Disclaimer, etc., in part 1. Thanks to those that have reviewed/favorited/followed this one. I really appreciate it.

Part Seven

She wanted to run.

She was standing there, in a room the size of a storage closet - that actually probably *was* a storage closet - with the Shield. Roman Reigns was standing against the wall, Seth Rollins was barely a foot away from her - he'd clearly been the one to reach out and steady her when she'd nearly stumbled - and Dean Ambrose was standing at the door, basically blocking her exit. There was, quite frankly, no way out. Not without a struggle, and Eve was well aware that she wouldn't be able to get past the Shield if they didn't want her to.

Crossing her arms over her chest, the diva fully aware that it was a defensive gesture, Eve forced herself to look Ambrose in the eye, the woman trying not to look as unsettled and nervous and, yes, actually afraid as she was currently feeling.

"I didn't ask for this," she stated, proud of the fact that her voice didn't shake as she spoke. She was certain that the Shield couldn't be happy about this new little arrangement - they certainly didn't need a manager, much less one that was arbitrarily assigned to them - and she could only hope that they wouldn't take their anger and annoyance out on her.

"We didn't think you did," Ambrose replied, the man frowning slightly as he looked at her. Tilting his head to the side a little, he arched a brow at her, though he didn't say anything about her defensive posture or the tension Eve knew he had to be able to see in her stance, instead staying focused on the matter at hand: the fact that, whether any of them liked it or not, Eve was now their manager... And Teddy Long was the one that had orchestrated it. "I think every person in this room knows what Teddy Long expects to happen now. He expects us to make you miserable. Or worse."

"He hates me because I'm younger, smarter, and more talented than him... Of course, what bothers him most of all isn't that all of those things... It's that I'm all of those things, and a woman as well."

"He does seem the type to want to keep the power in the boys' club," Ambrose said, then stepped a little closer to her... Eve only able to stop herself from stepping back because she was all too aware that Seth Rollins was still standing close to her, and stepping back from Ambrose would probably cause her to step into Rollins. "But, you see, when choosing us, Teddy Long made... a big mistake."

"What do you mean?"

Ambrose smirked at her. "He's assuming that we'll do what he wants us to do. What he expects us to do. And maybe if we were a bunch of losers like Zack Ryder or something, we would. But we're not. We don't give a damn what Teddy Long wants or what he expects. He means nothing to us. He's just an obnoxious buzz in our ear. We didn't pay attention to anything he said or did... Until now. Until he put himself in the middle of our business." The wrestler shook his head. "He thinks we'll be mean to you. He thinks we'll treat you like dirt. I don't know... Maybe he hopes we'll powerbomb you through something," he said, and Eve had to fight not to react to that last bit... Because honestly, she couldn't say the thought of the Shield being pissed off enough about things to put her on the injured list hadn't crossed her mind.

"Dean," Rollins muttered from behind her, the man not saying anything besides the other man's name, something slightly warning in his tone, and Ambrose shrugged a little before turning his gaze back to her.

"We're not going to do that. We aren't going to hurt you. We don't hurt women, for one thing," he said, stepping closer to her again, the man now directly in front of her, his eyes on hers. Mirroring her stance, his arms were crossed over his chest... The man actually standing so close to her that she could occasionally feel his arm brushing against hers. And if she hadn't been thinking that being so close to her might be some kind of a test - checking out her reaction - the woman might have stepped back to put some space between them. Instead, however, she stayed right where she was.

"Why should I believe you?" she asked, the words slipping from her lips, and she thought she saw an expression that seemed almost insulted flicker across Ambrose's face before the man was smirking at her again.

"I don't know. I guess you have no reason to. But it's the truth. You see, Eve... We talk a lot about injustice. I'm sure you've heard it, seen it... Maybe we think that what Teddy Long did to you is an injustice," he stated. "He didn't ask any of us what we thought, what we wanted. And he purposely put you with us in an attempt to get you... at best, treated badly, and at worst... injured. I don't know about Seth and Roman, but I'm personally offended that he would believe we'd hurt a woman. I mean... Have we gone after any of the divas?"

"No," Eve said quietly, able to answer quickly because it was something she'd actually already thought about herself... The Shield had attacked plenty of people so far, but they hadn't touched any of the divas. Maybe Teddy had been banking on them being angry enough to make her the first.

Ambrose gave a slight nod. "That's right. We haven't gone after any of the women... And we're not about to start with you. Not when you didn't ask for this any more than we did," the man told her, then stepped to the side, his gaze still on hers as he took a few steps back, reaching behind himself to find the doorknob, his hand resting on it for a moment. "The way I heard it, all of this goes into effect next week."

"That's what he told us."

"When did you find out about the managing thing? Not who you were managing - I'm pretty sure you found that out when we did - but when did you find out what he was up to?"

"Shortly before the show started," she replied, and he nodded slightly.

"Not surprised. Not much time for you ladies to convince Booker T how stupid the idea is if Teddy doesn't tell you it's happening until right before it becomes official." The man shook his head, then opened the door, stepping to the side so that she could pass... Eve trying not to look too relieved as she went to leave the room... The diva freezing when Ambrose reached out and took hold of her arm.

"Yes?" she prompted, turning her head to look at him, and he frowned slightly, his gaze moving over her.

"You don't want Teddy to win, right?"

"Right."

"Then you might want to work on not looking so afraid of us. Now go on. We'll see you next week."