They’ll remember John Cena, they’ll remember John Cena as a lowlife sellout punk and that’s something I never have been. That’s something I never will be, so here’s your answer right now, hell, no!”

Siren saw Stephanie smirk as her husband’s music started up and the Game himself came strutting down to the ring. She swore the longer he was around the McMahon’s, the more he was turning into Vince, she was certain soon he would start swaggering to the ring like Vince. She shook her head looking over to John who wore the same look, this would not end well for either of them.

“Told ya.” Hunter said as he climbed into the ring alongside his wife. “We weren’t gonna move him a budging inch, not even a little bit. Didn’t make a crack, right? You’re gonna stand out here and play the hero, tell all of these people here for you, we’re all in this together, yeah. Yeah, woo, big ole hero. Here’s the thing, John, you’ve been here how long? Ten? Twelve years now? I’ve been here 20. And it gets harder every single tear. And you, you are starting to squeak by every single night. You’re hanging on by a thread, physically, certainly with them, mentally, you’re hanging on by a thread, because you know what I know, John, and that is you can’t fight the future. The future is coming whether you want to believe it or not. And it doesn’t have to be as hard as it is for you right now. And it doesn’t have to be as hard as it is going to get.

And I know what you want Siren, I know what you would give anything to have. You join The Authority and you can have it. And no one can ever take it away from you again.”

Siren shakes her head as she purses her lips, mouthing the word, “Motherf*cker” to Hunter. How dare he dangle Seth in front of her as a way to get her to say yes to The Authority.

Hunter smirks knowing he has something to hold over her head. “This business is about longevity, it’s about doing the right thing overtime or you can just be the beat up old shell of yourself that hobbles down to the ring here and comes in for one last hurrah. But that doesn’t seem to suit you, John, because I know in here, you’re really smart. You got a ton of heart but this is where it really counts for you. And maybe I’ve got to prove to you, maybe this kind of conversation isn’t where it’s at for you. Maybe I just got to prove it to you, that you cannot—you cannot stop the future.

So have it your way, John, Siren, work against The Authority. At Survivor Series, we’ll make an example out of you. We will have Team Authority. John, Siren, you walk back there and feel free, feel free to find somebody with your guts, with your gumption that will stand up against the system like you do to ensure your future. Find someone that will stand up with you to see if they can survive against The Authority, because at Survivor Series, Team Authority will face John Cena’s team. And Team Cena will be whoever you can find in that locker room to support you, John. And here’s the thing, you cannot fight the future. The future will run through you whether that is tonight or whether that is at Survivor Series, because we control the future, John. The Authority is the future. And whether you like it or not, you had better smarten up to the fact that The Authority always wins.”

Siren and John go backstage, both of them are fuming by now as Siren curses the bosses out. “You go see if you can find anybody, John, I need to take a walk.”

He nods watching as she walks off down the hallway, he feels horrible that he’s dragged her into this situation again. She had already been fired once because of him, and it seemed like it was lurking on the horizon once more.

Siren made a beeline for the back parking garage, she could feel her anger brimming under the surface of her skin, and God help anyone that got in her way right now. Seething as she paced the length of her rig back and forth, she didn’t notice Seth walking up behind her. Feeling her anger spike as she thought about everything The Authority and creative were putting her and her friends through, Siren snapped. Turning she leveled her right fist at the side of the rig and slammed a punch into the siding, recoiling instantly as she felt two of her knuckles shift under her skin.

“sh*t!” She screamed as she pulled her hand into her body, cradling it.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Seth exclaimed as he ran up to her, reaching out to take her injured hand into his own.

Already her middle and ring finger knuckle were turning a nasty shade of purple. Seth was positive they were broken, shaking his head he looked up at his girlfriend, shocked at the immense amount of fury etched onto her face.

“Baby, I know you’re angry, but I don’t think punching a hole through your rig is gonna help.” He said softly.

“Better my rig, than Stephanie’s face.” Siren challenged.

Seth sighed, this was all his fault, if he hadn’t joined The Authority, turned his back on her and his brother’s, none of this would be happening. “I’m sorry. This is all on me.”

In a heartbeat Siren’s anger was replaced with sympathy as she laid her good hand over the top of Seth’s. “Look at me, this is not your fault. You did what you had to do. Stephanie has been making my life hell since the day I got here. I don’t know if it’s because I’m her dad’s favorite or if she’s jealous of me for some God-known reason, but she’s been trying to end my career for years. Long before you ever got here.”

“She’s punishing you because of me.”

Siren shook her head, “No. She’s punishing me because I chose you. I fell for her Golden Boy, the future, a future that does not include you dating me. Stephanie likes to think that she’s in control of everything, that she decides who falls in love with whom. You and I screwed that up for her. I have been screwing up her plans since the day I got here, and now you’re stuck in the crossfire. If anyone should be sorry, it’s me. I’m sorry for putting you in this position.”

“Hey,” he said tipping Siren’s chin up to look at her face, “I chose to be in this position, and I will live with the consequences of my actions. I let you go twice, there will not be a third time. You said it yourself, we have Vince and Hunter on our side, we just have to stick this out. I want you, there’s no doubt in my mind. We can do this, we can overcome all of this, together. You with me?”

Siren smiled as she stared into Seth’s chocolate brown eyes, squeezing his hand with her own she nodded. “I’m with you, always.”

Seth smiled as he leaned down and kissed her lips, “Okay, let’s go get your hand looked at.”

After having her hand checked out by the trainer’s and confirming she had broken her knuckles, the doc’s taped her hand up and released her. Siren went back to the locker room and changed into Dean’s shirt, his match was coming up soon. Kissing Seth in thanks, she sent him a wink and headed up to gorilla to meet up with Dean.

When she got there she found the lunatic chatting with her friend, Hall of Famer, Hulk Hogan. He was there to promote the Susan G. Komen program, and to bring light to their campaign.

“Hey, there’s the beauty.” Hulk said as she walked up.

“Hey, Terry.” She smiled hugging him and kissing his cheek.

“How you doing, doll?”

“I’m good. Things are hard right now, but I’m hanging tough.”

Hulk nodded, “Good. Don’t you let The Authority dictate your life, hun. As much as it pains me, that kid loves you.”

Siren smiled, Hulk had always loved her and John being together, but he knew that sometimes things didn’t work out. She was happy that he was accepting of her relationship with Colby. “Thank you.”

Turning to Dean, Hulk smiled, “Kick ass out there, kid.”

“Always.” Dean said as he shook Hulk’s hand, before the Hall of Famer took his leave. Dean’s attention turned to Siren’s hand. “You okay, darlin’?”

“Yep.”

“You hit, Steph?” He asked with a grin.

“I wish.” Siren laughed as his music kicked on. “Let’s do this.”

Siren lead Dean out to the ring, both of them showing their battle wounds from the cell. Dean was limping slightly as he walked down the ramp, his opponent Cesaro already in the ring. Instead of climbing into the ring, Dean grabbed a microphone and got up onto the announcer’s table, his fury rolling off of him in waves.

“Last night, I went straight to hell. And I loved every second of it. I dragged Seth Rollins down with me and I beat him within an inch of his life. The only problem was when I got to hell, I found Bray Wyatt. I don’t know how or why Bray Wyatt did what he did. And quite frankly, I don’t care. It’s a crazy, crazy world we live in and you got to remember the laws of the jungle. Don’t mess with an animal whose claws are sharper than yours. And you don’t screw with Dean Ambrose!”

Dean takes a moment to unzip and pull off his new sweatshirt with the “Unstable” logo on the back that Siren had designed for him.

Siren knew with the anger Dean was feeling, that this was going to be a quick match. And she was right, as he quickly jumped into the ring and started beating Cesaro with the microphone, chasing him out of the ring and up the ramp, still beating him. The match never even officially got started, but Dean wasn’t in a mood to care.

He called for Bray as he walked back down the ramp and rolled into the ring where Siren was now standing. “Where is he? Where is Bray Wyatt? I don’t do magic tricks. I’m not much for smoke and mirrors. I’m standing right here. So, Bray Wyatt, why don’t you come out here, so I can kick your ass.”

The lights went out in the arena as Bray showed up on the big screen chuckling. “I remember how rain can be. I understand that I came from a tomb. And every time that I look at you, I can’t help, but see my own deranged reflection glaring back at me. We both are victims of a system that makes men torture, things that would make others cringe and grimace, excite people like you and me. This world is not made for us. Think about it, man. Think about it. And what happens, man? What happens next? What happens next? You tell me. But understand that I am not your brother, and I am not your friend. This sins of this world I walk on a daily basis, I know you, because I am you. I’m going to dismantle your mind and feed on the spoils. Run, Dean, run.”

Siren and Dean head backstage still confused of why creative is throwing everyone in the directions that they are. But Siren had a guess, if Dean was preoccupied with Bray Wyatt, then his attention wouldn’t be focused on Seth Rollins.

John had better luck than Siren that night, he had managed to find a team member for Survivor Series. So here Siren stood at gorilla, staring at the monitor where their new member, Dolph Ziggler was battling Kane in the ring. Apparently, the Demon was not happy about Dolph’s decision to go against The Authority, so tonight he vowed to make Dolph regret his decision.

Siren smirked as an idea came to her, she was already on The Authority’s sh*t list, why not push her luck a little more.

Dolph was lying in the ring, battered and bruised, Kane had been taking it to him the entire match. Suddenly music rang throughout the arena as none other than Siren walked out onto the stage. Her appearance managed to distract Kane, taking his focus off of the match. As he lifted Dolph up for a choke-slam, Dolph threw himself over the demon’s back and rolled up Kane for the pinfall.

Siren smirked as Dolph took the win, walking down to the man and looping his arm around her neck. Walking him backwards up the ramp the two celebrated his win, but that’s when the attack came from behind.

Siren felt a weight hit her back as she and Dolph tumbled forward down the ramp, her head smacking off of the steel, leaving her slightly dizzy. As she rolled onto her back she saw the traitor, Seth Rollins, dragging Dolph into the ring where Kane still remained. In the ring the two stood over Dolph picking the bones, until suddenly John Cena rushed the ring.

Seth slipped out of the ring, running back up the ramp as John took his fight to Kane, clotheslining him over the top rope to the floor.

Siren crawled up into the ring and raised Dolph’s hand alongside John.

After they returned from commercial Siren stood on the apron talking to John, her face scowling as Seth made his way down to the ring followed by Mercury and Noble. Rubbing the back of her head and cracking her neck she eyed Rollins as he climbed into ring and removed his shirt. She was surprised to see his ribcage wrapped with a bandage, she hadn’t known that he was hurting so much, but she kept her face impassive for the fans.

The two men battled hard, Siren trying not to cringe every time John nailed Seth in his injured ribs. But like the stubborn man that he was, Seth kept getting back up and fighting. For 19 minutes Seth punished his body as he fought back against Cena, cringing and yelling out each time his ribs were hit.

Just as she was hoping the match would end and spare Seth anymore discomfort, it turned south. Seth lined up looking for the curb stomp, but a quick move by John moving out of the way spared him. He jumped up and immediately locked Seth into the STFU. Siren cheered for John, even though she could see the torment on Seth’s face as John pulled on his upper body, Seth’s back bowing putting even more pressure on his ribs.

Siren never saw Kane run down the ramp until he slid into the ring and saved the match for Seth. The ref rung the bell as the two men started beating on John, but backup arrived in the form of Dolph, who came down to help his team captain.

And then it was an all out melee.

Siren stood by the announcer’s table in shock as nearly every member of the RAW roster ran down and got into the ring. There were fists flying and men being thrown over the ropes, she couldn’t tell where Seth or John was.

As the ring began to clear she managed to find Seth standing at the top of the ramp alongside The Authority who had come out to watch the melee. John was the last man standing in the ring as he lifted Heath Slater up and delivered an AA to the red-haired wrestler.

Siren climbed up into the ring, raising John’s hand as his music rang through the speakers. The two stood tall staring down The Authority as Monday Night RAW went off the air.

When she got backstage Tasha immediately bid goodbye to John, as she headed to the locker room to check on her man. She opened the door to find Colby sitting on the couch waiting for her, he had already changed out of his ring gear.

“Are you okay? Why didn’t you tell me you were hurt?” She asked as she sat down beside him.

“I’m fine, baby.” He assured her. “My ribs were a little sore, so the trainer’s wrapped me up and creative told me to play it up. I’m really, okay. I promise.”

She sighed, “Good. Don’t scare me like that.”

Colby smiled and nodded, kissing her forehead. “You ready to go? We got a flight to catch.”

“We?” She asked.

“Yeah. I told you I’d be there for your last episode of SOA. I’m keeping that promise.”

Tasha smiled bright, “Okay. Thank you.”

“Anything for you, baby.”

The two grabbed their bags and headed out to the rig, Jon and Renee were already there waiting on them. The group chatted on the ride to the airport, and then bid Tasha and Colby goodbye as they headed for their plane.

Tasha sat on the plane, her head resting on Colby’s shoulder, she was dreading the next two days. She had been trying for months to prepare herself for the final episode of Sons, but nothing was curbing the emotions she was feeling.

When their plane landed they were greeted by one of her co-stars and closest friend, David Labrava. He drove them to the SOA set where they walked into the set of the clubhouse, where the rest of the cast was waiting. They spent several hours drinking and toasting one another, all of them trying to prepare for what the next two days would hold for them.

After that they all headed to their trailers, Colby and Tasha nearly falling into bed from exhaustion, Colby holding Tasha tight in his arms.

Chapter 41: Halloween Fun

Chapter Text

The next two days were so emotional for not only the entire cast, but the crew as well. By the time they had shot the last scene, there was not a dry eye in the area. Colby stood behind the cameras taking shots on his phone of Tasha with her cast mates. He wanted to post one in particular, one of his girlfriend crying while all of the Sons surrounded her in a giant group hug. It was such an emotional photo, so much emotion and love contained in it. But he couldn’t post it due to The Authority’s rules right now, so he would hold onto it and soon, he would share it with the world.

The one scene that had everyone literally breaking down, was not even an on camera one. After filming the final moment of the series, Charlie Hunnam, who played Jax Teller, sat on his motorcycle, leaning forward on the handlebars, his head lying on his hands. Beside him stood Tasha, leaning over on his back as she wrapped her arms around him. They were both crying as the emotions overcame them, and Colby had to take a picture to capture the beautiful moment.

When they parted Tasha walked over to Colby, who smiled as he wiped the tears from her face. “I’m so proud of you.”

Tasha smiled bright as she brought Colby to her and kissed him. “Thank you for being here.”

After everyone had calmed down and the director had yelled the final “cut”, the entire cast and crew had a drink in celebration. Tasha was laughing and crying tears of joy as she celebrated with her friends and Colby, and her tears continued as the creator of SOA, Kurt Sutter, presented her with the vest she wore and the Dyna she rode throughout the series, saying that they were her memories to keep. The cast and crew then had a big dinner to celebrate 7 long years of memories.

The next morning after making plans to have her bike shipped to the next location of Monday Night RAW, so that she could keep it in her rig to ride, Colby and Tasha got back on a flight heading for Houston, Texas where Smackdown was emanating from.

As soon as they walked into the arena Tasha was met with claps and cheers from her co-workers and crew members. Everyone knew her crazy schedule and they knew she had just filmed the final episode of SOA. She smiled and thanked them as she and Colby headed to their locker room, but not before being approached by Stephanie and Hunter.

“Congratulations, Tasha. We’re all very proud of you.” Hunter said giving her a genuine smile. “I can’t wait to see the finale.”

“Thanks, Paul. That really means a lot.”

“So, we decided that since it is Halloween, and we all know how much you love this holiday, that you should give the fans a treat and get back in the ring tonight.” Stephanie said smiling.

But Tasha knew that her smile was as fake as she was, she scoffed, “Oh, please. You don’t want me to take the spotlight off of your precious Divas. You can stop pretending that you’re doing something nice for me.”

Stephanie glared at Siren, allowing Hunter to take over the conversation. “Look, Tasha, we just thought that it would be a fun thing for the fans to see you back in action. And not to mention, a nice plug for SOA.”

Tasha smirked as she eyed Hunter, she had caught on to his agenda. “You want me to go out there as Rayne.”

“Yes I do.” He said with a nod. “So, how about it? Give the fans something special tonight?”

Tasha nodded with a grin, “Let’s do it.”

“Good. Well you better get changed, your match is up first. It’s a Diva’s costume battle royal.”

“I can’t wait.” She smirked as she headed into the locker room with Colby to get ready.

“I can’t believe you’re getting back into the ring.” Colby commented as he watched his girlfriend pulling out her ring gear, thankfully she still brought it with her to every show.

“You don’t think I should?”

“No, I think it’s a great idea. I’ve missed seeing you wrestle.” He smiled kissing her lips before he stood up quickly giving her a goofy smile. “I’m gonna get a front row seat, see you when you get up there.”

Tasha laughed, “Okay.”

After he left Tasha pulled on one of her SOA outfits consisting of black leather pants, black Converse sneakers, a white crop top with the SAMCRO logo across the front and her SOA cut.

Just as she had gotten dressed there was a knock on the door, she opened it to find Jon leaning against the doorframe. “I hear my girl is fighting tonight?”

“You heard correct.” She smiled.

“Well, in that case you can’t go out there without this.” He smirked as he held up a roll of black tape causing Tasha to grin as well.

After finishing with Jon, she headed over to hair and makeup to let the girls do a quick job on her, lining her eyes in black and adding some curls to her long brown hair.

When she arrived at the gorilla position she was shocked to find nearly half of the roster there smiling at her. Apparently Colby had informed everyone that she was getting back into the ring, and they all wanted to come bear witness to the occasion. They gave her shouts and high-fives of encouragement as the other Divas headed out to the ring in turn.

Smirking she turned to the tech and told him to change her music for just tonight, if she was going there dressed as Rayne Grazer, she was going out to her theme song. The tech smiled and nodded as he cued up the song, Tasha flexing her hands that Jon had wrapped up in the black tape; he had also taken a white marker and wrote SAMCRO on her left hand and drawn the SOA symbol on her right.

Feeling a tap on her shoulder she turned around. “Good luck out there. Make sure you be careful, wouldn’t want you to get hurt.” Stephanie said standing in front of her smirking.

“Don’t worry, Steph. I’m not the one that’ll be hurting after this match.” Tasha said confidently.

“Oh, by the way, Nikki will win the match. It’ll come down to you two, I don’t care how it ends, but she will win.” Stephanie then walked off smiling.

Tasha glared at her for a minute before her face broke into a smile. “We’ll see about that.”

As all of the Divas stood in the ring awaiting the final competitor, they never imagined whose music would play.

“Riding through this world…”

The crowd was on its feet in seconds, screaming so loud it was deafening as they heard the Sons of Anarchy theme playing, they knew it could only mean one thing.

Their cheers grew louder as Siren stepped out onto the stage, dressed in her SOA gear. She walked down the ramp smiling bright as she slapped hands with the fans. The Divas in the ring looked less than happy about her addition to the match though, only a few of them had been in the ring with her and those few women said she was the toughest they had ever battled.

Siren climbed to the top of the turnbuckle waving to the fans as they cheered for her. Jumping down she took off her vest and handed it to the ref with a warning, “Do not let anything happen to this.”

“You got it, Siren.” He nodded as he turned to hand it to one of the tech’s.

Behind him Siren stretched her arms and neck as she stood in the corner ready for battle. She took a moment to look around at the other Diva’s costumes and had to laugh at a few of them. Paige was dressed up like Summer Ray, Natalya dressed as the Queen of Hearts, Naomi dressed as a soldier, Summer Rae dressed as a nerdy schoolgirl, Layla as a clown, Emma as Tarzan, Rosa as a zombie nurse, Cameron as a police officer, Alicia Fox as a firefighter, and Nikki Bella as a black cat.

It had been years since Siren had competed and she couldn’t help the feeling of excitement as she heard the bell ring.

Immediately Siren smiled as she locked eyes with Nikki, the two going straight after one another. In the midst of their fight they managed to toss Rosa out of the ring eliminating her. Besides Natty, Paige and Nikki, nobody really fought like Siren did. She spent so much time going against the male superstars that she wasn’t afraid to get hardcore or go top-rope when the time called for it.

Most of the Divas shied away from rough or top-rope moves, but Siren relished in them.

Natty managed to knock Summer Ray out of the ring, her being followed by Emma who was eliminated by Naomi.

Siren found herself face to face with Layla, who proceeded to play up her clown gimmick, pulling out goofy things from her outfit. Growing annoyed with the antics, Siren bounced off of the ropes and hit Layla with a sling-blade, before picking her up and tossing her out of the ring.

Cameron was eliminated next with Naomi following her, then Natty was sent packing.

In the middle of the ring Nikki and Siren locked up, the two laughing with one another. “I cannot believe I’m doing this.” Siren laughed.

Nikki giggled, “I can’t believe you’re doing this.”

“Well, Stephanie wants me to get hurt, that’s why she’s doing this.”

“Well, if she’s gonna push, you should push back.” Nikki suggested as Siren twisted her around and locked her arm behind her back.

“You’re supposed to win, what do you suggest I do?” Siren whispered, her mouth hidden by Nikki’s long hair.

“Beat me.” Nikki said with a smirk.

Siren nodded, “I’m game if you are.”

“Let’s do it.” Nikki said.

The two broke apart, Siren shoving Nikki into the ropes and nailing her with a clothesline. Nikki rolled over towards the ropes as Alicia Fox speared Paige out of the ring. Then it was just Nikki and Siren left, and as Nikki got to her feet she was nailed by Siren jumping off of the turnbuckle hitting her with the “Siren’s Call.”

“Curb stomp.” Siren whispered to Nikki as she laid on the mat.

“Do it.” Nikki whispered back as she rolled over onto her hands and knees, preparing herself for the hit.

Siren smirked blowing a kiss to the camera, knowing Stephanie was backstage watching. Then she bounced off of the ropes and hit Nikki with Rollins’ curb stomp, planting her head into the canvas. Lying down she wrapped Nikki up for the three count gaining the victory, feeling Nikki shaking with laughter underneath her.

Getting to her feet Siren let the ref raise her hand as the fans went crazy, getting out of the ring and taking her vest from the tech. Slipping it on she made her way back to the ramp, high-fiving the fans as she walked back up the ramp. Pausing on the top of the ramp, Siren bowed to the fans before she went backstage.

Backstage Siren and Nikki laughed as they slapped hands, “That was awesome.” Nikki gushed.

“What the hell was that?” Stephanie said as she stormed up.

“We were just giving the fans what they wanted, Steph.” Nikki said smiling.

“Isn’t that why we’re here, for the fans?” Siren added.

Both women laughed as Stephanie glared at them before she stormed back to her office.

Seth walked up laying a kiss on Siren’s lips, “Nice curb stomp, baby. I’m proud of you.”

Siren smirked wide, “Thanks, my heart. I’ll see you out there.”

Seth tossed her a wink as he headed out to the ring alongside Kane, Mercury and Noble.

Kane stood in the ring beside Rollins, a mic in his hand to address the WWE Universe. “Happy Halloween. Every year around this time I get a warm, fuzzy feeling inside my chest. There’s so much to look forward to, terrifying young children, make believe blood, or is it really make believe? And juts when you think that you survived the horror, come the morning of November 1^st the tricks and treats aren’t over yet, because just around the corner is Survivor Series. But as for tonight, you know Seth, we The Authority have quite the main event planned. Yes. As Cesaro faces off against everyone’s favorite lunatic fringe, Dean Ambrose. In a guilty pleasure of mine, a trick or street fight.”

Seth chuckles thinking that’s gonna be a good match, one that The Authority can interfere in. “Kane. That—you know what, you’re right. That is a hell of a main event. But what if…”

Seth is stopped by the fans loudly chanting, “you sold out.”

“Hey. What if—what if Bray Wyatt gets to Dean Ambrose before he makes it to the main event tonight? Right, Deano? Right, Deano? Come on, because let’s face it, Dean, you’re gonna fall to Bray Wyatt just like you fell to me. What? Guys, I’m just being honest. You need to start being honest with yourselves and you’re booing me and I really don’t understand. What did I do? What? No, no, no. Really, what did I do?”

He starts chuckling as they chant, “you sold out” once more. “Well. I did do that, yes. But you should be thanking me. Do you have any idea how lucky all of you are to be here in this arena tonight? You are in the presence of greatness. You understand what I’m saying? And on top of that, you guys are some of the first people to be let in on The Authority’s plans for Survivor Series. Who is John Cena gonna recruit for his team? I mean, honestly, maybe you could help me out here because who back there would be stupid enough to join Team Cena as they take on Team Authority at Survivor Series, knowing the consequences that they will be suffering? I mean, really, who could be that stupid?”

Kane nods as he raises his mic, “That’s a great point, Seth. And speaking of Team Cena, there is one superstar who, if I didn’t know better, is already associating himself with Team Cena. I’m talking to you, Dolph Ziggler.”

Backstage Dolph smiles as he sees the evil grin cross Siren’s face. “What are you thinking?”

“You wanna really get under Rollins’ skin?”

Dolph laughs, “What did you have in mind?”

Dolph’s music kicks on and the crowd cheers, but as Seth turns around he notices the cheers aren’t just for Dolph. Accompanying him to the ring is Siren, who happens to be wearing Dolph’s Intercontinental title around her waist. He grits his teeth as he watches Dolph spin Siren around, motioning to his belt sitting low on her hips. Dolph takes Siren by the hand and walks to the ring, his belt shining in the lights of the arena.

Siren stands on the opposite side of the ring from Seth, smirking she blows him a kiss, watching as he glares back at her. She focuses on the match as Dolph takes the fight to Kane, her eyes flicking to Seth, Mercury and Noble every so often, making sure they hadn’t moved to interfere.

Towards the end of the match as Dolph had the advantage over Kane, Noble apparently thought it was a good idea to round the ring and jump up onto the apron to try and distract Dolph. But he forgot about a 5 foot 4 inch problem, that promptly yanked him off of the apron, sending him crashing to the floor. However, Dolph concerned with Siren’s wellbeing wasn’t paying attention and turned around to receive a big boot to the face by Kane.

Kane then went for the cover which miraculously Dolph kicked out of at 2. Kane was beside himself as he went for the choke slam, but just like on Monday, Dolph spun over his back and went for the pin. However this time Kane managed to kick out of the cover, immediately getting to his feet though, he was hit with a super-kick to the jaw from Dolph. The show off them charged Kane, leaping into his arms, which spelled disaster for Dolph as Kane turned the move into a choke-slam.

Siren cursed as Kane pulled out the victory over Dolph, even more so as he delivered another choke-slam to Dolph just for the fun of it. Then Mercury and Noble came into the ring to pick the carcass of Dolph. They proceeded to stomp od Dolph, afterwards picking him up and holding him so that Kane could deliver a message.

“Dolph, I neglected to tell you, but while you’re standing up, you have another match. That match is against Seth Rollins and it starts right now.”

“This is bullsh*t!” Siren screamed as Seth smirked, climbing into the ring.

Dolph couldn’t even get to his feet before Seth nailed him with a curb stomp. Rolling him over, Seth covered him for the win.

As they climbed out of the ring Siren rolled in to check on Dolph, glaring at Seth as he walked back up the ramp.

After helping Dolph backstage to the trainer’s office, Siren went back to her locker room. She found Seth inside smirking at her, she shook her head as she sat down beside him.

“You’re such an asshole.”

“I know, but you got to admit, I’m so good at it.” He smirked.

Siren had to laugh, she couldn’t argue that point. “Yes, you are, and damn you for being so adorable when you’re doing it.”

As they were sitting there watching the show, Siren got a text on her phone, opening it up she found a picture of her daughter that her mom had sent her.

“Awe, babe, look, monkey’s Halloween costume.” She held the phone out so that he could see it and he laughed when he saw her outfit.

“She’s a mini you. That’s so cute.”

Kailynn was dressed up in a matching outfit to her mom’s Shield gear, complete with the leather gloves and the pink half-skull mask.

Siren text her mom, ‘She looks so cute.’

‘I know right. She said she wanted to be mommy for Halloween.’

‘Awe. I miss her so much.’

‘She misses you too.’

After a short conversation with her mom and sending her daughter a goodnight kiss via picture, Siren got ready for Dean’s match. Kissing Seth, she headed up to the curtain, meeting up with Dean when she got there.

“This is gonna be fun.” He commented.

“Oh, yeah. I’m sure we’ll have more fun than Cesaro.”

“You know it.” Dean laughed, knocking fists they waited for his music to come on.

“Oh, wait! I forgot, I got you a present.” Siren said as she went and grabbed something from one of the techs.

“Sweet!” Dean commented as she handed him a kendo stick, it was painted to look like a piece of candy corn.

Siren and Dean grinned as they headed down to the ring, which had been decorated with skeletons hanging on the turnbuckles, pumpkins around the ring apron and a tables filled with fun stuff to use in the street fight.

As Siren took her place at ringside sitting on the side of the announcer’s table, she couldn’t help but laugh as Dean’s eyes lit up as he eyed all of the cool objects he could use.

As the match started Dean took the lead, going after Cesaro and stomping him back into the corner. Dean picked up a pumpkin intending on hitting Cesaro with it, but Cesaro hit him in the stomach with a kendo stick stopping his assault. Cesaro then started unloading on Dean with the kendo stick multiple times, until Dean managed to trap the stick under his arm.

Dean unloaded several right hands to Cesaro before the man managed to get his foot up and kick Dean back away from him. Cesaro then went for a cover, but Dean managed to kick out, Cesaro then unloaded on him with the kendo stick again.

Siren sits on the table watching intently as Cesaro starts taking the pumpkins around the ring and placing them in the center. “What the hell are you doing?”

She sees Cesaro try to deliver a suplex to Dean on the pumpkins, but he’s deterred as Dean knocks him out of the ring and he hits the floor by Siren’s feet. As he gets up he grabs one of the kendo sticks on the table and slams it into Dean’s ankle, followed by his stomach. As Dean writhes in pain in the ring, Cesaro grabs the bucket of candy and then flips the table over. He gives a glare to Siren, who holds up her hands, “Hey, I’m not in this.”

Her speaking is enough of a distraction for Dean to run across the ring and baseball slide into Cesaro, knocking him to the floor and sending the bucket of candy whipping past Siren’s head as she jumps off of the table.

“Ooh, candy.” Siren says gleefully, smiling as she grabs a lollipop from off of the desk, opening the wrapper and putting it in her mouth.

The fight continues as Cesaro grabs Dean who had jumped off of the apron and tosses him over the announcer’s table. Cesaro grabs one of the kendo sticks and climbs up on the table, but Dean is quicker as he jumps to his feet and starts unloading on Cesaro, nailing every inch of his body with the stick.

Dean tosses Cesaro back into the ring, Cesaro thinking he’s getting the best of Dean, bounces off of the ropes and finds himself airborne, landing right on the patch of pumpkins he had placed out. Dean waits until he gets to his feet, then runs over clotheslining Cesaro over the top rope.

Grabbing onto the top rope, Dean launches himself over the rope earning him a kendo stick to the gut before he crumples to the floor. Cesaro grabs Dean by the back of the neck and tries to drown him in the apple bucket on the floor, but Dean shoves him off slamming his fist into Cesaro’s face. The lunatic unleashes a barrage of punches to Cesaro’s face, before ripping down one of the skeletons and beating Cesaro with that instead.

Cesaro manages to grab Dean and deliver a suplex to him on the ring floor, stunning Ambrose if only for a minute. Cesaro takes the opportunity to shove everything off of the table beside him to the floor, then positioning the table where he wants it. Grabbing a steel chair, he nails Ambrose on the back with it, but when he goes in for another hit, Dean stands up hitting him in the stomach with a broom.

Slamming the stick of the broom into Cesaro’s throat causes him to fall back onto the table, where Dean then unloads several rapid-fire punches to Cesaro’s face. Dean then grabs the broom and climbs up onto the second rope, grinning and sticking out his tongue to the fans. Dean puts the broom between his legs like he’s a witch and jumps off of the turnbuckle, landing a powerful elbow to Cesaro and sending him through the table.

Siren can’t help but laugh as she shakes her head, Dean was crazy, but that’s why she loved him. She watches as they get back into the ring, Dean bouncing off of the ropes and delivering a clothesline to Cesaro. She laughs again as Dean grabs a hollowed out pumpkin and shoves it onto Cesaro’s head, before hitting him with “Dirty Deeds” for the win.

Siren claps as she climbs into the ring with Dean, raising his hand in victory, before he places the pumpkin back onto Cesaro’s head. Dean climbs up onto the turnbuckle holding the skull of the broken skeleton like he’s Hamlet. As he climbs back down Siren motions to Cesaro who has stumbled to his feet, the pumpkin still on his head. Dean grabs him and delivers another “Dirty Deeds” to Cesaro, splitting the pumpkin in pieces.

After the show Colby and Tasha headed out to the rig, the two headed to the airport bound for Georgia. Colby had a blast for three days being on set with Tasha as she filmed The Walking Dead. He was so proud of what she did on these shows, he got to see another side of her on each of them. He had to admit it was a huge turn on for him to see her wielding a bow and fighting off zombies.

Chapter 42: SOA Bikes & Kendo Sticks

Chapter Text

On Monday morning they flew in for RAW, the group smiling at their co-workers as they passed them. They knew it would be a rough night for them all, because rumor had it the big boss would be making an appearance that night.

Tasha however was as giddy as a schoolgirl as she stood in the parking garage, Colby chuckling as she bounced on the balls of her feet. She was waiting for the truck that was carrying her SOA bike and in her opinion, it was taking forever. Renee and Jon joined them just as the truck was backing up to the dock to unload.

“Dang, I wish I had a bike so that I could ride with you.” Renee commented. She had gotten her motorcycle license a year ago, but hadn’t found the bike that she wanted just yet.

“Well, my lovely adopted sister, I have a special surprise for you.” Tasha said with a grin as the driver got out and opened the back door of the trailer.

All of them were surprised to see both of Tasha’s SOA bikes in the back of the trailer. She grabbed one of them, while the driver took the other and wheeled them onto the dock.

“I had both of them shipped to me, so now you and I can ride together.” Tasha told Renee.

The blonde screamed in glee as she hugged Tasha, then she settled onto the seat of the season one Dyna. “I feel like I’m sitting on a piece of history. This is so f*cking cool!”

“You look so sexy on that bike, babe.” Jon commented, eyeing his girlfriend with lust.

“You both look sexy,” Colby said looking at both women. “Ain’t we a couple of lucky f*cks, huh bro?”

“Yes we are.” Jon laughed as he high-fived Colby.

“Alright, let’s take ‘em over to the rig and put them in the back.” Tasha said as she and Renee started up the Dyna’s.

They rode them over to the rig, Colby lowered the ramp and opened the back door. The girls loaded the bikes up and after thanking the truck driver they headed back inside to get ready.

Monday Night RAW kicked off with none other than Mr. McMahon leading Stephanie and Triple H down to the ring. They stood down there plugging the WWE Network and the upcoming Survivor Series. Vince went on to brag about all of his accomplishments he had made over the years.

Then he made an announcement that had everyone backstage dropping their mouths in awe. If Team Authority loses at Survivor Series, that they will no longer be in charge or have any power.

As Vince, Hunter and Stephanie climb out of the ring, out comes two people that have been a constant thorn in The Authority’s side. Dean Ambrose and Siren walk down to the ring, smiling as they pass the trio.

“Welcome back.” Dean says holding his hand out to Vince, who takes it with a smile and shakes it.

Siren smiles as she hugs Vince, the man placing a kiss onto her cheek in return, and giving her a wink that only she noticed.

Vince then patted Dean on the back before walking out of the arena with Stephanie and Hunter.

Dean and Siren climbed into the ring and awaited his opponent, a man who is a glutton for punishment, that had already lost to Dean several times, Cesaro.

As the match got started the two men took the fight to one another, Cesaro clearly irritated with losing to Dean on Smackdown. Halfway through the match with Dean gaining the upper hand, the lights went out in the arena. When they came back up Siren was staring at Bray Wyatt sitting in his rocking chair at the top of the stage.

“Oh, this is so not good.” She said to herself as she turned her focus back to the match. She kept a close eye on Bray who seemed intent just to sit in his chair and watch the match.

The mere presence of Bray seems to enrage Dean as he again takes the fight to Cesaro, his punches even more vicious than before. Dean launches Cesaro out of the ring, then bounces himself off of the ropes and suicide dives, taking out Cesaro. Dean stares up at Bray who in turn starts laughing, which is as unnerving to Siren as it is to Dean.

Ambrose grabs Cesaro and rolls him back into the ring, less than a minute later Dean plants Cesaro with “Dirty Deeds” to take the pinfall.

Dean stands in the ring staring down Bray, but as he goes to climb out of the ring, the lights again go out, when they come back up, Bray is gone, only his chair remains.

Backstage Siren shakes her head as she and Dean walk back finding Bray standing by the curtain. “You are one creepy motherf*cker, Bray.”

Bray chuckles as he wraps an arm around her shoulders, “Why, thank you, little one. You say the nicest things.”

Both Siren and Dean shake their heads as he walks off, the two of them knocking fists with the Uso’s as they head out for their match. Siren walks back to the locker room, finding Seth sitting on the sofa watching the show.

“Hey, baby.” He said as she flopped down on the couch beside him.

“Hey.”

Seth put his arm around her shoulders and hugged her into his side, pressing a kiss to the side of her head. “So, do we have you to thank for Vince’s bombshell?”

She chuckled, “I wish I could take credit for that, but no. That was all him. But I’m pretty sure Stephanie thinks I had something to do with it. So, I’m prepared for whatever backlash she throws at me.”

“Arg, I can’t wait until Vince and Hunter’s plan takes effect. I’m tired of sneaking around, not being able to be with you. I miss looking across the ring and seeing you standing there on my side.”

“Yeah, me too. I’m sure it won’t be anytime soon, and I’m positive somebody will have to be screwed over in the process. But, I’m willing to do whatever I have to, to be with you.”

“Same here.” He assured her.

“We better get going, we’re up next.” Siren said as she stood up from the couch.

Seth nodded as he stood up and pulled on his shirt, grabbing his briefcase he took Siren’s hand and together they headed up to gorilla.

Kissing Siren he gritted his teeth as he watched her loop Dolph’s IC title around her waist and fasten it. “Do you really have to wear that?”

Siren smirked alongside Dolph, “The fans love it.”

“Seth Rollins hates it.”

“And that’s exactly why we do it.” She laughed, tipping up on her toes to kiss Seth’s lips. “And it’s really cute when you refer to yourself in the third person.”

Seth shook his head smiling as she walked over to the curtain, his attention turning to Dolph who still stood beside him.

“Look, man, I just want you to know, we’re just friends. I would never step on your toes like that, Colby. I’m really glad you two are back together.” Dolph said, holding out his hand.

Seth took his hand, shaking it. “Thanks, man. You ready to lose that title?”

Dolph laughed, “Not on your life golden boy. You can have your girl, but this baby is mine.”

The crowd cheered as Siren once again came out onto the stage, sporting Dolph’s Intercontinental title around her waist. Smiling as she took Dolph’s hand, the two walked down to the ring and climbed inside to wait his opponent.

But as Triple H’s music came on, Siren grimaced as she turned to Dolph. “Oh, this is so not good.”

The Authority consisting of Triple H, Stephanie, Seth Rollins, Kane and J&J Security came out and walked down to the ring. Dolph and Siren already knew what was going to happen, but they played off their shock well for the fans.

“Well, you all heard my father’s announcement.” Stephanie said as The Authority stood in the ring, Seth smirking over at Siren, who rolled her eyes in return.

“And I just want you to know that Triple H and I are ecstatic about this opportunity. You know why? Because we’re winners. You know, unlike most people who are afraid to stand up for what they believe in, to fight for their rights, to pin their hopes and dreams on false idols like John Cena and by most people of course, I mean, all of you. We’re winners. And that’s why at Survivor Series, we’re going to put together the strongest Survivor Series team in history under the leadership of Mr. Money In the Bank, Seth Rollins and his teammate, Kane.”

Triple H leans down to whisper in his wife’s ear, she nods before making another announcement. “And of course, their partner, “The Viper” Randy Orton.”

This proclamation makes Siren laugh, The Authority eyeing her as if she knows something that they don’t… which she just so happen did.

“Now Dolph, here’s the thing, all right?” Triple H says picking up where his wife left off. “We’re not naïve, we hear what everybody is saying, and we hear the rumors, okay? And sure a lot of people think that we are petty enough to punish those that might wanna team with John Cena, that might wanna oppose The Authority. And frankly you standing out here with Siren, doesn’t help your case very much.

They think that we would hold some kind of grudge against them. We wouldn’t. You’re free to do what you want, Dolph, you’re free to partner with who you want inside, with who you want, but I would like you to question a few things about it because if you—if you do side with John Cena and Siren, well, then what happens? Let’s just say—let’s just play this out a little bit, all right? Let’s just role play it. Let’s just say, you win. Let’s just say, Team Cena wins, who do you think gets the credit for that, Dolph? Is it you? Do you get the credit for John Cena’s team winning or does John Cena look like an even bigger hero because John Cena wins with Dolph Ziggler on his team?

Now, let’s play it out the other way. Let’s say Team Cena loses, who takes that heat, huh? John Cena gonna take the blame for that loss or is that gonna be you? Is John Cena already setting himself up for the inevitable loss by saying, “Well, what could you expect with somebody like Ziggler on my team?” You know, don’t get me wrong, I don’t think that there’s anything about you, Dolph, that’s a failure, I don’t believe that at all. It’s just you know as well as I do that every time you seem to rise up to the top, there’s something in your way, somebody that no matter how hard you work and you do work hard, you bust your ass, probably harder than any other superstar in the back, that’s a fact, and here’s the thing, who gets the credit for that?

Is it Dolph Ziggler? Is it Dolph Ziggler? No. No. It’s John Cena. Right? And you can call it whatever you want, you can say that’s a glass ceiling, you can say it however you wanna say it, but if it’s a glass ceiling, you certainly can’t see through it and you certainly can’t break through it, now, can you? Now…”