Evie watched as Hunter left his dressing room to go speak with Stephanie. She knew he had been looking forward to this ever since he had come back from the mediation a couple of weeks ago. He had told her that finally he would get the whole divorce off his mind and be able to concentrate more on other things.
When she had asked him if he had made up his mind as to what brand he was going with, he simply smiled and said he would let her know along with Stephanie and Bischoff. Evie was a bit surprised at his answer, but shrugged it off. It wasn't as if he hadn't told her things before. She left it alone.
Hunter arrived at Stephanie's door, only to be stopped by Eric Bischoff.
"Hey Triple H, can I just get a moment of your time?"
Hunter eyed him. "You can have a moment after I speak with Stephanie."
Bischoff attempted to change his mind. "It'll just take a minute."
Hunter pushed past him. "I said after I talk to Steph." He knocked on the door and went in, leaving a very disappointed Bischoff in the hallway.
Stephanie looked up as Hunter closed the door behind him. One of her lawyers was hovering behind her. "Hello Hunter."
"Steph," he nodded. "Where are the papers?"
"My other lawyer will be here with them shortly." She placed her hands on the desk, leaning forward slightly. "Are you sure this is what you want? Once it's done, there's no changing it."
Hunter smiled. "Yeah I'm sure. Question is, are you?"
Stephanie smiled sadly. "You remember what I asked you in Stamford?" When Hunter nodded, she continued. "Are you sure that you don't want to give it one more chance?"
"My answer is still the same Steph." He watched her closely. "No."
She nodded slowly. The door opened and her other lawyer came in, brandishing the papers. He placed them on the desk and both lawyers watched as Stephanie and Hunter signed. He then collected them and let them know they would both receive copies within the week.
"Well Hunter, you got what you wanted," Stephanie said as she opened the door. He smiled as he followed her out into the hall, but had to stop abruptly to avoid running into Stephanie. She was confronting Bischoff about what had taken place in her office.
"He signed the papers Eric," she said with a dejected look on her face. She stepped away from him and continued down the hall.
"How could you?" Bischoff bellowed as Hunter came out of the room. "After all we talked about you go and sign with Stephanie!"
Hunter held up a hand to shut Bischoff up. "The only thing I signed Bischoff, was our divorce papers. You know, I don't appreciate you butting into my personal life. But I will let you know one thing; I haven't made my decision yet." He walked away before Bischoff could say anything else.
**************
As Evie waited for Hunter to come back, she stretched out on the sofa for a few minutes in an attempt to catch a cat nap. As she closed her eyes, there was a knock at the door. Before she could sit up, the door opened and in came Shawn Michaels.
His face lit up as he spied her on the sofa. "Well, well. What have we here? Hunter working you too hard?"
"Hello Shawn." She smiled. "No he's not. I just thought I could catch a quick nap." She quickly adjusted herself into a sitting position. "What can I do for you?"
"Well I was looking for Hunter, but I think I found someone better to talk to." He sat down on the sofa at the opposite end.
Evie rolled her eyes. "Can it Shawn. What do you want?"
He slowly looked her up and down. "Well I'd tell you but I think you'd clobber me," he replied and then winked at her.
"Shawn..."
A smile appeared. "Okay. I wanted to talk to Hunter about coming to RAW..." he started, but was cut off by Evie.
"Oh no. No, no, no," she said as she stood up. "I am not doing this. Not for Stephanie, not for Bischoff and not for you." She folded her arms across her chest. "I've had it with people trying to get me to persuade Hunter to do something."
"Now hold on a minute doll, you asked me what I wanted and I'm telling you. Did I say anything about you talking to him?" Shawn answered before Evie could. "No I didn't. All I said was that I wanted to talk to him about coming over to RAW."
Evie looked at him suspiciously. "How do I know you're not going to ask me to try and influence him? It's not like you haven't before."
"True, but somehow I think I'd have more pull in this than you would. Hunter and I go a long way back."
"Well then you talk to him yourself. I'm not doing anyone anymore favors."
"I'd talk to him doll, but you haven't told me where he is."
Evie hooked a thumb towards the door. "He went to see Stephanie. I'm sure he'll be back shortly."
"Now what on earth would he go see his ex-wife for...?" Shawn trailed off as he realized exactly what Hunter might go see Stephanie for. "Don't tell me he's already signing with her?"
A smile appeared on Evie's face. "Oh he's signing all right." She paused to watch the expression on Shawn's face. "But it's not a SmackDown contract."
Relieved, Shawn grinned. "You almost gave me a heart attack Evie. Well if it isn't a SmackDown contract, what is it?"
"Divorce papers," Evie replied shortly.
"Ah. I see." He looked at Evie closely. "And you're happy about this?"
"Not as happy as Hunter," she joked.
Shawn nodded. "That I can understand. From what I've heard, you and Stephanie didn't get along too well."
Evie snorted in derision. "That about sums it up. Even though she apologized for her behavior, I still don't trust her."
Now it was Shawn's turn to laugh. "You know what they say; never trust a McMahon." He stood up and stretched. "I believe I'll go have a look for Hunter and talk to him myself." He headed towards the door. "I'll see you later doll. And remember what I said about the McMahons." He opened the door, but glanced at Evie over his shoulder before he walked out. "And while you're at it, keep an eye on Bischoff too."
*******************
Hunter's music hit and he walked out from behind the curtain to the ring. Before he could say anything, Eric Bischoff came out and apologized to Hunter for what he said earlier. He told Hunter that from that point on, their relationship would be strictly business. Bischoff went on to tell Hunter that it wood be the best decision he ever made if he came to RAW.
Stephanie came out from backstage at that point. She stated that their past relationship could be a plus because she knows what he is capable of. And that how Bischoff didn't think Hunter was worth much when Hunter had been in WCW.
Hunter held up his hands to stall any other comments or arguments. "On one hand Steph, there's you. And yes, our personal history would be an advantage because we both know what I can accomplish. We used to be a good team and I think we could work around any differences we may have."
However, before Hunter could finish what he was saying, Shawn made his way out to the ring.
"You know Hunter, you and I have a lot of history together. We've known each other for a long time. Much longer than you've known Stephanie. And I think that could work to our advantage." Shawn took a breath, and then continued. "I think we could make an unstoppable combination on RAW. What do you say buddy?"
Hunter looked form Shawn to Stephanie to Bischoff. He smiled at Stephanie. "You know Steph, I've already been with you and I already know what you're capable of. Sorry, but I'd rather go with the lesser of two evils." He dropped his mic, took the papers from Bischoff and signed them. He left the ring with Shawn.
Bischoff stood there and taunted Stephanie for a few minutes before she hauled off and slapped him. She exited the ring and went backstage.
Evie had been watching on the monitor in the common area. She smiled as she watched Hunter sign the contract and leave the ring. She laughed when she saw Stephanie slap Bischoff. As she took a step back, she ran into someone. Turning around, she came face to face with the person she least wanted to see.
"Well sweetheart, looks like you're leaving." Jericho wore a smug grin. "But like I told you before, I'll always be around, so don't think you can avoid me." He left the area with out another word.
Evie heaved a sigh of relief and headed back to the dressing room. Thank goodness he'll be on SmackDown. I don't know how much more of his crap I can take.
*******************
"Did you get what I asked for?" Hunter was seated on the sofa, watching as Evie came in with a paper bag in her hand.
She tossed it to him. "There you go. But I still don't understand what you're doing with that."
Hunter smirked. "You'll see." He stood up. "I'll be back shortly. I don't suppose I need to tell you to stick around here do I?"
Evie shook her head and watched him leave. This was his first night on RAW and already he was having to smooth things over between Bischoff and Shawn. Earlier Bischoff had named Shawn Hunter's manager and that everywhere Hunter goes, Shawn Michaels wouldn't be far behind.
Shawn got on the mic and stated that he didn't have a problem with being named Hunter's manager, but he did have a problem with Bischoff telling him what to do. After the two exchanged words, Shawn apologized to Hunter and told him he's rather take the highway than take orders from Bischoff. Shawn left the ring. Bischoff got upset and told Hunter to go talk some sense into Shawn.
Hunter caught up with Shawn as he was leaving the arena. He told Shawn that he had a plan and if it came together, it would be huge. Shawn agreed not to leave and told Hunter his plan better be good. That's when Hunter had sent Evie to pick up the paper bag and bring it back to him.
Shawn looked up as Hunter came into this locker room. He caught the bag Hunter tossed to him. "What the hell is this?"
"Just put it on," Hunter replied.
Shawn opened the bag and looked in. "Are you serious?"
Hunter grinned. "Oh I'm serious all right."
Shortly after that, the old DX music came up and Shawn and Hunter headed out to the ring wearing DX shirts. They posed and then Shawn grabbed a mic.
"Oh yeah! Just when you thought it was safe to turn on wrestling, look who's back in town! D-Generation-X!"
Hunter took the mic from Shawn. "Are you ready?" Hunter paused while the crowd roared. He smirked and shook his head. "I said, are you ready?" The audience howled again. "Then for all you in attendance and the millions watching at home, let's get ready to suck it!"
Hunter dropped the mic, kicked Shawn in the stomach and delivered a Pedigree to him. Hunter stood over him while he tore off his DX shirt, threw it at Shawn and then left the ring.
Evie had been watching on the monitor in Hunter's locker room. She stood there in disbelief. After he had talked about being with Shawn again, Hunter pulled a complete about face and dismantled his supposed best friend. She couldn't understand it.
The door banged opened and Hunter came in. He quickly pulled a shirt out of his bag and put it on. Evie just watched him, still not believing what he had done in the ring.
He glanced at her. "C'mon, we're getting out of here." He grabbed his bag and slung it over his shoulder.
Without a word, Evie gathered up her things and followed him out the room, down the hall and out to the parking lot. They both got into a limo and the driver headed to their hotel. Once they made it up to their room, Hunter dropped his gear, stripped off his clothes and went into the bathroom to take a shower. Evie dropped her things on the floor and sat down on the bed. She couldn't believe Hunter was acting like nothing had happened. She knew he was fully capable of taking out his aggression on others. She'd seen him do it to Undertaker and Jericho, but to plan something so coldly and carry it through without a second thought? Evie was seeing a side of Hunter she hadn't seen before. And she wasn't sure she liked it.
Slowly she removed her clothes and pulled on a nightshirt. Thankfully they had a room with two beds in it. The way she was feeling, she didn't relish the thought of Hunter touching her tonight. She climbed under the sheets as Hunter came out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his waist and rubbing his hair with another.
"Why are you in that bed?"
She looked at him. "I'm really tired Hunter. I just want to go to sleep."
He dropped the towel he was using for his hair on a chair. He walked over to where she was laying. "You're tired? That's a first," he said in amusement.
She rolled so that her back was to him. "Goodnight Hunter."
He stared at her, wondering what was wrong with her. "S'matter Evie?" he asked as he sat on the edge of her bed.
"Nothing," she responded. "I just wanna sleep," she mumbled.
"Something's wrong. What is it?" he prodded gently.
She was quiet for a minute or two. Hunter thought she had dozed off, but she turned her head to look at him. "I don't understand you," she said.
"What do you mean you don't understand me?"
Evie turned over on her back. "I don't understand why you did that to Shawn. You couldn't shut up about how it would be to work with him again, how he's your best friend and then you go and pull something like that."
He sighed and picked at the towel he was wearing. "Evie, I don't expect you to understand why I did it, but I have my reasons." He held up a hand as she started to speak again. "I will explain it to you. Just not tonight. Okay?"
She nodded and as he leaned over to kiss her goodnight, she rolled onto her side, her back to him again.
Hunter shook his head. She'd know what was going on soon enough. He knew she wouldn't approve of it, but that was too damn bad. She'd get over it.
He stood up and removed the towel, tossing it onto the chair. He shut the light off and climbed into the other bed. He mulled over what he had done to Shawn. Even though he still considered the other man his friend, it had to be done. Friendship was one thing, but business was something completely different. He'd be damned if he was going to let Shawn Michaels overshadow him again.
A/N: Thanks for the reviews. I know things are a little "quiet" between Hunter and Evie, "but I have my reasons" for it. Things will start picking up shortly.