Upon arriving at the arena that day, Roman and Dean were briefed on the agreement between Ceridwen and Seth. She glared at both of them as Seth told them that even a single mention of what happened, and he would not be holding her back when she decided to tear them to pieces.
"Now. Are we all agreed, and are we all clear on this?" He asked, glancing uneasily between Ceridwen and Roman, the latter would have been dead if looks could kill.
"Crystal." Ceridwen replied evenly.
"Agreed." Roman nodded as he spoke, despite clearly being on edge.
"Yeah, sure." Dean was looking anywhere but her face as he spoke, and as soon as Seth said it wouldn't hurt to get some practice in before the show, he excused himself. Seth and Roman gave each other a worried glance, before they headed off to the ring. It was clear it was best to leave the man alone.
Dean spent the morning away from his friends. He couldn't face being in her company right that moment, and desperately wished he wasn't fighting that night so he could leave. He knew, deep down inside, she was right. She had every right to be mad at him, more than every right. But being near her right now was so damn painful.
"You look troubled, Ambrose," said a voice and he looked up to see Dolph Ziggler coming towards him.
"I have a few issues, yeah. And not the normal ones."
"Feral giving you issues?" Dolph asked, slowing to a stop. Dean found himself nodding. "Well, look at it this way. Feral has never even remotely been interested in anyone else on this roster, right?" Dean nodded again. "You were the only person she's ever been interested in, right off the bat. Even when she's sober. You think we haven't seen the way she looks at you? It's almost blatantly obvious."
"Please don't remind me," Dean put his hand to his forehead, dragging down his fingers and pulling them together so that the index finger and thumb swept across his eyes and stopped at the bridge of his nose.
"Ok, I won't. But, for whatever reason, you managed to have your way with her, for one night. And judging by the way she looks at you, she's damn hurt, because she wanted more. She was looking at you for the long haul, Ambrose. And you're holding out and hurting her by not going for something you obviously want."
"Since when did you become an expert on relationships, Ziggler?" asked Dean with an irritated scowl. Dolph gave Dean a little laugh in return.
"Relationships? Hell naw, Dean. Not me. Girls on the other hand? Let's say stealing the show gives me the added advantage of stealing some hearts too." He clapped Dean on the shoulder and walked off, Dean left watching his retreating back as he did so. Dolph was right, as much as he hated to admit it. And he had to hold it together long enough to get past the Royal Rumble. Because if Ceridwen's game plan failed, someone would have to bail her out. And if Seth or Roman weren't there, it would have to be him.
He kept his feelings in check as the weeks passed. He sparred with Ceridwen frequently, as did Roman, under Seth's direction. The three men were aiming to give her the best advantage they could. And as the Rumble drew closer, Ceridwen pushed harder. In the ring, she was on fire. Dean couldn't help but find himself impressed as the fire within her began to really show what she could do. They slipped back in to their old camaraderie, insults hurled with abandon as they fought. But outside the ring, she was somewhat distant. Seth recognized it, but wasn't sure if Roman or Dean did. It was like she was focused on something else, something more. He needed to talk to her about it, Seth had wanted to pull her aside, but never got the chance because when she wasn't sparring, sleeping, eating or performing, she was in constant talks with Hunter. He'd intended to wait, to bide his time, and ask her as soon as he got the chance, but the rumble crept up on them before he had a shot, and then it was too late.
Ceridwen awoke early on the morning of the Rumble. Despite weeks of hard training, sparring with the toughest guys in the business…she still felt underprepared. Yes, this was what she wanted. And yes, it would open the gateway to WWE gold. But it was all on her now. All in her hands to see if she could do it. The thought plagued her as she washed and dressed, it ran around her mind as she waited for Seth, Dean and Roman. A little voice was trying to make itself heard, asking what would happen if she screwed up? What if she got thrown out? Shaking her head as if to clear it, she willed the voice to go away. There was no room for error here. Hunter had invested a lot in her. She had invested a lot of time and energy, it had almost cost friendships. It had to be worth it. Ceridwen glanced at the clock as the door knocked, and realized she had been staring at the floor while sat on her bed for an hour at least.
"Yo, FERAL!" came a voice that she instantly recognized as Dean. "You coming out of there or do I have to break the door down?"
"I'm coming, Pony!" she yelled back, and there were snorts of laughter outside the door.
"Fuck you, Feral!" he growled as she opened the door.
"Before breakfast? I can't do that on an empty stomach." She smiled sweetly, as Roman and Seth held their sides from laughing. The group walked off to the lift, Dean muttering curses and that Ceridwen probably couldn't handle him again anyway. The insult stung a little, although she wasn't about to let on to the fact.
Getting down to breakfast, the three guys practically inhaled their food. Ceridwen, on the other hand, could barely manage a bowl of porridge. As Roman and Dean went off to get a second round of toast for each of them, Seth looked over at her.
"You ok?" he asked. Ceridwen nodded, playing with her spoon. "You don't look it. You're gonna need to eat that, not play with it."
"Yeah…" she managed, swirling the spoon around in the bowl once more. Seth set his cup down, looking at her with a concerned frown.
"You sure you're ok?" he asked, glancing over to where Dean and Roman were chatting to Sheamus and Cody Rhodes. Ceridwen tried to speak, and nothing came out. She took a breath and tried again.
"I can't…I…." she tried, and fell quiet. Seth looked her up and down, and he realized something. This wasn't the overconfident, brash, tough exterior Feral normally wore. Something wasn't right.
"Not here huh?" he asked. Ceridwen nodded. "Ok. Let's ditch Roman and Pony, and we'll go to my room. You can tell me anything you like there." Ceridwen paused and nodded again. "Now eat. We aren't leaving this table till you at least finish that bowl."
Seth closed the door behind him, and watched as Ceridwen walked over to the balcony.
"So, sweetheart, what's bugging you?" he asked. Ceridwen sighed and leant on the balcony rail.
"Seth…you wouldn't understand." She said, looking at the town below.
"Wouldn't I?" he asked, coming over and joining her. "Let me try. You're terrified right now, of what you got yourself mixed up in. You're a stubborn bitch, so you'll go ahead and enter anyway. And if you won, oh god, if you did it…you'd get one step closer to what you always wanted. And if you add the fact it's a first for a Diva…well, I'd say you're feeling a little overwhelmed to say the least right now." He finished, and the pair stood in silence, as Ceridwen processed and tried to figure out just how Seth had nailed exactly how she felt.
"Ok..you're good. You got me. For the most part." She said with a shake of the head as she leant on the rail.
"Ceri. We've been on the road together about three years now. I know you. And you haven't been yourself. Not since the whole blow out with you, Dean and Roman. There's no sparkle in your eyes anymore." Seth said as she laughed to herself. "Where's the real Feral gone?"
"She's still here, Seth. She just doesn't come out much anymore." She laughed. "Can I ask you something?"
"Sure. Anything you like."
"If, by some miracle, I win tonight…do you think The Shield could have my back? Hunter said I'd need to turn face again if I won…with Lesnar having the belt, he's an Authority guy. I kinda always wanted to be a part of The Shield." Ceridwen said.
"Feral, I'd be honored, and I'm sure the guys would too. Feral…Dean and Roman…especially Dean…he'd want you to be careful tonight. There's no such thing as friendships in a Rumble" Seth said. For the first time since he'd known her, a red tinge appeared in her cheeks. It was only slight, but it was there.
"Tell him the same. And tonight, Feral reigns supreme." She smiled, before leaving.
"Ok everyone. Best of luck out there today. You'll all want to win, that is clear. No dropping character, everyone. I want this Rumble to blow the roof off the joint." Hunter said. "Now here's how we're going to go out. You will all pick a number from the barrel. This is the order we'll do the Rumble. No swapsies either." The group of wrestlers stood nervously waiting as Hunter sifted the balls about, the rattle of the balls filling the empty, nervous silence. As it stopped, he looked around and spotted Ceridwen.
"Ladies first," he said, opening the door. Ceridwen stepped forwards, only to find she was joined by her friends AJ, Natalya and Paige, and their nemesis, Summer Rae. Ceridwen had no idea her friends were entering the Rumble, but she realized she should have figured Summer would. It would be a chance for glory after all for the spotlight hog.
"I don't see a lady here, other than me," she said, with a flip of the hair. Ceridwen tried not to punch her.
"Strange, all I see is a dog," Ceridwen replied, glaring at her.
"Ladies, pick your numbers. You can sort out your differences in the ring." Said Steph, a note of warning in her voice. Ceridwen shoved her hand in the barrel all the while keeping her eyes on Summer Rae as she withdrew it. She didn't even look at her ball as Summer Rae did the same. The men in the background watched warily as the two women stared each other down, backing up a bit so the others could pick their numbers, but still not backing down. Once all the numbers were picked, Ceridwen went to the side and awaited Paige, AJ and Natalya. The three girls stood with Ceridwen, and the group held out their number balls in a silent agreement, after a nod from Natalya they turned them so they were number up. AJ at 12, Paige at 20, Natalya at lucky 27.
"Oh shit." Ceridwen said, looking at the large number 1 on her ball. She looked up at her friends, who were looking at her with a mix of concern and pity.
"Alright Ladies. Game plan time." Said Natalya.
"Game plan?" Ceridwen looked puzzled.
"Damn Feral, you're a tough bitch, but you're also a fool. Do you really think we'd let you go out there alone?" asked AJ.
"We know what you want. We can tell what you want, we have done for years. And we all know, you're going to take it. And so. Game plan time." Paige clapped her friend on the shoulder as she spoke, throwing her ball up in the air and catching it.
"It's simple, really. We get down there, we help you out. We try not to get kicked out ourselves. You just have to last till we get there." Natalya said. Ceridwen laughed.
"You guys are crazy. You're actually going in to that match with the aim of helping me out? What about getting the headlineing spot for yourself?" Ceridwen asked, shaking her head.
"Not gonna lie, that would be nice, but we're all agreed…whoever won out the four of us, you're best placed. And well…we'd not stand a chance." AJ Lee laughed, as did the others. Ceridwen clapped a hand on her shoulder and gave it a friendly squeeze.
"Thank you. All of you. I appreciate it. Well…no guts, no glory, right?" she said, as a hand came on her shoulder. It was Triple H.
"How are you feeling, ladies?" he asked. Several variations of scared and nervous were the answers he got, but Ceridwen was silent.
"Any last minute advice, Hunter?" asked Natalya. Her eyes met his and they flickered towards Ceridwen. Not for us so much, for her was the unspoken message. Hunter then proceeded to give the girls as many pointers as possible, and Ceridwen made sure she listened.
Soon it was time. The stage hand called for the first two entrants. Ceridwen drew a deep breath, and walked forwards, past Roman, Dean and Seth who looked at her alarmed. They watched as she handed over her ball, confirmed her number, and got ready, as the second opponent came over. He was none other than Kurtis Axel. The three looked at their numbers. Dean had 8, Seth had 15, and Roman had 21.
"I'm looking forwards to this," Axel purred.
"Don't. You're gonna get real hurt, real bad." She replied, before being given the go ahead to step behind the curtain to go out.
"Hope she survives till we get out there." Dean said, watching her go. He turned to Seth and Roman. "How are we playing this?"
"We go out there, assist her when needed, scrap with her if she tries it. But give her a chance." Seth said. "Remember, for whatever reason, it's important to her to win this match. She wants to prove she can do this, we should give her every opportunity."
Sat in the ring corner, she gasped for her breath. At her best guess, it had been at least fifty minutes that she had been in the Rumble. Summer Rae had come out 4th, Ceridwen was grabbing a quick breather as the woman came out and went straight for her. The two women battled it out like their lives depended on it, when Ceridwen found an unexpected assist from Dean as he came out at 8. Summer had Ceridwen half over the ropes, Dean slid in to the ring, picked Summer up by the waist as Ceridwen deftly slid down to the ring floor, and heaved her up, over the ropes and out on to the arena floor. The pair shared a hi five before going their separate ways, Ryback landing next to Summer Rae as she screamed about it not being fair. He shook his head, getting to his feet as the refferee's told Summer time and time again to leave. Ryback signaled to the reff's he had this, and promptly picked the woman up over his shoulders and carried her off. Ceridwen had narrowly avoided being thrown out by Big Show, after Natalya and Paige grabbed her hands and pulled her free, and then with AJ Lee helping the four had hefted the man over the ropes. They then eliminated The Miz, much to his disgust, before AJ Lee found herself on the arena floor thanks to Bray Wyatt. Somehow, Ceridwen hung on, despite face to face encounters with Kane, Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton and John Cena. Now, she sat there, watching as in a manner similar to Roman's elimination in 2014, Seth Rollins eliminated his old team mates.
Ceridwen pulled herself up from the ring floor, Seth's focus on the two men had allowed Ceridwen a chance to breathe. As he celebrated and crowed that he had eliminated them, Roman and Dean headed up the ramp, before pausing to watch the remainder of the show. In the ring, Ceridwen slid under the rope and stood on the apron. She made it look like she was about to climb on the ropes to jump off them, and Seth saw this as his chance and went running over, intending to knock her out. At the last second, she slid between the middle and top ropes, catching Seth in his forward momentum and using it to throw him over the ropes. Halting his fall by catching the top rope, he landed on the apron. Ceridwen gave him no time to breathe however, and ran at the ropes on the other side. She was quick to notice Roman bring his fist up with a familiar gesture, nod and a smile. Ceridwen saw, and understood the unwritten permission as she rebounded, and loaded her fist, leaping high and delivering a Roman worthy superman punch to Seth, making him fall off the apron, and rendering Ceridwen the winner. I've done it, she told herself. I've won. I get what I want, I get the shot!
At ringside, Triple H stood a moment and looked at Ceridwen as she sunk to her knees, dead centre of the ring. Then he glanced over to where Seth was now on the floor, coming round from the superman punch Ceridwen had delivered with force that knocked him off the apron. The crowds were going insane. Ceridwen glanced up, looking at Triple H as he stood there, glancing between the two. There was movement behind her, but Ceridwen no longer cared. Strong arms helped her to her feet, she looked to her left and saw Roman, she looked to her right and saw Dean. Both men smiled at her, both men well aware of how much she had put towards this moment. Seth was slowly climbing on the apron, and watched as Roman and Dean steadied her on her feet. The three men knew that there was only one thing Ceridwen wanted at that moment in time, and as Dean and Roman held out their hands in the iconic gesture of The Shield, she joined them, half being held up by the two men. Seth inched closer, before he too joined in the gesture as Triple H stood there, gobsmacked that Ceridwen, and indeed Seth too, would turn their backs on him after everything he did, before the four men watched Ceridwen as she celebrated.
When she got back stage, Ceridwen was met by a round of applause, cheers and yells. She smiled, before she was ambushed by Paige, Natalya and AJ Lee.
"You DID IT!" AJ exclaimed, hugging Ceridwen as she tried to dodge the hug.
"I knew you could do it." Natalya said, as Ceridwen shared a hi-five with Paige. "So proud of you right now,"
"Thanks guys," she said, as other wrestlers came over to say well done and congratulate her on her historic win. John gave her a hug, as did Daniel, who then suggested when she was recovered they go a few rounds. Ceridwen laughed as she watched his wife clip him upside the head, while he protested it was just to see if she fought as nastily as it looked out there. It was another half an hour before all the congratulations were said, and Hunter himself came over to congratulate her.
"Right now, I could not be prouder. You committed yourself, even when it looked suicidal. You held on, you outsmarted everyone. Even me!" he added with a laugh. "You proved that women in this sport can do just as well as the guys…."
"And I could not be more pleased or proud of you," came a voice, and everyone turned to see Vince McMahon. It was like a cloud of silence descended as the Chairman walked over to where Ceridwen stood, and she swallowed hard. He held out a hand and when Ceridwen took it, shook it warmly. "And not just her, you as well, Hunter. You thought of something big, you committed and went for it, regardless of the reaction. I am so proud to call you my son in law right now. So, what's the plan? Where does this go?" he asked.
"Well, Feral made that declaration three weeks ago that she was, and I quote, "a legitimate threat" and that she would abdicate her belt for something with a bit more gold in it. So that's next." Hunter said. Vince arched his eyebrow.
"So she's pitting herself against who? Lesnar?"
"If he still has the belt by Wrestlemania, yes." Ceridwen replied. "If not, then whoever holds it. Girls deserve a chance at that belt, and I will be the first to take it." Vince looked from Triple H to Ceridwen, then back again.
"Alright Hunter. Let's do it. Let's see where this leads." He said, before leaning in closer so that just Ceridwen and Hunter could hear. "I just hope you aren't putting this girls career on the line in a stupid move, just so you can get some recognition from me," He said, pausing to look at Ceridwen, "Or that you can get some recognition from some guy." he said.
"I assure you, Sir, that is most definitely not the case." Ceridwen replied evenly.
"Great. Then I look forward to seeing Feral Versus…whoever…at Wrestlemania." He smiled, before walking away. Ceridwen and Hunter exchanged glances, the unwritten words of He knows rippled between them.
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