1A/N: So, this is the end of the first SAGA if you will. I will be doing these stories in novels/saga schemes. The next one will begin about a month or two before Armageddon 1999. I'll have a lot of fun sticking Jaina in that time line and messing up all kinds of shit. For now, for those of you who have read, keep reading, and for those of you who have not reviewed...I know you haven't...I have wonderful stats that are telling me you haven't reviewed, and I LOVE reviews!
So. Review. :)
WWF
"Alright everyone, good job tonight, good job, let's get everything cleaned up!" Vince gave his back stage crew a round of applause as he came through the curtain of the gorilla, Jaina and Mark not far behind him. After answering a few questions from his stage manager, the chairman glanced behind him. "I think you're the only person on the face of the planet that can get away with slapping Stone Cold Steve Austin." He clapped her on the back before moving off to tend to other business.
"Where'd ya come up with the voice?"
Jaina shrugged. "You have a kind of demonic tone when you speak, so I figured I should have something to match it. I figured it would kind of show how far gone I was." She glanced up at him. "You didn't like it?"
"I didn't say that."
"Then what?"
"Well..." Mark thought about his words carefully, "to be honest with ya...it was a little creepy."
Jaina was still laughing when Steve and Shane made their way back stage. "Jaina, what the hell was that out there?" Steve demanded, his hands on his hips. The area around the foursome fell silent, not even the crew members made a sound as father and daughter stared at each other. "Hey, I slapped you as hard as I could, Dad, I swear!" Jaina held up her hands in defense. She honestly had hit him as hard as her muscles allowed. She couldn't figure out what had her fathers trucks in such a bunch.
"I ain't talkin' about the slap, the slap was fine. I'm talkin' about that damn satanic voice you pulled out there in the ring! I never even knew you could sound like that, what, were you given her lessons?" He looked pointedly at Calaway as he swung an arm over his daughters shoulder.
"Hey, she came up with that on her own, I didn't have a thing to do with it," Mark shrugged himself out of his druids cape and folded it over his arm. "I'm goin' back to the hotel, I'm sittin' in that restaurant, and I'm gonna have a few beers. Anybody else game?"
WWF
Stephanie was one of the first to make it back to the hotel. As she'd had only one on screen performance that night, she decided to beat the rush out of the arena parking lot, and after getting the permission she needed from her father, she'd packed up the work she needed to take with her and headed on back to her suite for a night of creative writing, editing, and story line grooming.
Getting out of her rental car, she opened up the back door and retrieved her conference books, note books, and folders that she needed and locked up the vehicle, heading into the Columbus Renaissance.
"Hey, wait up!"
Frowning, Stephanie turned around, vaguely recognizing the voice but not remembering where she'd heard it. So, it was a mild surprise when she saw none other than Lauren McCabe heading her direction, a satisfied smirk on her face.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Stephanie growled out. She hated that woman with all her heart after what she'd done to Shane, and what she was now trying to do with the WWF. It gave her a mild amount of satisfaction to see Lauren slow down from her brusque pace, and to actually witness a certain amount of trepidation flash on the woman's features. Stephanie was not the sweet flower that Lauren had known almost two years ago. She'd grown more assertive, more confident of herself, and she was certainly no push over anymore.
"Hey, I'm just here to talk, Steph," Lauren assured her, "can I help you with any that?"
"And let you get a look at confidential files?" Stephanie sniffed, "I don't think so." She turned to leave, but heard Lauren rush up to her. "Hey, I saw your show tonight. Live as a matter of fact."
"Yea? Don't people usually go home after they see a live show?"
"Oh come on, Stephanie, we used to be like sisters, you and I."
Stephanie stopped and turned toward Lauren, amazement on her face. "We were nothing of the kind, Lauren. I only have one sibling, or did you forget that you mowed over his heart when you cheated on him with Bischoff?" She took a look around the parking lot area. "Where is the little sleaze ball anyway?"
"Hey, that's my boyfriend you're talking about," Lauren warned, stepping closer to the youngest McMahon.
"How did you even find me?" Stephanie continued, not backing down from her current position. "You visit Shane, then you stalk me down, what's next? Bursting in on one of my fathers board meetings?"
"Not such a bad idea, now that you mention it."
"Good luck getting past security," Stephanie was positively snarling by this point and nearly shaking with anger. She was so pissed off she couldn't even see straight. "Look, I don't even care how you found me or why you followed me. All I know is that from this point, at least in our private lives, my family is going to be safe from your little 'drop-ins'."
Laurens answer was as dry as the Sahara. "Imagine my sorrow. What's it going to be this time, Stephanie? A private security detail for you and Shane? Enforced police presence at all the arenas?" She tossed her hair over her shoulder and laughed gayly. "Look, I don't know why you're getting so bent out of shape. I simply came over to say hello and to deliver a message."
"Then deliver it and get the hell out of here."
WWF
The party down in the hotel restaurant was in full swing by the time Stephanie arrived, having taken a shower and changed her clothes after her encounter with Lauren McCabe. After having tried her fathers hotel room and not finding him there, she decided to try the restaurant, knowing that at least Shane would be there. She stood at the door for a moment, seeking him out, and when she found him, Stephanie made a bee-line for him.
"Hey, Shane."
Her brother turned around, acknowledging her. "Hey little, Sis. You're not usually down here for these things."
"Yea, well..." Stephanie trailed off, and immediately, Shane could tell something was up. Something was always up when his sister couldn't make eye contact with him. "What's wrong?"
"Lemme talk to you over here," Stephanie guided her brother away from Jaina, who nodded at both McMahons before turning her attention to Hunter, Shawn, Mark, and a few of the other wrestlers gathered around a table having a beer.
"Steph, what's up?" Shane was more serious now.
"Lauren McCabe."
Shane's eyebrows nearly rose up off his head. "What about her?"
"She paid me a visit earlier tonight," Stephanie placed a hand on her brothers arm as soon as she saw his eyes start to smoulder. "She didn't really do anything to me, she was just a bitch as always, that's all, but she did give me a message that she wanted to pass on to you." Her brother waited quietly for her to give him his ex-fiance's communication.
"She said that she has something up her sleeve, and you're going to find out about it first hand at their next pay per view." She shrugged her shoulders when Shane flexed his hands, asking silently if that was it. "That was all she told me." As she took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jaina making her way towards her. "Everything okay?" the other brunette asked when she reached them.
"Nope," Shane punched the wall lightly a few times and wiped his hand over his mouth, his temper threatening to over flow. Now Lauren was cornering his baby sister? How low could the woman stoop? "I'm sorry, Jaina, I have to go to work right now. Steph'll fill you in." With that, he kissed his sister on her forehead, giving her an extra hug because he knew she was just as furious as he at the moment, and gave Jaina a light peck on the lips. Without stopping to say good night to anyone, he stormed out of the restaurant, in search of his father.
"What the Hell?" Jaina's alarmed voice sounded in the small area Stephanie and Shane had confiscated as their own. In actuality, a few heads had turned towards the women, including Steve Austin's, Dwayne Johnson's, and Mark Calaway's. Stephanie just shrugged. "I honestly don't even know myself, Jaina. I got a surprise visit from Lauren McCabe-"
"That bitch again!?" Jaina now shrieked, and anyone who wasn't looking at the pair was staring at them now. Stephanie visibly winced at the loud voice and mouthed an apology to everyone who was looking at them now.
"What's goin' on?" Shawn Michael's voice chirped out of the silence, and both Stephanie and Jaina could see the intrigued, curious, and worried faces about the room.
"Some how, Lauren McCabe was able to follow me from the arena back to the hotel tonight-no, I don't know how she did it, she didn't bother to tell me, she never tells anyone her little secrets-but she told me she had a message for my father."
"What was that?" Paul asked, concern showing on his face for the young woman.
"Apparently she has something pretty major up her sleeve and that the WWF is going to find out about it at their next pay per view." The young woman shrugged her shoulders, hearing the obvious questions such as 'what could she possibly have under her sleeve'? "We don't know what she has planned, we don't know what it had to do with us...that was all she told me."
"At the Great American Bash?" Matt Hardy spoke now, looking at his brother, Jeff, "that's a week after King of the Ring; ten days from now." The air in the restaurant had changed dramatically in the past two minutes or so. It was now quiet and tension filled. Worry was emanating from all the wrestlers as they whispered amongst themselves.
What in the world was WCW planning?
WWF
"Shane?" Jaina opened the door of the suite slowly into a dimly lit room, and she could already tell that Shane was either there, or had at least been there. She looked around the floor at the clothes that had been thrown haphazardly around in frustration and stepped inside silently, shutting the door. Dropping down to pick up a shirt, she heard the creek of a bed and a sorrowful sigh, and stood up, now seeing the figure sitting on the mattress, head in his hands. "Shane..." Jaina whispered, sympathy lacing his name as she made her way forward, stopping to stand in front of him.
"What does she want from me?" she heard him ask, a note of defeat in his voice. "What could I have possibly done to make her want to ruin me and my family?" And then, Jaina heard him make the most heart wrenching sound she'd ever heard. Shane McMahon, one of the biggest alpha males that she'd ever met...sniffed.
Shane was crying.
"I mean, really, I want to know!" Shane stood up, nearly knocking Jaina over. "I did everything I could for her! I called her, I sent her post cards on especially long trips, I brought her back gifts from the different cities I'd been to, hell, if I had even one single day off, I'd fly to where ever she was and spend 12 hours with her, just so that we'd have one day a week together, even if it wasn't a full 24 hours."
Jaina remained where she was, watching Shane pace in front of her, occasionally wiping away from his cheeks the evidence of anger until he finally stopped, facing away from her towards the patio of their hotel room. "I've been over it a thousand times in my head. Where did I screw up?"
"You didn't," Jaina answered softly, still having not moved from her position, "she did. Lauren is fucked up in the head, Shane, and you didn't do anything to make her that way. She came like that, signed, sealed, and delivered." She moved up behind him, wrapping steady arms around his waste and rested her cheek against his back. "She was going to screw you over no matter what, Shane. That's what she's good at. Don't waste your time on her!"
"I have to waste my time on her, Jaina, because she sought out my sister, and now she's got something up her sleeve for WCW, and I know...I know it's something right under my nose, and I just can't place it!"
"You will."
"What, when she announces it on Nitro?!" Shane stepped out of her arms and turned around, facing his girlfriend for the first time since she entered the room. Jaina pursed her lips; she didn't have anything to say to that, and she was beginning to get an idea of just how ignorant to the world of wrestling she was, and how serious the Monday Night Wars were becoming.
The cocky, arrogant, confident persona that all the superstars and the McMahon family had on the shows and in the public eye, Jaina realized, were not quite genuine. If they were, Shane wouldn't be up in his hotel room tearing his hair out about some woman and what she was planning to do on her own show, and Vince McMahon wouldn't have his lawyers going over every single one of the superstars contracts and calling their top people so as to shore up their positions on various things. And she came to another realization, one that surprised her, but didn't shatter her.
There was nothing she could do here. There was nothing she could do for Shane, or the company, against Lauren McCabe or WCW. She was to new to the business, and even though being the daughter of Stone Cold Steve Austin had afforded her a front row seat to more of the wrestling business than most of the public got to see, definitely being a witness in the day to day running of it and dating the boss's son had allowed her to see things in a new light. And one of those things was that sometimes, she had to take a step back and let Shane do what he needed to do.
So, she shook her head and turned away, heading for the restroom and closing the door softly behind her, leaving Shane to stand in the bed room of their hotel suite, hands on his hips, a look of defeat on his face.
WWF
The next few days before King of the Ring were very stress filled ones for Jaina. She wasn't sure if she should call Shane, though he'd called a few times to check on her and say hello. But things were awkward on the phone with him. The last night they'd been together, Jaina had gone into the bathroom to take a shower, and by the time she came back out, Shane was already in bed, seemingly asleep. In truth, Jaina knew he was awake, but she wasn't going to pester him. If he wanted to pretend to be sleeping, then let him. She wouldn't chase after him like a school girl. She was his girl friend, not a lost puppy. So, she'd simply kissed him on the forehead and fell asleep herself.
Even the next morning was slightly tense. Shane didn't want to talk, and Jaina didn't want to make him, so getting ready to go to the airport was a dull affair, the ride to the airport was quiet, and leaving each other to get on separate planes to separate cities was harder than it normally was because neither of them knew how to say good bye that day. So they'd simply parted with a bitter sweet kiss and went about their ways, landing in their separate planes and arriving at their separate houses.
Jaina had about a day and a half to rest, and she took it. She had the house to herself, as her father was still out of town for interviews and appearances. Jaina hadn't been scheduled for any, and neither had Shane, as the WWF was playing up the match between the Undertaker and Stone Cold as their main event.
36 hours until she was back on a plane. 36 hours until she was back in Shane's arms, and oh how she missed them. She wasn't sure what sparked the tension between them. But she thought back to that Thursday night after Smackdown! in their hotel room, and she blamed herself for it all. Even though she'd come to the realization that there wasn't much she could do for her boyfriend on the business side of things, that didn't mean that there wasn't anything that she could do for him emotionally.
Ergo, walking to the bathroom to take a shower was probably not the best move that could have been made. There was probably a better route that could have been taken.
As Jaina turned out the light in her bedroom, looking at her cell phone for the umpteenth time that day, having talked to Shane twice and only for a few minutes each time to tell him that she'd gotten home safely. Likewise, he called her when he finally got home from the office to tell her that he'd gotten home alright and to wish her a good night. Again, the call had ended awkwardly just a few minutes ago. Jaina frowned to herself as she rolled over.
What was wrong with them? Surely some little bitch like Lauren and what she had planned for the WCW couldn't be all that was on Shane's mind.
I'll talk to him about it tomorrow, she resolved to herself as she closed her eyes and let sleep take her.
WWF
In a word, Shane was miserable. He felt like a complete ass. If his father were there right now, he'd tell Shane to stand up like a man and go apologize for being the complete jerk that he'd been to his girlfriend for the past day and a half, especially knowing that Jaina had done nothing wrong. But no; Shane was sitting in his suite, looking at mind numbing paper work, at the same time, watching a tape of the last Smackdown! to refresh his memory on everything that was said and done within his storyline. But try as he might, he couldn't get passed the weird feeling....just that weird, nagging feeling that had followed him since he'd left Jaina in the airport the previous day.
He'd taken his anger out on her, he'd treated her like dirt, his ex-girlfriend being the ring leader of the WCW crew was not helping matters much, and to top it all off, said ex-girlfriend had basically stalked Stephanie in the parking lot to tell her that she had something big going down with WCW, and there wouldn't be a damn thing that the WWF could do about it.
And he'd taken it all out on Jaina. God, what must she think of him? He kept talking about Lauren, everything led back to Lauren. If he kept acting this way, Jaina was going to think that he wasn't over that woman and what she did to him, and he'd be finding himself on the nasty end of a break up.
Shane didn't want that, he didn't want that by a long shot, that was not how he wanted his relationship with Jaina to turn out.
A jingle from his phone caught his attention and Shane looked at it dumbly before taking it in his hand and flipping it open. "Hello."
"Hey."
"Jay!" Shane had never been more relieved to hear his girlfriends voice in his life. "Hey, are you here?"
"Well, I'm...I'm at the airport, but there seems to be a bit of trouble getting the luggage. We've been waiting for about 15 minutes now and they still haven't sent the bags out yet." In the background, Shane could hear the various sounds of Logan International Airport; people talking, luggage rolling, children screaming, the intercom going off...
"Shane!"
"Yea, yea, sorry," Shane looked at his watch, "hey look, um...I'm gonna come get you, okay?"
A pause.
"Are you sure? I'm sure it won't take much longer, I'd hate to drag you out here for nothing when I can just take a cab."
"No girlfriend of mine will be taking any cabs when her boyfriend is a few miles away with a rental car." Shane stood up, grabbing his wallet and the hotel keycard, switching the phone to his other hand. "I'll be there in about ten minutes. I'll meet you inside." With that, he flipped his phone shut and left his room, the door slamming behind him.
WWF
Jaina pulled her baseball cap lower on her head and turned her back as she caught sight of a 30 something male, a camera slung around his neck, bandana covering his hair, and that searching expression on his face. One thing that she'd learned with the last pay per view event she'd been a part of was that the paparazzi liked to stake out all the airports and rental car/dealerships the day before and the morning of the event. Her first brush with 'photographers' had been when she'd stayed with Shane in his New York condo. It hadn't been that bad of an experience, but just the idea of someone standing around, waiting for her, her father, and her co-workers made her uneasy.
The longer she had to stay by the conveyer belt, the more nervous she got. If there was one of them here, there was no reason to believe that there wasn't more than one. The last thing she wanted or needed right now was get jumped by an over zealous 'media' type who wouldn't let her walk a straight line out the door.
As she glanced up, she saw a familiar brown haired head making it's way towards her, and as he got closer, kind, brown eyes searching for her, and an expression that hinted at eagerness to find her. Jaina grinned in spite of herself as she raised her hand in the air to signal Shane over.
That was the man she remembered.
When he reached her, Shane scooped her up in his arms, twirling her around in a hug. "I was an ass the other night," he murmured in her ear, kissing her just underneath the lobe as he finally set her back down, "I'm sorry."
His apology was more than accepted as she kissed him fully on his lips, long and languidly, forgetting all the people around watching them. Her attention was held only by Shane at the moment, and after she was finished 'accepting' his remorse, she pulled back and searched his eyes. He was still tense, still worried and apprehensive, still on edge, but he wasn't frustrated, he didn't look stressed. Rationality had taken control again, and when business was concerned, rationality was the best policy.
"Your flight was okay?" Shane tapped at her baseball cap affectionately, admiring her secretly. Jaina was basically dressed in pajama's; sweat pants, stylish as they were, with sneakers, a small, plain white shirt, and a light jacket covering her torso, but she was still beautiful to him.
Jaina grinned. "It was alright. There was a layover in Tennessee for about a half hour, but other than that..." she coasted her hand out in front of her, "smooth sailing all the way."
Shane raised his eyebrows. "Sailing? What plane were you flying in?"
"Funny boy," Jaina muttered, just before the conveyer belt started and she breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God, now we can finally get out of here. Oh, by the way," Jaina looked around inconspicuously for the man she figured for a photographer, "I'm pretty sure I caught a few of the print media stalking around in here."
"That's okay. We won't be around long enough for them to bother us," and as Shane spoke, he grabbed what he knew was Jaina's bags by heart and shouldered one of them, "ready to go? Ah, ah, ah!" He pulled away when she tried to take one of her bags to help him. "I've been a jerk, I'm carrying your bags. End of story."
"Well then, feel free to be a jerk more often!" Jaina stood on her tip toes and placed a soft kiss on his cheek, wrapping her arm around his as they began to walk out of the airport. But they stopped short as a camera flash went off in front of them, and they had to stop momentarily to gather their bearings once more as a second and third flash went off as well.
"Hey guys, how are you doing? Ready for King of the Ring tonight?"
"How long have you and Jaina been dating?"
The questions came from three photographers that had been staking out baggage area, and none of them were the paparazzo that Jaina had seen. He must have been some kind of signal to his buddies when someone famous came through from the terminal. No matter; Shane and Jaina simply ignored their questions about their relationship and focused on getting to Shane's rental car, thankful that no more photographers came out of the woodwork to bother them. Being the gentleman that Shane was, he first put Jaina's luggage into the trunk of the car, then, walked Jaina over to the passenger side and let her in, motioning for her to lock the door after her.
"Sorry guys, we've got to get going now," Shane pushed through the remaining three photographers to his side of the car and opened the driver side door, slipping in without answering any more questions and turned on the car. "You alright?"
"Yea, I'm fine," Jaina nodded, looking around the outside of the car, making sure that Shane didn't run over any of the paparazzi, though she sincerely doubted that he would shed a tear if he did, "sorry you had to deal with that." Shane shrugged it off. It wasn't that it was a normal occurrence for him, but all the wrestlers and performers of the WWF knew when it came time for the pay per view shows to expect a little more press exposure in the tabloids. "More concerned about you dealing with it," he answered back, turning out of the airport parking lot and beginning the long road back towards civilization, "I live in New York, so I'm all over the place there, and the Post know's it, but-"
"I'm fine, Shane. I promise." Jaina looked out the window as he drove, taking in the sights of Boston as they flew down the highway towards the hotel they were staying at. "Is anyone else here yet?"
Shane shook his head. "Dad's not coming in until tomorrow, Stephanie's flying in with him, so is mom...most of the superstars won't show up until later tonight or early tomorrow morning."
"So we have the night to ourselves then?"
Shane chuckled, making a turn onto another street. "I have a few phone conferences with Dad and Mom, also with the administrators of the Fleet Center, I need to talk to Mark before I go to sleep..." he stole a glance at Jaina, whose eyebrow was slightly arched in an amused way, "but sure, after all that, we can have the night to ourselves."
Jaina grinned, settling back into the chair for the rest of the few minutes that they were in the car.
"Good."
WWF
Sunday morning arrived with a flurry of activity. From 8am and on, it was non stop for everyone involved in that nights pay per view of King of the Ring. The ring crew was well on their way to setting up the announcers table, the squared circle, ramps, sets, and pyrotechnics that would shoot into the air through out the night, no more so than through the King of the Ring tournament. The gorilla position was being set up as Shane and Jaina arrived through the loading dock doors, stopping first to put their things away in the stow away room. Then, the two split; Shane to meet with this father and go over the final scripts, which, if Shane knew Vince, the man was rewriting some of the script already, always vying for perfection in his shows.
The run sheet was something else that was being reworked. Originally, Vince had wanted the main event to be the actual final chapter of the King of the Ring tournament. But now, he was looking to schedule that just before his and Shane's match, after which, the main event would be The Undertaker and Stone Cold Steve Austin's Pink Slip on the Pole match. All in all, as Shane walked through the halls, thinking to himself, he knew his father would be counting himself lucky, as always, if he got everything done by the 7pm start time.
But they always did, and it always turned out perfectly, and there was no reason for the McMahons' to think otherwise this time.
WWF
Steve Austin sat in his locker room, hunched over, watching the monitor in front of him. This was the night; the night where either he would be the champion again and keep his CEO job, or lose the CEO position and never receive a title shot again from Vince McMahon. He smirked as he laced up his boots. He didn't have the match for another hour yet, but it never hurt to be prepared, not in this business.
As he leaned forward and began filtering the shoe laces in between the loops, he heard the door open softly and close just as though it had never been opened.
"Hello, Father."
Jaina walked around her father sitting form, glaring at him from her position above him. He really was pathetic...sitting in here by himself, staring at a television monitor, waiting for a match that he was going to lose badly.
"Are you preparing yourself for your defeat? You know my Lord is going to beat you senseless...and after he's finished, he'll be able to sacrifice your soul fully. That is going to be a pleasure to watch, I must say."
"Jaina, get out of here before I take you over my knee," Austin growled, looking up at her. He was most definitely not enjoying her presence, nor the outfit that she was wearing. The tight, black halter top with the shortest skirt he'd ever seen and knee high boots were not becoming on his little girl. But as of right now, this was not his daughter; not as he knew her anyways. The black lines encircling her eyes, the blood red lipstick that painted her mouth, her white as snow face...that was nothing like his daughter. Evil had taken her fully now; there wouldn't be anything that could ever tell him differently.
"You've never hit me before, Father. I don't believe you'll do so now. But it's not because you can't. It's because you don't care enough to waste that amount of physical energy on me. You never have, you certainly haven't while I've been with the Undertaker, you never will."
"You're going to lose tonight, Father," Jaina headed towards the door, a bored look on her face as her father didn't even bother to see her out, "you're going to lose badly. And then, my Lords title will be secured, I will continue to stand by his side...and there's not a damn thing you can do about it."
Austin stood up. "What about Shane?"
"What about him?" she sniffed.
"Could Shane do something about it?"
"That little pipsqueak?" Jaina laughed, swiveling around once more to face Steve. "He's cute and everything...but no where near the man that the Undertaker is. Besides, why do you care if Shane had the authority to "bring me back"," she placed her words in quotation marks before settling her hands on her hips, glaring at her father, daring him to speak against her, "don't you hate him? Don't you despise him? Just because of his last name? Or are you realizing that there are some things that you simply can't do, that aren't within your power....why, are you putting faith and trust in Shane McMahon that he may be able to bring me back to the light?"
"What if I was?"
"Then you're a fool," her eyes narrowed, and Steve had no doubt that this woman standing in front of him meant every word that she said, "if I wanted to go to the light, I would, but I don't. My life before now has been so un-fulfilling. But Taker...he took me, showed me what the world should be like, where my place was. And it wasn't with Shane. Or you. It was with him. And I would very much suggest that you and everyone else get used to that fact!" With that, she slammed the door behind her, leaving Austin looking very confused, very pissed, and, for those watching closely...the lines of sadness around his eyes began to seep through.
WWF
Triple H was the King of the Ring. He'd beaten the Rock, beaten everyone in the tournament. He was the absolute best, he knew it. Sure, Taker and Austin hadn't been involved in the matches; they had their own little thing going on, but Hunter knew that if those two had been in the tournament, he'd have kicked their ass's just the same.
Simply put, no matter what Vince said, no matter what anyone said, Hunter was number one.
Period.
Now, it was time to take his place at the top of the WWF. He was going to get everyone's respect, including Vince McMahons. Especially Vince McMahons. If he could earn it, that would be great. But if he had to take it, that'd be fine too.
WWF
Austin was already in the ring, pacing it, watching the entrance ramp for his opponent. When the lights blinked out, and the whole arena was plunged into total darkness, Steve stopped and stood in the middle of the ring, his back to the pole that held his destiny high above on a pink piece of paper. All he had to do was get to that paper, rip it off, and he'd be secure in his CEO title.
But as he watched the Undertaker walk out to the ring, his eyes drifted to the young woman walking along side him, and Steve actually heard his mind sending up a silent prayer for Shane to get the job done tonight. And unfortunately, that was all the time for thinking about his little girl that he had, because once the Undertaker finished raising the lights and taking off his leather cloak, he locked his dark eyes on Austin.
It was on from there.
WWF
Jaina watched from her position at ringside. She couldn't interfere, not because the referee had told her not to, but because her Master had specifically forbade it before she'd walked out with him. It wasn't that she didn't think that the Undertaker could beat her father; she knew he could. She just wanted to help him. She wanted to be in on his destruction, on his glorious fall. She wanted to be a part of that.
But as she watched the Undertaker clothesline the bald man down to the mat, a fleeting thought ran through her mind.
Where had she drummed up all this animosity from for her father.
It doesn't matter, she though, answering the question in her mind, Taker would never lie to me. His words are truth.
Then why is your father so adamant on getting you back?
He's not.
And Shane?
Jaina didn't have an answer for that one. He shouldn't have a reason. Jaina barely knew him. Perhaps that was her answer. Shane was chasing after something that was not there.
But as the Undertaker piledrove her father into the mat, stalked over to the corner, climbed the turnbuckle, and took the pink slip from it's resting place on the pole, and as Jaina beat her hands together in victory and triumph, her heart knew her minds lie.
WWF
"Shane, please don't do this!" Stephanie frantically paced at her brothers heels as he headed for the gorilla position, awaiting his music. Originally, she'd accepted the match, but the closer and closer it came to the event actually happening, the more her stomach became sour with fear. She'd never seen her father and brother wrestle, and she knew that with the aggression and anger Shane had bottled up inside of him, this was not going to be a match; this was going to be a fight, a street fight, if Shane got his way.
"Shane, please, I'm begging you! The girl's told you herself, she wants to be with Mark, let her be with him!"
"Stephanie!" Shane rounded on his sister, his irritation beginning to show through. "I am not going to lose her to that man! Is that what you wanted me to do for you? To just up and say, "well, Undertaker's got her now, if she can't get free by herself, let her stay with him'?"
He could tell immediately by the look on her face that he'd gone to far with that comment. Her big blue eyes looked ready to fill with tears at any moment. So, Shane sighed and closed his eyes, willing himself to calm down, for Stephanie's sake, if for no one elses. "Look, Steph," he placed his hands on her shoulder, "I know you're scared, and I know I can't explain why I feel the way I do. But Jaina and I....we just have this connection, and I know if Jaina were really 'there' right now, she wouldn't be doing what she's been doing for the past few weeks. I have to do this. I have to help her. I've gotta try." He smiled softly at her, knowing the look in her eyes as one of acceptance. She nodded slightly and gave her brother a hug, whispering that she loved him.
"Hey Shane?"
He turned around, just before his music went off, and she gave him a devious and classic McMahon grin. "I hope you win."
WWF
The trepidation was killing her. Jaina paced the back locker room, waiting for Taker to come out of his meditation and walk to the ring. She was nervous. Why was she nervous? She couldn't explain it, but ever since her masters match with her father, butterfly's had appeared in her stomach and had not released her.
Vince McMahon was fighting his own son tonight. That had nothing to do with her. Except, it did. If Shane won, she would be free.
Free? What am I talking about, I am free. I made my decision to be with the Undertaker!
Then why are you fretting about Shane being hurt and losing?
I'm not!
Jaina sank into one of the many chairs that were in the basement, hanging her head in her hands. Her mind kept screaming at her to let Shane take his beating, and that would be it...but her heart was telling her to cheer Shane on, and help him win.
"My dear, are you ready?"
Her head snapped up at Taker's voice, and she immediately plastered a smile on her face without even having to think about it. Accepting his arm, she stood up and obediently allowed him to lead her out to the ring where the match was already underway.
WWF
"You damn upstart!" Vince sent his son down to the mat again with a vicious upper cut. "I'll make you regret the day you ever defied me!"
Somewhere on the mat was Shane...at least that's what Shane thought. He was pretty sure he was still in the ring. As he crawled towards the side, his arm hit the ropes, and that was validation that yes, he was still in the ring. Unfortunately, his night was about to get a lot worse, because the reason for this match was heading down the ramp, and dammit, Jaina might not have been herself at the moment, but Shane couldn't help but stare at her.
She looked damn good.
The distraction cost him dearly, because he felt a swift kick in his ass, which sent him tumbling through the ropes. Of course, he landed directly in front of Jaina, the Undertaker coming up behind her slowly, a look of sadistic pleasure on his face. But as Shane stood up and got a good look at her, he realized that Jaina wasn't look at him with the same expression.
She was just regarding him. It was something about her eyes...it was like he could see the old Jaina somewhere.
But Shane didn't have much time to wonder as he heard Vince hop out of the ring behind him. Going on instinct, he whipped around and lashed out at his father with hard right hands, pushing him all the way back against the ring apron. Grabbing his arm, he flung his father towards the stairs, and Vince hit dead on, his arm smacking into the hard steel of the steps. He rolled off the structure, groaning in pain and holding his now injured arm as Shane capitalized, taking him by the head and throwing him back into the ring.
Now, Shane's fury was starting to rise. The beginning of the match had belonged to Vince, but now that he had seen Jaina, and could swear on a stack of bibles that there was still hope for her yet, Shane was revitalized. "Your ass is mine!" He yelled, lifting the man up and delivering hard right punches to his face before flinging him into the ropes and clotheslining him to the mat. A loud grunt of pain was his reward, but Shane wasn't finished yet. Stealing a look at Jaina, who was watching with rapt attention now, Shane dragged his father into the corner and sat him there. Vince was out cold, but even so, Shane knew he had to act fast. Sliding underneath the bottom rope, he ducked beneath the ring and fished around for his target.
He came up with a silver trash can.
The referee was no where to be found, having vacated the area some time ago, and with that in mind, Shane set to setting up the trash can right where he wanted it. As he climbed to the top of the parallel turn buckle though, he caught the Undertaker out of the corner of his eye coming up behind him, and as he braced himself to have to fight off the near seven food monster, what he saw happen instead both surprised him and filled him with hope.
Jaina stepped in the way. Just before she turned her body to block the Undertaker, Shane saw her eyes, and knew that the old Jaina was fighting her way to the surface, the old Jaina was starting to come out. Whether it was because she saw Shane fighting his father or if it was because the Undertaker was threatening to do some serious damage, he didn't know. All he knew was that Jaina had bought him the time he needed to go coast to coast with his father, and when his feet smacked into the trash can and his hip hit the mat, Shane knew it was over.
When the fans jumped to their feet as Austin ran out to the ring to handle the Undertaker, Shane knew he'd won. He heard the familiar screams of his sister...what was she doing out here? And that's when he saw the referee sliding into the ring at Stephanie's behest. But the best sight was standing out by the ring apron next to the ramp.
Jaina.
And it was Jaina. Jaina Austin. Not the Undertakers lady, or the Queen of Darkness...it was Jaina Austin.
His Jaina. She was back. And as the third and final slap from the referee came down on the mat, Shane released the breath he didn't know he was holding and pushed himself off the mat, falling into the ropes. His father was laid out in the corner, out like a light, but that didn't concern Shane at the moment. All that he was worried about was standing right in front of him. Her attention was currently occupied by watching her father beat the living day lights out of the Undertaker, and Stephanie, who had been standing behind Jaina next to the turnbuckle on the left of the ramp had had enough sense to high tail it back up the ramp once the match was over. He half walked, half stumbled over to the ring ropes just above Jaina and watched with her as Austin and Taker continued to drag each other up the ramp, going blow for blow, hit for it.
WWF
Crap! Shane! Jaina whirled around, taking her eyes off her father and Taker, and when she did, she was surprised to see Shane standing right above her, the trade mark cocky grin on his face as he looked down on her. With the fans cheering for the fight that was still continuing, Jaina made her way up the steel steps, and Shane immediately parted the ropes for her, wiping a hand through his hair.
She smiled at him, a ton wattage grin that could have lit the entire arena with no effort at all as she shook her head, unbelieving of what had happened the past few weeks. But now, it was awkward. She felt guilty, totally not herself for everything that happened, and as her hands brushed through her still dark brown hair, Shane could see the unsure expression on her face.
Well, he'd have to fix that.
If the fans were still watching Austin and the Undertaker, they were about to miss what everyone in the WWF had been saying was going on for a while now. Shane stepped up to Jaina, shook his head. "It's not your fault," he assured her, brushing her hair from her eyes, "not your fault at all."
Jaina nodded, but Shane could tell that she couldn't believe him...wouldn't believe him, as a matter of fact. She tried to pull away from him, turning her head, turning her feet as to walk away, but Shane wasn't having any of it. Instead of letting her go, he turned her back towards him.
"You're not going anywhere," he grinned, right before sealing his mouth over hers in front of an arena full of 20,000 fans, who seemed to get louder, if it was at all possible. Cat calls were flying, the applause was thunderous, and when Shane pulled away, it was as though the crowds hushed. Jaina face was one of shock, and for a moment, Shane wondered if he had been a bit over zealous.
But when her hands grazed his own face, and a shy smile snaked out, he knew it was okay, and was rewarded with a kiss back that was not tentative as the first one had been. This one was full of gratitude, passion, affection. Her arms wove tightly around Shane's neck as he picked her up, one arm holding her tightly, protectively to him while the other held her head.
As the crowd around them exploded they both released each others mouths and looked up, laughing, holding onto each other as Shane's music played for them, two triumphant winners in the ring, both finally having what they wanted after a month of turmoil and hell. It was heaven.
Pure and simple.