Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Anything that is recognizable, does not belong to me.
Summary: When one of the RAW Diva's is attacked, it brings the unlikeliest group of people together.
Pairings: All worked out for plot purposes.
Thanks to everyone who reviewed, review responses follow the chapter content.
Chapter 13
April 12, 2004
The next morning, after what was possibly the first night in the past week that the redhead didn't wake up in a cold sweat; she noticed something. She couldn't quite recall when she had fallen asleep last night, just that they had been watching some cheesy made for television movie. And that they had been on the couch. For whatever reasons they had ordered room service, and while Lita had been hesitant at first..she changed her mind after Batista and Orton informed her that the suite was on Hunter's credit card. That had been all fine and dandy and the redhead decided that the two Evolution members away from the iron fist that was Hunter, weren't that bad. Would she outright admit to it? No..simply for the fact that they were a part of Evolution. But, all of that aside, Lita had to wonder..how did she end up in one of the bedrooms? She did know that it was a two bedroom suite and that Nidia had taken the room that Batista was supposed to be using. All the same, she warily climbed out of the bed, noting then that she was sporting the same clothes she had worn to the club. And when she opened the door of the bedroom, she could hear voices nearby.
"Don't do anything that stupid again please."
"It was just that once, alright? Sorry if I scared you but..we needed some fresh air."
"And if we hadn't been at the same club? What then Dia, huh?"
"Fine, D..if it'll make you feel better.."
"Look, I'm not trying to be all overprotective here, but Dia.."
"You are being overprotective..but I can undertsand, okay? Next time we'll make sure someone is with us."
Batista nodded, seemingly satisfied with that response. "Morning Lita."
Nidia sent a look over her shoulder, a warm smile on her face. "Good morning Lita."
The redheaded Diva tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "Morning.."
Nidia's forehead etched in confusion, "We didn't wake you..did we?"
Lita quickly shook her head, "Nah..don't worry about it. Um, what time is it?"
"Bus leaves for Chicago at 11:00." Batista mentioned then, leaning back in the chair he was currently occupying. "It's going on 8:00 now."
"Gotcha," The redheads arms swung by her sides, "I guess we should get going soon then?"
A brow raised imperceptiably. "Why?"
"Well, it's just.." Lita half shrugged, "What if Trips or-"
"H and Ric are at another hotel," Batista informed the redhead then. "Unless you're worried about your friends seeing the two of you leaving here."
Lita nodded slowly, "I kinda doubt they'd embrace the idea whole heartedly..that and I'd like to shower, all of my stuff is-"
"Understood." The Big Man interrupted coolly.
Lita frowned, "Look, I'm sorry to seem so ungrateful here, but-"
Batista held up a hand, "I understand.."
Nidia pushed back from the table then, "Thanks again D."
Batista nodded shortly, "No biggie..now go on, get out of here."
Nidia and Lita nodded in turn, the two Diva's exiting the suite at that moment. And not but five minutes after they left, did the fourth occupant of the hotel suite start to stir on the couch.
"Morning sunshine."
Orton snorted, sitting up then. "Yeah yeah..whatever."
Batista shook his head, "Dia and Lita just left."
"Oh?"
The Big Man nodded slowly, "Something about not wanting their friends to catch them."
Randy nodded abruptly, taking a moment to swing his legs down from the couch. "I think I slept on a plate or something."
A bemused smirk crossed Dave's face. "Well..I could've let Lita sleep there but..I figured since she was the guest."
Randy waved it off nonchalantly, "No big deal man, you know that."
"Yeah." Dave nodded, a mischeivious glint in his eyes. "She snores."
Randy blinked, "Huh?"
"I said, she snores."
The Intercontinental Champion raised a brow, "How do you.."
Dave rolled his eyes, "From the night that me and H got kicked out of the suite? We ended up sleeping on the floor in Lita's hotel room."
Randy nodded slowly, "Yeah..I remember you saying something about that."
"Uh huh," Batista pushed back from the table, stretching his arms overhead. "Hey look, I'm gonna hit the shower, then how about we grab something to eat?"
Randy just nodded, "Sure..whatever."
"You okay?"
"Yeah," Randy waved it off, "Just tired, you know?"
"Right." Batista nodded slowly, clapping a hand over Randy's shoulder before he disappeared into the bathroom.
For his part, Randy kicked his feet up on the coffee table. Yes, he was tired..but that wasn't all that was bothering him. It hadn't exactly been by chance that he, Dave and H had ended up at the same bar as the rest of their RAW co-workers. But it had been luck when he and Dave walked out to see the little scene in the alley. Dave had said he had a bad feeling about the situation..and at first Randy didn't have a clue as to what he was referring to. But then, Dave had nodded to the two empty spots at the tables. He specifically mentioned that his half sister had gone missing..and further prompting lead them both to realize that Lita was also missing. That had lead to the two slipping out of the bar, and as they had stated when they saw Lita and Nidia; H had left already. Still, Randy couldn't help but wonder..what if he and Dave hadn't gotten out there in time. All the same, by the time Dave had exited the bathroom, Randy pushed the thoughts from his mind. It was Monday after all, and that meant RAW..tonight in particular meant an eight man tag team match for Evolution.
xxx
While Nidia and Lita had managed to get to their hotel room wihout being noticed; ten minutes after the door had been shut..there was a knock. The two Diva's exchanged a wary look, both in the process of changing out of their clothes from last night; but eventually the redhead made her way over..if only to cease the persistent knocking. To her pleasent surprise, there were no men dressed in black, no envelopes; rather it was the prescence of Chris Jericho, Chris Benoit, Lillian, Victoria, Edge and Stacy. Chris Jericho informed the two that, they were on their way down to the hotel resturaunt for breakfast. The redhead smiled kindly, informing the group that she and Nidia had just woken up..and that if they weren't still in their pajamas, they would be more than happy to join them. Somehow, she managed to convince them that they didn't need to wait, and after one last insistent nod; Lita bid the six farewell. And once the redhead saw them entering the elevator, Lita shut the door..turning her attention back to Nidia. The brunette stated then that, after she had showered..maybe they could get breakfast somewhere. The redhead agreed easily, Lita settling on one of the beds to watch television. But, just as the redhead settled on a channel, there was another knock at the door. This time however, instead of six at the door..there were two; Lita blinking in surprise as she peered through the peephole.
"Umm.." Lita began as she swung the door open, "I don't mean to be rude, but what are you two doing here?"
Batista held up a keycard. "You left this.."
The redhead nodded, accepting the keycard as he handed it over. "Thanks."
Batista nodded shortly, exchanging a look with Randy before he turned his attention back to the Diva. "Well..that was why we stopped by, we're actually heading out for breakfast.."
Lita nodded in turn, "Yeah, I just need to shower and what not..then Nidia and I are probably heading out."
"Hey Li..the shower's all yours." Nidia mentioned as she tugged a hooded sweatshirt over her head, peering curiously at the redhead. "Li?"
The redheaded Diva stepped aside, "Apparently one of us left a keycard..they're here to return it."
Nidia nodded, "Thanks.."
Randy shrugged, "It's no biggie..but, uh..I guess we'll be going now."
"Unless you two wanna wait," Nidia suggested then, taking a seat on one of the beds. "But if not, that's cool."
The two at the door exchanged a look, "It's up to you two really, Dia."
"Li?"
"Whatever.." The redheaded Diva shrugged, gathering a change of clothes. "Chris and all them are out and about somewhere."
"Well, if you're worried about being seen, then..just forget it." Batista shrugged casually, "I wouldn't exactly expect for them to invite us to join them."
"Right." Lita just shrugged, "But whatever, you know? All I know is, I really need to take a shower."
Nidia nodded as Lita entered the bathroom, "So?"
Again, the two at the door exchanged a look. "Maybe we should just skip out on it."
Randy nodded in agreement, "Take a rain check or whatever."
"Right." Nidia nodded, "See you two around then."
Batista nodded, "Just stay out of trouble please..that goes for the boths of you."
Nidia rolled her eyes good naturedly, "We'll try our best D. Thanks again for helping us last night."
Batista merely shrugged, shutting the door then. And for her part, Nidia settled in to watch television while Lita was in the shower. In all honesty, the brunette didn't really expect that she would be able to have a more open relationship with her half brother. It was just given their two circles..and the fact that they didn't really mix. If anything, her current group of friends and Batista's only clashed. Still, Nidia found some comfort that her brother would be looking out for her from the shadows. Not that she doubted the others capabality of looking out for them, but knowing that her brother was amongst those looking out for them..just made her feel a little bit safer.
xxx
The bus ride to Chicago had been relatively uneventful. To Lita's utmost surprise, Hunter and Flair opted out of the bus trip. They had shown up to the parking lot, but apparently that was only to give Batista and Orton the choice of go with them or go on the bus. And, not entirely to her surprise, Batista and Orton opted to go with Hunter and Flair. That action, merely proved to the redheaded Diva that, despite Randy's insistence that he and Batista didn't answer to Hunter; ultimately they did. But, whatever the case, that was the last thing on Lita's mind as she settled into a seat on the bus. Dawn had called her that morning while she was eating breakfast, the Smackdown Diva informing the redhead of the time schedule for the dreaded dance lessons. Lita, of course, was still not looking forward to it. Simply because it took away from time that she could be training or just plain relaxing. But, all of that aside, the redhead had re-assured Dawn that she would pass on the details to Randy. When exactly, she wasn't quite sure..but she'd figure it out by the time RAW went off the air. On the bus ride, Chris Jericho consulted the redheaded Diva about that nights scheduled highlight reel. He also requested that the redheaded Diva stay put in the locker room when the eight man tag match went down. Lita agreed to that easily and the remainder of the bus ride was in relative silence.
"Alright." Chris Benoit began as they gathered in the hotel parking lot, "We've got about four hours, give or take an hour until we need to report to the arena."
"I'd like to take a nap." Lita stated first, "Unless there's something that we all want to do."
"Nap sounds good to me," Lillian chimed in. "We got in pretty late last night."
"Oh come on," Ivory spoke up then, looking between Lita, Lillian, Nidia, Stacy and Victoria. "We're in Chicago, we've got four hours to kill..let's go sightseeing!"
Victoria shrugged in turn, "Sure..let's go play stupid tourist..we haven't done that in awhile."
"Stace, Dia?" Lita looked between the two. "What's the call?"
Nidia shrugged, "It doesn't really matter to me."
"Whatever," The long legged blonde shrugged. "I haven't really seen Chicago so.."
"Well..we'll head over to Navy Pier." Ivory looked up from the guidebook. "We'll go for an hour or so, come back to the hotel so we can get all of our junk..and then head over to the arena."
"I've gotta pick up my rental first," Chris Jericho spoke up then, "Who else is renting?"
"I am." Lita frowned in thought, "And I think Shane is too."
Edge draped an arm over Jericho and Lita's shoulders. "So am I..Shane just called a cab."
"Well, how about this." Lillian sent a glance between them all. "We'll take care of check in and all that, while you guys pick up the rentals."
"And, then when we meet back here." Ivory began, a look sent between them all. "We can figure out what we'll do to pass the time."
Lita nodded in agreement, "That works for me."
"Cool." Edge grinned, turning the two around. "We'll be back."
Lillian nodded, waving to the three as they met up with Shane Helms and Shawn Michaels.
"Okay," Victoria looked between the others. "Li wants to nap when she gets back, so this is perfect. We'll pick up the cake, the balloons..was there anything else?"
Ivory shook her head, "Shawn said he'll keep Li occupied at the hotel long enough for us to set up everything."
"I took care of the reservation for a late dinner afterwards." Lillian put in then, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
The raven haired Diva nodded. "Shane said he'd call Rob to see if they had any plans."
"Right." Ivory looked between them all. "I guess that's everything then.."
"Should be." Benoit stated, "Which means we should head inside the hotel now instead of standing in the parking lot."
Victoria rolled her eyes good naturedly, "So..I guess me and Jericho can pick up the balloons."
"I'll pick up the cake," Stacy mentioned with a smile. "I'd feel left out otherwise."
Lillian smiled, "Then..me, Nidia, Shawn and Ivory can keep Lita occupied."
The lot of them nodded, gathering suitcases and gym bags on their way to the hotel. The mini birthday party, called for Lita's locker room to be decorated beforehand. And, preferbly the party would take place after the pre-show meeting. They all knew that Lita didn't want a big fuss made over it, which was why they were saving the real party for the actual day. Of course, there were still some last minute details to work out there..but that would come when the time drew nearer. All in all, by the time the group got back from getting the rental cars; Stacy, Edge, Victoria and Chris Jericho set off to 'sight see'. The others, dispersed amongst the hotel rooms..making sure that the redhead was occupied. Now they could only hope that the rest of the day would run just as smoothly.
Review Responses
iaera: watcha talking about..lol. My pairings are set in stone, but I'm not telling as to who ends up with who. Stalkers..heh. You'll find out eventually. Thank you for the review!
together: She needs it yes, but will she accept it? Hah. Thank you for the review!
CNIMBWM: lol, just one of a few. Thank you for the review!
Latisha C.: Thanks..I have a few other tricks up my sleeve..hehe. Thank you for the review!
aussiewrestlingfan: Thank you Carolyn..I hope you enjoyed this chapter and thank you for the review!
Terri16: Thank you! This story is just..it's different in a way from the rest of my work, but similar to some extent. It'll be a lot darker, twisted in many parts but with plenty of lighter moments. Thank you for the review!
Myth: Oh yes, things'll get very interesting..bwahahaha. Feel afraid for Lita. Thank you for the review!
Sassy: hmm..Batista, myself and Orton, same hotel room...anyway..lol. You'll find out..in the next two chapters if not three. Thank you for the review!
huntersgirl: ah yes, the knights in shining..ring attire? lol. whatever, yes..thank goodness for them. And thank you for the review!
Losing Grip: I apologize for the delay in getting this chapter up...writers block..nasty thing. But, thank you for the review!