Greetings, dear readers. Happy New Year, and welcome back to Bayley's Universe! So, with last time, we saw Mia get beyond shooketh seeing Sasha and Shayna as they fought what sounds like a wicked Gem spider and when they fought each other, which then led our blue-haired cinnamon roll to want to get answers about what she saw, which she'll be getting...along with a trip to a friend's house! Read on to see how that goes, and I hope you all enjoy, my dolls. =)
(As with previous chapters, the bold text is an indicator of Mia speaking Korean.)
"I-I just want to know. That spider, …the way you and Sasha fought it, the weapons you two had, how you two fought each other, …just what are you both?" the blue-haired teen asked.
Here it was. The question she wasn't planning on answering so soon. And here Mia was asking it. She didn't even know where to begin as it was all just one long story that she wasn't sure she'd be able to tell on her own. So, it felt like a relief when she heard leaves crunching behind her and soon found herself and Mia joined by her recent fighting partner and opponent holding the bubbled Gem.
"Actually, Mia, that's a bit of a long story. One that may need more help with telling it," Sasha said.
"More help? What are you saying, Sasha?" Mia asked, feeling a bit confused.
"I think what Sasha's saying is that …she wants you to come to our house!" Bayley excitedly cut in.
"Wait," Mia blinked around her disbelief at hearing this. "Y-You actually want me to come over to your house?"
"Of course," Sasha said without a moment's hesitation. "Mia. You're our friend, and …well, we feel, since you saw what we did, we should probably better tell you about us and …and what we are."
"O-OK. Well, I should …I should probably call my parents and let them know that I'm gonna be late getting home today," Mia said.
Nodding at the blue-haired teen saying this, Sasha then began to make her way out of the woods, her hold on the bubbled Gem never weakening. 'OK, I hope this goes well. I never thought I'd have to tell a human about me being a Gem. But, it looks like I'll be doing so now. At least I'll be telling all of this to a friend,' the magenta-haired Gem thought with a slight smile.
Walking away to keep up with Sasha, Shayna said "Hey, Sasha. Would it be okay if we go to my house first? I figured maybe I could tell my …my mom about where we're going and see if she'd want to tag along", feeling a bit hesitant about how to talk about Tamina.
'Mom? One's mother. A female parent,' Sasha thought about the meaning of the word mom. 'But, Shayna doesn't have parents. …Maybe she means in the sense of a guardian, an authority figure that helps her out. I wonder why she'd want her to come along.' Hearing this, Sasha said "Sure. Like the old human saying goes, the more the merrier."
Laughing a bit, the brunette Gem said "You know, Sasha? I know it seems like we just buried the hatchet with each other, but you can actually be pretty cool."
'Cool. A fairly low temperature. …Wait, how does that apply to me?' Sasha thought while saying "Um, thanks, Shayna. You seem pretty …cool yourself."
"Thanks, I know," the brunette grinned.
Laughing a bit as she shook her head, Sasha looked behind herself and saw Mia walking behind her, having a fairly animated talk with someone on what looked to be a weird blocklike device. 'How strange. It would appear as though Mia's making contact with someone through that device. …I'll probably ask her about it in the future. As of right now, I've got a story to tell her.'
…
Mia still couldn't believe it. She actually got invited over to a friend's house. Yes, there was a bit of an educational reason behind this visit, but it was actually something she didn't mind. …But, first thing's first, she had to call her parents. Following along with Bayley, Lana, and Nia, the blue-haired teen took out her phone and dialed the number for one of her parents.
"Hello?" asked the voice of the call recipient.
"Hello? Hi, mom. I'm, uhh, I was just calling to let you know that I'm gonna be a bit late getting home today," Mia said.
"Late? Why? Is everything okay, dear?" Mia's mom, Mrs. Yim, asked, starting to feel concerned about her daughter.
"Yeah, mom, everything's okay. I actually got asked by a friend if I wanted to come over to their house today. Would it be okay with you and dad if I go?" Mia asked, bracing herself for whatever her mom's answer would be.
"Going to a friend's house? Mia, that's wonderful news! Do you have any homework to get done?"
"No. I only had a bit of reading to do, but I did that during class."
"Oh, OK. Well, have a great time with your friends. Be on your best behavior, and your father and I will see you when you get home. Don't be out too late since it's a school night."
"OK, I won't. Thanks so much for this, mom!" Mia responded, a smile starting to cross her face.
"You're welcome. And, like I said, be on your best behavior. Have fun with your friends," Mrs. Yim said.
And after a bit more chatting, Mia then ended the call as she walked along to keep up with Bayley, Lana, and Nia. 'OK, Mia, just be cool. You're just going to your friend's house to get info on just how they did what they did. Just be cool, just be cool,' the blue-haired teen reassured herself as she walked with the others to a place she wasn't expecting to go to but was very much looking forward to.
…
"Wow, Shayna. Your home looks quite nice," Sasha said as she took in the building before her. In a way, it reminded her of the dwelling she, Bayley, and the others lived in. It had two levels and was painted what could only be described as a pale jade green.
"Thanks. But, it's not mine. It's my mom's," Shayna began to explain as she and Sasha walked through a gate that served as an opening onto the property. "But, I guess by now, I should probably stop calling Tamina my mom since we both know that's not really the case."
"Oh, that's nice. I'm guessing she's been helping take care of you for some time now?" Sasha asked.
"Me, Lana, and Nia ever since we …since we got here," the brunette said, the last bit coming out a bit hesitantly. Clearing her throat, she then said "But, that's a story for another day. Right now, I should probably get inside and tell Tamina where I'm gonna be going. That, and to tell her to come along, just so that she can meet another human that knows about us Gems" as she pulled a key to the front door out of her pocket that she then used to unlock and open the door. Stepping inside and letting Sasha in after her, Shayna called out "Tamina, I'm home from school!"
"Welcome back, Shayna! I'm in the kitchen finishing dinner. I made sapasui for tonight that's almost ready," a voice, one that sounded feminine, could be heard calling back.
"Oh, sweet! I've been wanting some more of that for a while now," the brunette said with a fist pump.
Sasha wasn't expecting to see this. To see someone like Shayna, one who had such a commanding presence, who was seen as a bully to many …getting excited about what sounded like some type of food seemed pretty funny to her, if she could say anything about it. Doing her best to stifle the sudden snicker that threatened to escape her, Sasha cleared her throat before asking "So, I'm guessing that's some type of dish Tamina likes to prepare?"
"One of many. I mean, yeah I know we're not the type that need food to survive, but trust me when I say that Tamina's is pretty tasty. Maybe we can get her to take some back to your place when we head out," Shayna suggested as they made their way to where the human in question was.
"That sounds nice. I'm sure the others I live with will like trying this dish of Tamina's," Sasha said, her thoughts going to how the others would react to trying this dish.
"Awesome," the brunette said as they reached their destination. "Hey, Tamina. I'm home. And I brought a …a friend with me," Shayna said, feeling surprised that she actually just said that.
"Oh really, you made a friend today, I'm guessing? That's great," a woman who Sasha was guessing was Tamina said as she kept her attention on the metal pot that was on the stove top, stirring the contents it held. Grabbing another spoon-this one a bit bigger and deeper than the first-she scooped up some of the contents before giving everything a taste. Giving a nod at the flavor, the woman then said "Oh yeah. This is ready" as she turned off the heat for the pot. Turning to look at the two that joined her, she grabbed a dish towel to dry her hands with. "So. Who's your new friend, Shayna?"
"Tamina, this is Sasha. She's new to the school. Sasha, this is Tamina Snuka," Shayna said, making the needed introductions.
Looking to the human female, the magenta-haired Gem shook away the slight surprise she still felt over Shayna calling her her friend before saying "Yes. My name is Sasha Ambrose. It's nice to meet you."
"Pleasure's all mine, Sasha. Like Shayna said, my name's Tamina Snuka. But, feel free to just call me Tamina," the older brunette said with a smile. It wasn't until she took a closer look at the two in front of her before her smile dropped and she asked "Oh dear. What happened to you both?! Are you both okay? Was there a fight that happened at school? Am I going to have to take you both to the hospital? Do you two need anyth-"
"Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa now. Easy, Tamina, it's no big deal. We, uhh, well, …OK, promise you won't freak out when I say this, but there was a fight that happened today," Shayna began.
"And I'm guessing it was between you two?" the brunette asked, getting right to the point.
"Well, …yes and no," the brunette Gem said, trying to find a way to explain what happened.
"And just what is that supposed to mean, exactly?"
Looking over to the brunette Gem, Sasha could tell that Shayna didn't quite know what to say. 'After all, I'd imagine it'd probably be pretty hard to explain just what exactly happened to a human even if they're aware of what we are.' So, going with her first instinct, Sasha said "Well, actually, Tamina, there's actually something that we have to tell you and one of our friends. But, it's something that'll require meeting my family."
Sending a look over to the magenta-haired Gem as her thanks, Shayna then said "Yeah. If you'd come along with us to Sasha's place, we can tell you about why we look like we lost a fight" as she gestured to the various slight injuries that could be seen on them both, from the slight scrapes on her elbows to the bruising on Sasha's right hand and the few other scrapes they both had.
"Go over to someone else's house? And just leave the sapasui here I just finished?" Tamina asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, if you'd like, you could bring it along. I'm sure the others that I live with would love to try out this dish you made," Sasha cut in.
Taking a few minutes to think this over, Tamina then said "OK, that sounds fine. Just let me go change my shirt, and then we head out" before heading out of the kitchen and upstairs.
With the sole human in the house now gone for a bit, Sasha decided to take the time to ask the question that was now at the front of her thoughts. "So. I'm your friend now, Shayna? That's mighty quick of you to put me in that category."
"Hey, don't push it, OK? I just didn't want Tamina to freak out or anything like that about you being here. I mean, yeah, she's cool, but even that has its limits. I remember there was one time I had come in late from a Gem beast patrol. …Let's just say nothing can be scarier than a human wielding a metal ladle in quiet anger," Shayna said, shivering a bit at the memory of the night in question.
"And don't you forget it either, little missy," Tamina said as she rejoined the two after having changed her top from a white tank top to a peach-colored blouse. "Now, don't get me wrong. I appreciate the hell out of what all it is that you, Nia, and Lana do to keep us safe. Just don't stay out too late and try to sneak back in after it's gotten dark outside. You had us worried about you here, you know?"
"W-Well, yeah, 'Mina, I know that. After all, don't forget how bad Lana got on me about that. Man, I'm glad she didn't try to use one of your antiques on me," Shayna said, trying to keep the slight blush she could feel building from climbing up her cheeks.
As she stood and listened to the two talk, something that continued even after they had left Tamina's house with the pot filled with sapasui-something that Shayna volunteered to carry-Sasha couldn't believe she was seeing this side of Shayna. And it was actually something she hoped the rest of the school would get a chance to see in time. 'After all, she can only keep up the front she's had for so much longer before people eventually start to see the Shayna inside,' the magenta-haired Gem thought as she laughed at what the others were talking about.
…
At Bayley's House
"Where is she? It can't have taken that long for Sasha and Shayna to go get Tamina," Lana said, nervously pacing in a circle.
"Easy now, Lana, don't worry too much," Bayley said, trying to calm the blonde. "Maybe they got tied up with something."
"Bayley's probably right, Lan. After all, isn't now usually around when 'Mina would be having dinner ready?" Nia said in a bid to calm her friend down.
"Yeah, I guess you're right. Just can't help feeling a bit worried here," the blonde said before deciding to take a seat on one of the couches.
This still seemed so weird. She had always taken notice of the big house on the hill. Mia just never thought she'd be sitting in it. And, honestly, it felt nice and quite cozy. 'I'm guessing this is something that Bayley and her family decided to do in case they ever had guests over. It's pretty nice here,' the blue-haired teen thought as she remembered the greetings she got from the older men that greeted Bayley as soon as she came indoors.
A new friend. …Or maybe new friends? Seth, Dean, and Roman weren't sure what to make of these three new girls that came home with Bayley today. All they could feel in that moment was pride over the fact that Bayley felt more comfortable with inviting more of her friends over to visit.
"I think we should maybe offer them something like a snack. I'd imagine it's probably a bit nerve-racking being in a house like ours for the first time," Seth said as he looked in the cupboards for anything that the younger group could have to eat.
"I dunno. Maybe we oughta just let 'em chill out for a bit, y'know? Just let them get used to being in here first. After all, you wouldn't want them to think we're trying to fatten them up so that we can eat them, would you?" Dean asked before taking a bite of a chocolate chip cookie he had.
All the two-toned Gem could do was look at the sandy blonde before asking "You've been ransacking Bayley's library again, haven't you?"
"Only because I wanted to finish reading my way through the book of fairy tales she has! I mean, damn! I knew some stuff humans wrote could be on the scarier side, but those fairy tales…. Sheesh! I'm actually surprised Bayley even has that book," Dean said with a slight shiver.
"Wait, what about them? What happens in them? What makes them so scary?!" Seth asked, immediately starting to feel a bit worried.
"Easy now, mama Seth, nothing that bad happens in them. I mean, there are some scary moments, but they usually tend to have a nice happy ending. Y'know, like the princess gets with a prince, the evil witch is defeated, and other stuff like that."
"Well, I guess that's a relief. I wouldn't want Bayley reading stuff that'd give her nightmares. After all, there's some stuff that she still can't handle," Seth said before he launched into listing off the things that Bayley was still a bit afraid of.
As he stood and listened to the other two go back and forth, Roman hadn't quite taken his eyes off of this new trio of teenagers. He wasn't quite sure why, but there seemed to be an oddly familiar feeling coming from where the girls were all seated. He was almost set to go over to the group when knocking at the door got his attention. "I'll get that," he announced before going over to answer the door after looking through the peephole first. "There you are. We were beginning to get worried about you when you didn't show up with Bayley and the group she brought home," Roman said as he stepped aside to let the new arrivals inside.
"Sorry about that. I got a bit distracted on my way back with the two with me. Roman, this is Shayna Baszler and Tamina Snuka," Sasha said as she made the needed introductions. "Tamina's here for the same reason Mia is."
Remembering which one of the other new arrivals was named Mia, Roman nodded before saying "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you both. I'm Roman Reigns, and I would like to welcome you both to our home."
"Pleasure to meet you, Roman," Tamina smiled. "I'm guessing you're Sasha's dad?"
"Not exactly. Our relationship is…. …It's a bit complicated to really explain," Roman began.
As the two taller brunettes had their talk, it was Seth's turn to notice the new arrivals. 'Sasha! Welcome home! Oh, and it looks like you've brought home a friend that brought a pot over. Hey, why don't you bring that over here? I'd imagine it's pretty heavy."
Not stopping the laugh that escaped her, Shayna said "Oh, don't worry about that, sir. I've lifted heavier stuff than this" as she set the pot of sapasui on the stovetop.
Taking a look into the pot to see what it held, the two-toned Gem seemed a bit curious about just what was in it with Dean coming over to look as well.
"Hey, this looks pretty good. What is it, some kind of soup?" Seth asked.
"It kinda is. It's a family recipe of Tamina's that she'll have to tell you about," Shayna said as she turned to look over to where the woman in question stood.
"Actually, Shayna, I'm sure Tamina would love to tell Seth about the dish, but we have a story to tell Mia. Remember?" Sasha cut in.
"Oh yeah, right right," the brunette nodded. Looking to the others in the kitchen, Shayna said "If you two want, you guys can come listen too. Guess this better be something we explain to everyone here."
Sharing a confused look with Dean, Seth was almost set to say something when Sasha cut in.
"Seth, don't worry. Just come listen to our story. Trust me, it's going to be a good one," the magenta-haired Gem said with a slight grin.
So, it's looking story time for Mia will be coming soon, but first, we meet Tamina, who seems to be like a mother figure to Shayna, Nia, and Lana. It would appear as though as Tamina's on board with hearing this story out (and she got to take her pot of sapasui along too (good thing, as it'd be a shame to let tasty food go to waste)). Looks like, Seth, Dean, and Roman are gonna get to join in on story time too. But I think the best part about this is that Mia got to go to a friend's house. Isn't that great? So, with everyone gathered, looks like story time shall begin! And just how will that go? We shall find out...next time. Until then, don't forget to RR please. =)
(Stay safe, warm, and healthy out there, lovelies. *sends love and positive vibes out to you all*)
(I know I'm late with this (as part of my Twitter handle indicates), but I just want to send out some congratulatory vibes to Mercedes Moné (or as we all know her as Sasha Banks). She certainly made quite a splash in her Wrestle Kingdom debut when she stood across the ring from KAIRI, and I can't wait to see how she'll do in a non-WWE ring. I'm sure, like always, she's gonna kill it.)
(I'd just like to take the time here to say rest in peace to Jay Briscoe, one half of The Briscoes tag team. He and his brother Mark have had some damn good matches over the course of their careers with their trilogy of matches against FTR last year being some of the best I've ever seen. Jay will never be forgotten as he was truly a great from his matches to his overall self. Rest in peace and paradise, Jay, and thank you for sharing your work with us fans over the years. My thoughts, prayers, and condolences go out to his family in this truly awful time. #RIPJayBriscoe. #DemBoyzForever)