Chapter Twenty-Five: Struggles, Confusion, and A Ray of Hope

A/N: Chapter title is self explanatory. Not much to say this time, except that if the chapter seems random and jumbled, it is (just like my brain right now). Hello, writer's block. Long time no see. *sigh* References the past 2 RAWs and the Payback PPV. 25 chapters into this story! Wooooo, achievement earned! Ahem… I'm sorry if this is late. I have 2 other stories I'm working on that go on and off hiatus that I seriously need to update. Thank you to my loyal readers for being patient and sticking with this story! Read, review, and believe in the SHIELD. Disclaimer: I own nothing but my story and ideas. I'm just a WWEFanGirl! ;)

This was not looking good for the Shield. Roman had suffered a major beatdown from AJ Styles and his buddies, Gallows and Anderson. Dean was holding his lower back and slowly making his way backstage, still recovering from the Walls of Jericho on the announce table. Seth's master plan of overthrowing the Authority was in jeopardy after Vince McMahon's announcement. He was picking which of his children would run the company? He would without a doubt pick Stephanie, so their alliance with Shane would probably be short lived. Just when things were starting to look up for them, someone throws another obstacle in their path. Just great.

"I can't believe this! No, I refuse to believe this. I swear, if I could, I would fuckng murder someone if it wouldn't result in me getting fired!" Seth snarled, trying very hard not to drive his fist onto a very inviting looking wall, which was exactly what Dean was doing. Not only were their plans being ruined, but people had harmed his brothers. There was no way he would let them get away with that. Roman too looked like he was restraining himself: fists clenched, teeth gritted, eyes shut. Dean was roaring insults and profanities at the now blood smeared wall in front of him. The whole arena could probably feel the anger and tension radiating from the Hounds of Justice and, for their safety and to keep their lives, avoided them. Everything they'd worked for the last few months was about to shatter before their eyes.

"If I don't murder somebody first," Dean told him, launching his fists at the wall yet again, "Namely Jericho." Seth decided to throw a punch at the solid surface (because why the heck not?) and found that that did help a little with his anger. It still hurt like a bitch though. He grabbed the brunette's hands before he could do any more damage to himself. Roman glanced over and saw Seth examining the condition of Dean's hands. How could Dean do his to himself every other night?

"Why do you always do this to yourself?" Seth asked, cradling his boyfriends battered hands. He dragged Dean back towards the locker room, Roman following closely behind. Any superstar they met on the way cleared a path for them. When they finally got there, Dean did the usual: slowly wash the blood off his hands, dab it with rubbing alcohol, rewrap them with tape. While he did that, Seth plopped down on a bench with his head in his hands. "What are we gonna do? How are we gonna fix this?"

"Hope for the best. Hope the titles stay on our side and bide our time. It's all we really can do. Unless you've got a plan?" Roman said. Seth shook his head.

" *throws his hands up* Nothin'. Can't think of a thing. We'll have to wait until after Payback before we do anything drastic."

"If something drastic doesn't happen at Payback," Dean muttered angrily, grabbing his bag and riffling through it to find his keys. He tossed the keys to Seth, motioning for him to lead the way out.

XxX

"You had to say something last week, didn't you?" the two toned wrestler asked exasperated, "Something drastic might happen at Payback. Of course you would jinx it." Dean smirked at him from the backseat of the Camaro. It was Roman's turn to drive, which left Seth and Dean freedom to argue and fight. The Samoan could do nothing but drive and pray they didn't do something stupid.

"What're you complainin' 'bout? I kicked Jericho's ass, Ro's still champ, like Kalisto and New Day, and Shane still helps run RAW. What is so bad about that? Not to mention that seeing Shane and Steph argue on a weekly basis is gonna be hilarious. Don't worry about it." Seth frowned and turned around in his seat.

"How is anything gonna get done if they're arguing every night? How is our plan gonna move forward if they're too busy fighting with each other? I know they call me the Architect, but I know you're capable of thinking. You don't know what's gonna happen. If this'll all implode or if everything'll work itself out. Don't tell me not to worry. Anything could happen!"

"Guys, can we not? There's still another hour until we get to our hotel and I don't want to spend the rest of the drive with a pounding headache listenin' to you two bicker back and forth. Eyes on the prize guys," Roman stated from the driver's seat. Seth and Dean sighed. Dean leaned forward and pressed a tender kiss to Seth's lips, who eagerly reciprocated. "If you guys are gonna have sex, do it in the backseat. Actually, you haven't done that yet, have you?"

"What? No complaining or yelling at us for doin' this around you?" Dean questioned. Roman shook his head.

"At this point, I'm over it. Besides, I call dibs on Seth next drive."

"Wait a minute-"

"You don't call dibs on my soulmate. If Seth wants to sleep with you, then be my guest. Until then, he's mine."

"It is your turn to drive to the next show…" Seth piped up.

"Traitor," the brunette whispered.

"You can share me, Dean."

"But you're mine."

"But Roman loves me too."

Dean did nothing but sigh and try to pull Seth into the backseat. He easily did so. Instead of going along with Roman's idea, they opted to cuddle as best they could. Seth snuggled into a smiling Dean's chest, trying to get comfortable. Dean hummed happily as he wrapped his arms around the smaller man and held him close. Roman was thankful, a soft smile gracing his lips at the two slumbering lovers.

XxX

Later after RAW…

Roman marched triumphantly to the locker room, title in hand and a tired smile on his face. Power bombing AJ Styles through that table felt so good. Being out there with Jimmy and Jey was amazing. It kind of reminded him of being in the Shield. If only. Dean would be more than happy to team with him again. However, he had a script and storyline to follow and a job he could lose. And Seth? Creative had no ideas for him at the moment (or so they said), medically cleared or not, so he couldn't really come out of nowhere and help his brother. No matter how close he was to doing so every night. It killed the three that they couldn't actually team together as the Shield at the moment. Dean had an angle going with Chris Jericho. Roman had his with Styles, Gallows, and Anderson. Seth didn't have one yet. Throwing the script out the window and saying, "Fuck it." wasn't an option, though it was tempting.

"Hey," Roman said when he heard his locker room door open, "What's going-?" He paused at the sight of a dirt covered Dean Ambrose. "On."

"He smashed Mitch," he replied sadly. Seth emerged from the shower dressed but shirtless, hair tied back.

"The potted plant thing you were talkin' to yesterday? He had it comin'." The Ohioan turned to him and narrowed his eyes.

"Just because he's a plant doesn't mean he has no feelings." Dean shrugged off his jacket and headed towards the shower. "It's a shame you didn't wait up for me. I could use a little cheering up right now." Seth's face fell a bit, but Roman interjected before he could reply.

"I could help with that," he said innocently. Seth snorted at them.

"I thought you called dibs on me, Rome? You tryin' to make a move on Dean?" Seth asked playfully. The champion shrugged.

"He said he needed cheering up. You just finished your shower and I haven't taken mine yet. Besides, you can share him," Roman said, referring to Seth's statement during the drive there. Dean took Roman's hand and led him away from Seth, who muttered something that sounded like, "Ambreigns." When he heard the water start running, he sat down on a bench and pulled out his phone. He examined the text Sasha had sent him weeks ago. i'm in. The more he tried to think about the reason why she said yes, the more his head hurt. The former champ was about to get up and go ask where she was when he heard gentle rapping on the door.

"You guys are dressed and no one's making out, right?" came a female voice from outside. He chuckled and opened the door. Sasha Banks stood there, head down, nervous smile on her face. She peeked over his shoulder to find an empty room. "I thought this was Roman's locker room? Where is he? Wait! Don't answer that question. I don't even wanna know. *closes the door*"

"I was about to start looking for you. We need to talk."

"About?"

"Your decision." She made an "Oh." face and looked away. She didn't really know what to say. There wasn't much to say. She didn't care about a title at the moment, the Authority is running everyone into the ground, and she wouldn't be one of those people. What else was there? "Dean and Rome want answers too."

"Where are they? If they want answers, shouldn't they be here to get 'em?" She gagged when she heard his answer.

"In the shower." He made a face at her reaction. "What?"

"I thought it was just you and Dean, but Roman?! He's married for-"

"They're not having shower-!"

"How would you know that?" came Dean's voice as he emerged from the shower fully dressed. Roman followed behind him, dripping wet hair tied back in a ponytail. "And before you ask, no, we weren't. Tempting idea though…" The three rolled their eyes.

"Can you not go a day without making some dirty comment? *turns to Sasha* So, why did you pick us over them?" Seth needed to know if their double agent was loyal to their cause. If she didn't give them a good enough answer, if she was lying…

"Honestly? I'm tired. I have been chasing that Women's title for ages. At this point, I don't care anymore. Sure, I still want the title, will still go after it eventually, but it's not my top priority. The Authority has done nothing but treat me like a little kid ever since I got here. Even now, they trust me less and less everyday, even though I proved my loyalty forever ago. I'm tired of fighting a losing battle on a side led by two whiny, pathetic, idiotic morons trying to run this company into the ground! There needs to be a change. I think it's the Shield. Always have." Seth narrowed his eyes at her, looking for signs of nervousness or a bluff. Nothing. Dean watched his boyfriend, putting a hand on his shoulder to keep him grounded. Seth sighed.

"What do you want then?"

"Isn't it obvious? I want the Authority outta here. And another title shot. But that can wait for whenever."

"And how are you gonna help us?" Roman asked.

"Simple. Keep playing double agent, bringin' you guys back some intel. Spread the word around the locker room whenever you need me to."

"So you're gonna be our own personal Hermes? Where's the flying shoes?" he joked. He actually kind of liked the idea. His brothers looked at him in wonder. "What? Just because I'm a dropout doesn't mean I'm not smart. I paid attention sometimes. I'd've have pretty good grades if I wasn't so lazy. Anyway, I like the idea. What 'bout you guys?" Seth nodded and Roman voiced his approval. "Great! You can start next week. Until then, leave us in peace." Seth slapped his arm.

"Dean!" he complained, "Do you mind? What he means, Sasha, is that we'll start organizing everything next week. Until then, take it easy and head home." She smirked at him.

"Oh I know what he meant. I'll see you boys on the next RAW. Try not to screw each other's brains out. You'll need them soon," she said coyly, exiting their locker room with a smile on her face. Dean growled at her, knowing just who she was talking to.

Closing A/N: I'm pretty sure this is the crappiest, most jumbled up chapter I've written for this fic. If I don't update next week, it's because I'm studying for my finals and getting ready for my high school's graduation. (And reading the fics I follow from various authors. Authors are readers too, so that might be what I've been doing at 4 every morning instead of writing… heheh…) Band and choir are performing and, seeing as how I'm in both, I have twice as much work to do. That and cross country training, preparing for state and regionals in track, other sports stuff. Life is about to attack me with everything it's got soon, so I'll be updating slower, just a heads up. Thanks again to all of my readers and recent reviewers. I'd have given up hope for this fic without you. I'll see you next update! :)