Kicking Butts & Stealing Girlfriends:The Penny Shannon Story

[veronicaaaahhhh]

WFWF.Com Exclusive: Penny Shannon on Schneider, The Clash PPV! 

“This is it! Everything I’ve spent a long time fighting for- I did it. After all these years and even though there used to be a time when I didn’t it would happen for me, I made it happen. And now look where I am- I’m on second billing with Philip Schneider.  

Before the people see the main event, they’re going to see me and Philip Schneider face off in a match that should happened a long, long time ago.  

Take a moment and think about that.” 

Penny licked her lips and sighed. “This isn’t some rivalry that’s been building up- me and Philip Schneider don’t really have any bad blood with each other. I just offered him a challenge and even though there are so many other important things going on in the WFWF right now, the only thing more important than Schneider and I is the WFWF Championship, which is always going to be the top thing anyway… So I’m pretty sure it’s safe to assume that nothing is as important in the whole company than seeing who’s going to walk away from a Penny Shannon-Philip Schneider match. 

Think about that.” 

“In the bigger scheme of things-,”Penny pressed her hands on her hips and nodded as her head bounced to a grin. “-I don’t need a victory over Philip Schneider to prove what I’ve already done on my own. I just want fight him!” 

Penny licked her lips as she gazed to the side. “When people think about Philip Schneider, they seem to forget that they’re talking about a wrestler. They’re so used and conditioned to all the blood and the guts- which we all know I soo totally dig- but we’re so used to seeing like that we sometimes forget that inside that right is a solid as wrestler. 

And as fan of this sport for a long time before coming in, I can honestly say that I wanted to be the girl version of Obo- and what he was. I was drawn to it. I loved the blood and the violence…  

For ever light-tube that I Obo picked up and swung into someone’s face, I cheered. Whenever he would climb up to the top rope and drive his feet into someone’s unprotected chest, I cheered too. And like a good bunch of us little tweens that cheered, we pulled back and started doing that to each other in the comfort of our own homes.  

It’s fair to say that a good bunch of guys my age started out because they saw Obo do something that we thought we could do to each other. And because of that, we kinda forgot that there was so much more not only to him, but to ourselves too than just the blood and the guts. We all forgot what it meant to be a wrestler and when I started thinking about all that, he went away and he didn’t come back for awhile.” 

Penny gazed upwards now. “And then, he came back. With his real name, wanting to put the ‘King of Gore’ behind and return to form as a wrestler- like a wrestler ‘wrestler’. He wanted to show us what the few of us knew- that he was more. That he was so much more.  

But people didn’t let him do that, and I’m one of them, but it didn’t seem to matter much to him because he was back stronger than ever, real serious, just proving himself week in and week out that when it came to the person that really owned the four corners of a WFWF wrestling ring, there was no one else but him! 

But he became a target, and we pushed and pushed. Because at this point, if someone didn’t want to be him, someone wanted to beat him and use him as some kind of judge to determine whether they were really worth something in this ring. That’s probably when he must’ve just threw out his hands and ‘ it all’, and gave into everything he was, everything he is- and then some!  

He’s a scary and sadistic son of a bitch, and I’m really big fan.  

A fan that wants to kick his ass and beat him in his own ring!” 

Penny giggled as she let out a sigh.  

“What can I say? It’s a dream come true, I mean it! Like, I can’t even count the number of times I’ve played this match on those old WFWF Loaded video games.” 

Penny looked forward and opened up her hands, shrugging her shoulders. “There isn’t a single person working in this place that didn’t start out as a wrestling fan! It’s only natural that inside your head, you think about wrestling your favorite wrestlers and beating them. 

And it’s not like I’m living in Cinderella’s daydream- no. I am a wrestler- a person who fights in really tight clothes who fights other people in tight clothes because she wants to win and winning involves beating some up enough that they can’t get up from a pin-fall.  

If I like the person I’m wrestling that night. Most of the time, I really don’t care. But sometimes , I’ll be more than a wrestler- I’ll be a really big fan, but that doesn’t mean that I’m just gladly going to put myself out there and let them get away with hurting me. That’s just stupid and probably why I really have no problems about this match.” 

She kept her gaze low. “I am at the top of my career. I finally made it! 

They’re about tome come out with an action figure (thank you Mr. Joshua Dean!) and a DVD, I’ve got a lot of big things going on for me. So why the do I actually want to wrestle Phillip Schneider?  

It’s because he’s the only other wrestler who can give me the challenge I have spent a long time waiting for- and look, I got so tired of waiting for it that I made the damn challenge in the first place! 

I’m getting tired of the level of competition that I have to deal with in the WFWF- I can them all. I don’t care who they put in front of me, their getting their asses kicked so hard that if I actually wanted to, I would ensure the last anyone would ever see of them is after I pinned them or made them tap.  

Look at my track record, I’m the only person who’s made a legitimate career in this company by single handedly taking down wrestlers who are a lot bigger and stronger and meaner than her!  

I am as tough as I come and because of that, I am really bored! 

So, maybe you can start to understand where I’m coming from, because I am getting bored and the only person right now in this company who can really give me a good match is Philip Schneider.  

And that’s all there is to it: I’m a girl who wants a challenge and who wants to win.” 

Penny scrunched up her shoulders and held out her hands. “I don’t hate him or anything, I just want to put on my wrestling boots, march into that ring and hurt Philip Schneider as hard as he’s going to hurt me. And I’m excited because I know, when he’s got me broken and bloodied and tangled, he’s going to bring out something in me that I never knew was in there and he’s going to be sooo taken away from that, that he’s probably going to commit another violent act that should be a crime but isn’t because it’s wrestling and to do that, he’s going to have to search for something inside of him too because in the end, he really has no idea what what’s waiting for him in the likes of me.” 

Penny smiled and looked on up, holding on one hand. “I am Penny Shannon. I am the toughest girl- the toughest wrestler- in the world. There is no one like me because if everything I’ve been through isn’t enough to stop me, then there’s no chance in hell in that someone as scary as Philip Schneider is going to stop me either.” 

Penny leaned back and turned her hand to reveal her middle finger in full attention. 

[veronicaaaahhhh]

A WFWF: THE CLASH RP

Table of Contents:
0.0 Prolouge 
1.0 Act One: Strawberry Gashes
2.0 Act Two: Come Out & Play
3.0 Act Three: Dig Me Out
0.0 Epilogue

[veronicaaaahhhh]

[The camera opens up to a shot of Penny sitting on a black leather couch in front of a white wall.]

: So we're here today with Penny Shan-

Penny: Am I the only one who gets how creepy this looks right now?

: -Excuse me?

Penny: I'm being interviewed on a leather couch by a guy I hardly know standing behind a camera.

: And?

Penny: I'm uncomfortable?

: I'm sorry?

Penny: -lighting up a joint- It's not your fault, dude. It's just that there are like millions of videos on the internet that look like this and it just feels weird... Like I know we're gonna talk about my career and all, but could we fix it up just a little bit?

[Penny looks at the man standing behind the camera and points her finger at him.]

Penny: First of all, this isn't going to work. I need someone with they kinda pizzaz, someone who knows how to reach their voice across that it would just make me wanna light up a smoke, make a lot of tea and actually open up to. So you're obviously gone!

[Penny points her finger again. A puff of lavender smoke zaps out of Penny's finger, which she hurls at the unintentionally creepy guy behind the camera, turning him into less than dust upon contact.]

Penny: -looking into the camera- Ladies, Gentlemen, and cis and non-cis, allow me to introduce to you my interviewer for the evening. He is a future WFWF Hall of Famer and one of the coolest Canadians I know...Mr -Penny takes a deep breath and goes into Oprah mode- CAAAMERON... STOOONEEE!

[Another zap of purple and we have the babes from Lez Zeppelin standing in the corner of the room, playing their badass cover of the "Immigrant Song", Cameron Stone emerges from thin air and walks up to the (now less)creepy black leather couch.]

Penny: I would so get up from this couch, but I am too comfy to move. So I'm just going to wave to you from over here!

Cameron Stone: -sitting next to Penny- It's cool.

Penny: -nodding along, looking distracted- Yeah, something still ain't right.

[Penny zaps her finger again and in an instant teleported all of them into Penny's room.
Penny leaps from her seat and makes a nice dive into her bean bag, spending out her arms on impact to ensure she lands with the softest bump possible.
Penny's body sinks into the bean bag, rising back up now as she gets herself all comfy.]

Penny: I think we're in business... Wait!

Cameron Stone: Hmm?

[Penny leans forward and scrunches her arms into her hoodie. Her arms wobble about making her look like some loony in a straight jacket.]

Cameron Stone: Uhm, what are you doing?

Penny: Just give me one sec... Man, you'd think I'd be good at this by now.

Cameron Stone: Good at what?

Penny: -shoving her arm out of her hoodie as she holds up her bra- Huzzah!!!

[Penny tosses her bra away and grabs her bong. She leans back and fires a finger at Cameron Stone, who holds up his hands out of instinct.]

Penny: -looking at her finger- Oh! My bad.

Cameron Stone: Put it away, please?

Penny: It's cool! I'm done zapping things.

Cameron Stone: I don't even know what I'm doing here.

Penny: You're here to interview me.

Cameron Stone: I know that. I just didn't know it was going to be right now.

Penny: crap dude, did I catch you at a bad time or anything?

Cameron Stone: Not really, but you very well could have been.

Penny: But you weren't?

Cameron Stone: I could have been busy. A call would have been nice.

Penny: I could zap you back right now and we can start this whole thing over!

Cameron Stone: I'm already here.

Penny: -still pointing her finger- You really don't want me zapping you, huh?

Cameron Stone: No, I don't.

Penny: Okay! So let's get this interview thing started?

Cameron Stone: Think we could put away that finger first?

Penny: My bad!

Cameron Stone: Alright, let's start at the beginning.

Penny: I'd rather not go there.

Cameron Stone: Well, we're going to anyway!

-1-
Strawberry Gashes

A long ass time ago…

Little Olympia

Sitting on the corner of Dublin and Wilson in mid-town Little Olympia, Penny faced Main Street as she sipped Hawaiian Punch from a straw, just waiting for the most perfect human being in the entire planet to show up so they could finally run off for that big adventure to the big scary city!
Penny had her backpack ready and everything. There wasn’t going to any school, no parents- nothing, just her and the love of her life. They were going to watch shows, look for weirdos, raise hell, and probably , a lot, which got Penny even more excited.

Penny tugged at the straps of her backpack with her thumbs, jumped to her feet and tipped toed to the edge of the sidewalk, leaning towards the road as she looked for the nearest sign of her beloved Ashley.
She chewed on gum, since it calmed her down for some reason, and just tried to kill time. Not that there was anything to do, because , there wasn’t.
What was there to do on a Tuesday afternoon when everybody was supposed to be in school or at work- well, almost every one. There were older kids from SU who were fortunate enough to wander around whenever they wanted because they were in college.
Lucky s.

Leaning her head to the side, Penny grabbed the buns that kept her pigtails in place and pulled them off, letting her shag of pink hair fall over her face.
The mess obstructed her view, but it was cool. Penny figured she had enough time to fix her hair and crap, while she waited for Ashley to show up.

“Yeah.”, Penny shrugged. “Any minute now.”
…
…
… “Any minute.”.
Penny started tapping her foot.


Over half the running time of a pay-per-view later…

Okay, this was starting to get really stupid and it was starting to really get on Penny’s nerves.
It was night time already- ing night!
Penny stood there like some complete idiot, just waiting around, doing nothing and before she knows it, its not sunny anymore and it’s ing night- like that time of the night when all of the people who were walking down Main Street were only there to go to some restaurant and have dinner.
People we’re having dinner and Ashley still hadn’t shown up. Over being annoyed that she wasn’t there, Penny was starting worry, which was the worst thing in the world because it made her scared and she wasn’t in the mood to deal with any of that when there was a whole adventure full of sex, hugs, and general badassery just waiting for her!

“God, I wish I had a cell phone.”, Penny sighed with a nod, making the sudden decision that she was going to give Ashley’s mom a call.

She used the payphone up the block and huddled up as close as she could to the receiver, just waiting for someone to answer.

“Heya, Mrs. Bee, it’s Penny.”, Penny said. “… She’s not home? … Do you know where she might be? I was just supposed to meet her awhile ago and she didn’t show up, I’m kinda worried… Yeah, I hope so too. Well, if you see her, think you could tell her I called? Yeah… Thanks, Mrs. Bee.”

Penny turned away from the payphone and shrugged, biting her lips a little. “I guess that’s that.”

<***>

There was this cloud steaming over Penny’s shoulder when she got home and for some reason, the only thing that could soothe her mood was by listening to really loud and aggressive music from some hardcore-something band Penny hadn’t even heard of before and watch some of the Ninja Battles online.
Like it’s the dumbest thing, but Penny couldn’t stop watching it. Like, she loved her wrestling and she was probably the only girl in Little Olympia that actually admitted to watching wrestling, which got her a lot of unwanted attention from dudes. But yeah, she liked wrestling and naturally, she liked seeing people do it in their backyard.
Which is what these guys in town started doing, and they call it Ninja Battles. And crap, they like do it in the most random places. Like they had this one Ninja Battle on the train that connected Lil’ Oly to Northshore- it was sick!
So naturally, aggressive hardcore death music and Ninja Battles were the only things in the planet that could soothe Penny’s mood.

“-Hey Penny!”

“Where the have you been?!”, Penny snapped, marching away from her desk to rush over to the window as Ashley was coming through. “You don’t have to do this sneaking around crap, you know? My mom knows who you are.”

“Is your mom home?”

“No, but that’s not the point.”

Ashley kept herself on her feet as she looked Penny in the eyes now. And with those piecing blue eyes of hers, there was no way that Penny was going to be able to stay being mad at her the more she looked at her that way.
Why the did this girl have to be so beautiful?!

“I know, I’m sorry.”

Penny still wanted to be in a bad mood. Like after all the worry she went through, she felt that a bad mood was totally justifiable- not that she wasn’t open to making up, which was what she wanted, really… But she just didn’t want it yet.
She just wanted Ashley to have an idea of how annoyed she was and then she would forgive her after, naturally.

“Where were you?”

“Yeah, I know.”, Ashely said. “That’s why I came over, I really have to talk to you about something.”

“About what?”

“Look.”

“Say it.”

“I don’t think I’ve been completely honest with you.”

Penny took a deep breath and waited for it.

“There’s been someone else.”

“No there isn’t.”, Penny snapped.

“There is.”

“No, because if there was another person, I’d probably known about her and somehow the three of us would have a threesome and after we were done with that, you’d kick her to the curve because you’re mine.”

Ashley stopped where she was and chuckled with a hint of tire. “I’m sorry, Penny.”

“There can’t be someone else.”, Penny shot out, walking closer to Ashley now. “How could there be someone else? I’m with you like all the time!”

“It was this one night a couple months ago.”

“What the are you doing? Don’t start, don’t tel me a story. I don’t want to know the story- why did this happen?”

“I-I don’t know.”, Ashley stuttered. “It just happened.”

“And you let it happen?”

“I can’t explain it, Penny.”, Ashley said, her jaw hanging. “It just happened! I don’t know what else I can tell you.”

“Get out!”, Penny said, marching to her door.

“Can’t we talk about it?”

“Is your mind made up about all of this?”

“Yeah, it is.”

“Then what the are you still doing in my room?”, Penny said, coldly, a crackle in her voice revealing a lot than she would have wanted.

Ashley closed her eyes and nodded, turning around now to walk back towards the window.

“Not that way.”, Penny said. “Don’t be a bitch and take that away from me, just go out the front door like any person.”

Ashley turned towards Penny and nodded, walking towards her bedroom door as Penny held it open for her.

Penny stopped Ashley before she got through and asked, “Do I know her?”

Ashley turned her head. “No, you don’t know him.”

“Him?”

Ashley quietly nodded.

“I get it.”, Penny said, shifting her eyes as far away as she could from Ashley.

“No, it’s not like that at all.”

“I was just a phase.”

“No, you weren’t.”

“You wouldn’t be leaving me if I wasn’t.”

Ashley dropped her head and looked at Penny.
Penny did her best not to look back at her. God, she must’ve looked stupid- lips shaking, eyes kinda getting watery even though Penny was telling her body not to.
Ashley came close and tried to kiss her, but Penny tensed up and pushed her away.

“Don’t.”

“Please Penny?”, Ashley hushed, pressing a kiss. “Don’t let it end like this.”

Penny tried her hardest to keep back. “What? Like having sex is going to make me feel better?”

Ashley pulled back and held her head down.

“Go home.”

Ashley nodded. “Goodbye Penny.”

Penny turned her head and shut the door. She kept herself standing there until she heard what was probably Ashley walking out the front door. There was still loud, aggressive death music playing in her room and it wasn’t long before Penny back to her laptop, clicking away at her keyboard until she came across one of the bloodiest Ninja Battles she had ever seen.
Most Ninja Battles had up to six people that would wrestle to the death via elimination, but this was a special one-on-one Ninja Battle between the Living Murderer and Guamanian Bob, who was a wrestler out of LSW, the big wrestling promotion in the city.
It was bloody as crap- Guamanian Bob really did a number on the Living Murderer; suplexing, and kicking and slapping the living crap out of the Ninja veteran that there was just no way the guy could keep going without getting knocked out, which happened.
There was this shot that always caught Penny. It was when Guamanian Bob slapped the Living Murderer so hard across the face that you could just see the blood on his face just splatter all over the place.
It was really sick and watching it, Penny couldn’t tell if right now, she wanted to be the blood slapper or the blood slappee.
But it was mean, it was physical and Penny wanted it. She wanted all of it.

Penny opened up her drawer and pulled out the rainy-day blunt she was keeping in there and lit it up, puffing and puffing away until smoke surrounded her.
Penny leaned back on her seat, kicked her feet against her desk and took a nice, clean drag that got her coughing as she continued to watch the bloodletting between the Living Murderer and Guamanian Bob.
It wasn’t at the slapping part yet, but Guamanian Bob did just suplex the Living Murderer through one of those steel barricades.
The Living Murderer slung over the security rail on both knees, clutching his back as the crowd of teenagers around him chanted, “Holy crap!”
Guamanian Bob took a couple steps backwards before he sprung on his heels, charging at the Living Murderer as he took to the air, throwing out his elbow for another mighty jab.

The shot connected right across Penny’s jaw, sending the young Velocity Grrrl spinning on her back, hitting the pavement with a pretty sick thud.
Penny turned to her belly and clutched her jaw, her legs kicking as a hand reached out and grabbed a handful of her pink locks, stripping back to her natural brown now as Penny found herself pushed up to her feet, seeing nothing but bare knuckles as they landed right between her eyes.
Penny stumbled back now, wobbling about as she threw herself forward with an elbow of her own, knocking down whoever was in front of her with such force that she inadvertently fell right over him- which was the right opening some other asshat needed to rush over and kick her in the ribs with a swift soccer kick.
The brunt of the kick knocked Penny with enough force to take whatever ounce of breath she had left in her system. The Velocity Grrrl didn’t stay down though. She took quick breaths before pushing herself back up, this time as an armful of lariat came charging at her direction. There wasn’t any room to counter the lariat so Penny took the incoming Ninja Battler head-on, marching towards him as she swung her leg up and met him with a really mean big boot right into the nose.
Penny screamed into the air as she grabbed a handful of the Ninja Battler’s hair, really pulling at the collection of blood-soaked strands as she drove her knee into his forehead, putting all of her weight into it.
The Ninja Battler crumbled into the ground as another Ninja Battler, a masked one this time, came rushing at Penny with a light-tube. She tried to stop the light-tube, but the Masked Ninja Battler pushed his arms, swinging the light-tube right over Penny’s head.
The light-tube shattered in a thousand tiny pieces, with a good hundred of them raining down Penny’s face, scratching her skin, ripping away until blood started to stream down her eyes, coating her entire world in a shade of crimson.
Penny sunk to her knees and clutched the top of her head; her toes wiggling beneath her shoes as an incredibly rush of pain seemed to trigger the worst head-ache ever that she had to shudder at the thought of actually taking a chair to head.
The Masked Ninja-Battler grabbed Penny’s hair and with that position, Penny launched herself in the air with an upper-cut, knocking the Masked Ninja-Battler right in the chin. The Masked Ninja Battler tumbled over, yanking Penny along with him. But there was no stopping Penny now as she fell right over him, mounting him as she began pummeling a fury of punches into his face until she started to patches of blood clot though the fabric.

Penny stopped punching the moment he stopped moving and rose back to her feet, walking away as another Ninja Battler came rushing from behind. Penny leaned over and ducked the attack, grabbing the Ninja Battler by the back of the head now as she covered an arm around his neck and tried to snap back, but the Ninja Battler stopped her with a knee across the nose.
Penny fell back as the Ninja Battler grabbed her leg and started dragging her across the pavement. She tried to wiggle out, but the shot to the nose, the knock from the light-tube-, it was as if every sensation across Penny’s body swelled with incredible pain that she started to ask herself what she was even doing there in the first place.
But it was too late now. She was there and if she let herself give in, she knew that everything she had been through would have been for nothing and the Velocity Grrrl wasn’t in the mood to have any of that.
Using whatever once of energy in her being that wasn’t covered in pain, Penny pulled her knees back and pushed forward, kicking the Ninja Battler away. Penny got back up and made a run for the Ninja Battler, spiking him across the gut with a dropkick that sent him flying against a wall.
The crowd around them had grown from a dozen to at least a good fifty; sweaty, blood thristy, fight fans who followed the action wherever it went. Screaming, chanting, and applauding whenever they saw something violent enough to please their senses.
Penny grabbed the Ninja Battler by the head and forced her way through the front door of the building, pushing through to reveal another crowd, a larger crowd.
They congregated at half a thousand, all of them spread out across a barricade that kept them away from a four-post wrestling ring with three ropes.

The crowd inside were just as loud as the ones that had followed the action outside. The half thousand of them had their heads towards the front door that had been kicked open by Penny Shannon.
No longer clad in her hoodie, the Velocity Grrrl had actual wrestling tights on- marching like a woman for the reason as she dragged Chaos Disorder back into the arena.
Security personnel clad in black t-shirts rushed in front of the two wrestlers but had to take a step back as Penny hurled Chaos Disorder, a self-proclaimed ‘gangsta-anarchist’ with an overbite so ugly that he had to hide behind a mouthguard, into a row of chairs, snapping his body head-over-feet as he crashed into a couple fans who weren’t lucky enough to have jumped out of the way at the right second.
Penny took her time with her steps. She had all the time in the world and nowhere else she wanted to be but in that moment, ready to give that stupid little twerp the beating of a lifetime!
Penny picked up a steel chair, swung it over head and threw right into that stupid-mouth guard, whipping Chaos Disroder’s body back upon impact as the steel connected to his jaw.
The Gangsta-Anarchist clutched his jaw as both his feet flapped about, making the sound of what had to be his first real cry in a long, long time.
So, Penny picked up another chair and threw it into his face!
Chaos Disorder curled up into a ball and started twitching as medics started to surround Penny, holding up their arms as they pleaded with her to stop. She already had another steel chair over her head, ready to just throw it at Chaos Disorder’s face, which even though was mostly covered, Penny figured she could actually hit if she threw it at just the right angle.

But with her back turned, Penny was left open for someone to slip in, grab the chair from her hands and hit her, which is just what the Guamanian Bob did!
Penny turned her back and faced the large Guamanian, who threw down the chair and slapped her harder than any woman ever could.
The Velocity Grrrl spun on her heels, turning her back to Guamanian Bob again, who used the position to scoop Penny into his shoulders as he tossed her over the barricade with a suplex that could only be imagined by a Guamanian who was too flexible for his size.
The suplex dumped Penny head-first into ringside; her body flopping over the barricade head-first, with the rest of her weight crashing right on top of her. The hit from the drop send a shockwave all over Penny’s skull- it felt like everything up there was ringing, a piercing sound blasting through whatever was in there that Penny almost couldn’t see straight.
She wanted to stand, but son of a bitch, everything was just swelling up right now and Penny’s body just made the decision to not deal with it.
“!”, Penny mouthed, crawling over the cold concrete, just trying to get even her elbows off the ground. It was weird. Penny could actually feel her arms getting up, but from what she was seeing, she was still on the ground.

“Son of a bitch.”, she murmured, finding herself closer now to the wooden steps that led up to the ring.

The ground beneath Penny’s shook and she didn’t have to turn her head to know it was Guamanian Bob coming right after her.
The Guamanian picked Penny up by the hair and prepped her against the wooden steps. Guamanian Bob slapped her across the face again, making sure the knock kept her in place as he paced several steps back before clicking his heels and charging forward with one foot slung out.
Penny opened her eyes right as that big boot came rushing at her and out of instinct, Penny ducked, slipping herself beneath the apron as Guamanian Bob came crashing through the wooden fame of the steps.
It was like standing next to a moving train- Penny could feel the force of that impact rush past her that it sent tremors to anything close to it.
Grabbing on tight to the fabric of the apron, Penny pushed herself into the ring, slipping beneath the bottom rope with only one thing on her mind: to put that Guamanian beast away once and for all. If there was any opening she needed, this was it.
Penny crawled towards the turnbuckle and climbed up, pushing all her weight into it until she finally made it on the top rope.
Guamanian Bob was still stuck in the wooden steps; his leg had broke through the steel and found itself caught into a web of thorns. He cried out in the air as he tried to free himself, but he was wide open as Penny launched herself off the top rope, crashing right over him with a crooked splash that ing broke the wooden steps, and Guamanian Joe for that matter, in half!
There was an echoing “Owww” all around the arena, giving way to a stretch of silence before the audience raised their fists again and chanted “HOLY crap!” in approval.

Penny sprung to her feet and cried out into the air. Clutching her sides, Penny pushed herself against the barricade. Looking up at the ring, Penny squinted her eyes and looked over to the see the referee holding up six fingers.
He threw another finger up and called out the number, “Seven!”
It was seeing his middle finger accompany his index finger that Penny finally figured out he was making the ten count and there was just no way she was going to wait for another finger. Penny closed her eyes and took a deep breath, hearing the referee mouth out the number eight now as her heels got ahead of her, leading her back to the ring.
Penny slipped beneath the rope and marched up to her feet. Bloody, sweaty and completely battle worn.
She marched to the middle of the ring and locked heads with Ox Koyagati, the Japanese pit-bull of a man in face paint.
The two wrestlers stepped forward and locked-up; shoulders colliding into each other as their arms coiled, both wrestler’s pushing for position.
Ox Koyagati pushed forward. Penny’s boot slid a little down the canvass, but Penny really pressed down her other foot to stop herself from going anywhere. The Velocity Grrrl tries to grapple out, but the Japanese Pit-Bull slipped his arm beneath her and trapped her into a side-head lock; his musky sweat getting a little too close to Penny’s senses for comfort.
The Velocity Grrrl fired an elbow across his side and pushed him into the ropes. Ox Koyagati bounced back, Penny leap frogged. Ox Koyagati came bouncing back and Penny turned her head and charged right into him- stepping over his knee’s now as she propelled herself into the air to knock the Japanese Pit-Bull into the canvass with a Frankensteiner.
The referee rushed over with a slide and an open hand, getting himself ready for the three count…

“She’s relentless.”, Wayne said, pulling a cigarette away from his lips. “I’ll give her that.”
“For one of those backyard kids, she has a lot of form.”, Vanessa said, unable to keep her eyes off the girl that was in the ring before them. “She knows what she’s doing.”
Wayne tipped ash on the ground and took another long drag off his cigarette, watching from a distance. “So, what are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking the kids at the school could learn a thing or two from someone like her.”
“You want her to be a trainer?”
“I don’t see why not. We already have people who went to school for this teaching them, why not add in something a little different. I mean, they can do all the drills in the world, we can show them every little thing, but what good is that actually going to do them if they can’t face the actual thing every once awhile?”
Wayne looked at his wife. “You really do something in this kid, do you?”
Vanessa turned to her husband and nodded.
“Alright.”, Wayne nodded, taking another drag off his cigarette. “You set it up. Let’s give her a little demo. If she can actually teach them something, I’ll consider her.”
Vanessa kissed her husband’s cheeks and smiled. “Which is all I wanted.”
Wayne wrapped his arm around Vanessa and kissed her on the forehead, still watching the match. “I know.”.

[veronicaaaahhhh]

[And we're back in Penny's room. Lez Zepplin is playing a gnarly cover of "D'yer Maker".
Cameron Stone seems to save relaxed now, enjoying a nice cup of coffee.
Penny's pretty baked. Her eyes a little red now as she leans back comfortably on her bean bag with a bottle of Hawaiian Punch rested comfortably between her legs.]

Cameron Stone: So basically, the reason why you like beating up guys is because a few years ago, some dude ran off with your ex-girlfriend?

Penny: I really don't like how you put that.

Cameron Stone: Chill, Penny. I'm trying to be objective here.

Penny: And why?

Cameron Stone: Because we're trying to tell your story.

Penny: You could actually let me leave out the stuff I want to leave out.

Cameron Stone: ... Penny?

Penny: -crossing her arms- It isn't like I hate men, I don't. I just don't appreciate the culture around them.

Cameron Stone: I can get that, I can. But come on, you got into this after your ex left you for a guy.

Penny: Fine! I got into wrestling because I wanted to beat someone up and it just so happened, it was filled with men so each time I laced up my boots and put on my big grrrl tights, I went in there looking to hurt a man like he rightfully should! Happy?

Cameron Stone: ... I've beaten you before.

Penny: Come on, dude. It isn't like I go out there looking to beat up all men each time I step into the ring.

Cameron Stone: Uh, huh...

Penny: -but it just so happens that I'm in what's still a male-dominated sport. It's starting to change but at least I got into this sport making it a point to actually beat men up instead of being just another pretty object.

Cameron Stone: Which does bring me to my next point.

Penny: You were trying to make a point?

Cameron Stone: Scarlett Quinn.

Penny: And I had really high hopes for this interview.

Cameron Stone: It's pretty fair to say that you were chosen to take Scarlett under your wing given your track record on the indies.

Penny: Yeah, that's fair to say.

Cameron Stone: Think you could take us through what it was like mentoring Scarlett? Because what you were doing work- that girl went from being a crowd opener into the WFWF World Champion almost over night.

[Penny sighs and takes one huuuge rip off her bong.]

Penny: God, I created a monster with that girl.

-2-
Come Out & Play


Scarlett didn’t see that elbow come at her until it was a little too late. She was charging forward and the only stop she saw coming right at her.
Scarlett took the elbow, feeling the very life of her getting hurled down into the canvas. There was that sting between her eyes that she was trying to not to get to her, but when someone hurts you with a roaring elbow from out of nowhere, there’s really nothing else you can do but just take the shot and hope the pain wears out before your opponent could follow up.
God, Scarlett couldn’t help but wish Diana (The Wrestling Goddess) just powerslammed her instead- at least she would have time to react!

The Princess of Wrestling turned on her belly and looked up to find Penny, leaning over the ropes with her hand held out, just begging to be tagged.
Scarlett tried to crawl over, but the Wrestling Goddess, Diana, came rushing over with a hard boot across her back. Her eyes flared up, as a mean look came across her face.

“Stop that!”, Penny screamed out.

Diana paid Penny little mind as she took a handful of Scarlett’s hair and pulled her back up, but Scarlett managed to knock her with a jaw breaker. The Wrestling Goddess turned away, arms flailing as Scarlett made a rush for her corner.
Penny’s hand met Scarlett’s, and just like that, she was in the match.

The Velocity Grrrl rushed into the ring with a lariat, but Diana ducked it and charged up with a clothesline of her own, but Penny ducked under her clothesline attempt, kicked Diana in the gut and bounced of the ropes. She charged back on one knee as she swung her left hand back and nailed a sweet in’ uppercut across the Wrestling Goddess’ jaw.
Diana sank to the canvass and Penny scrambled for the three count;
`1…
2… Diana Kicked out!

Penny picked up Diana with a handful of hair, but the Wrestling Goddess wrung herself around Penny and nailed her in the gut with a boot of her own, getting her into position for a powerbomb when Scarlett rushed into the ring with a flying superkick, but Diana pushed Penny off and grabbed Scarlett’s leg, stopping her right where she was.
Scarlett hopped about on one foot before pushing back, the rush of which sent Diana knocking back into the corner, inadvertently knocking into the referee.
The Wrestling Goddess wobbled about, somewhat dazed as Scarlett saw her opening and kicked her low and dirty. The Wrestling Goddess sank on her knees know, giving Penny the opening she needed to rush in and knock her in the back of the head with the Liberty Cap.
Penny clapped her hands into the air and Scarlett rushed over and hooked Diana’s hair, which finally managed to catch the referee’s attention as he crawled for the three count.
1…
2…
3…

<***>

“OH MY FREAKING GOD!”, Scarlett shot out, rushing through the curtain as Penny came charging through in tow behind her.

Penny panted and pressed her hands on her hips, licking her lips now as she looked at Scarlett and shot back, “I know, right?”

… “Do you think anyone saw us?”

“Everybody but the ref!”, Penny replied.

Scarlett blinked and looked up at Penny. “I can’t believe I just did that.”

Penny wrapped her arm around Scarlett and brought her close. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of. I’ve done it, and I know for a fact that both your parents did.”

“I know.”, Scarlett nodded. “I just didn’t think I’d do it. At least not yet anyway.”

“How do you feel?”

“I don’t know how to feel.”, Scarlett said, shaking a little. “I’m upset, a little disappointed at myself.”

“But?”

“But at the same time? I feel kinda good. It’s like I found another way to win a wrestling match- especially something I know going in I probably wouldn’t be able to win anyway, and now I have something new that I could do. That I kinda wanna do again.”

“Then why don’t you?”

Scarlett looked up at Penny and nodded before looking away.

“Hun, can I be honest?”

“Okay.”

“You’re what? Five-foot four, five-foot five? It’s a miracle that you’re over a hundred twenty pounds! And even then, for a wrestler, especially the kind of wrestler of the female variant who happens to be in, well at least primarily, a promotion who’s roster pretty much consists of dudes. If you can’t win the old fashion way, what else can you do?”

“I know, but I just always figured that I was better than that.”

“You are.”, Penny sighed. “But what else can you do about it?”

Scarlet sighed and Penny closed her eyes and held her close, hushing. “I promise you, hun. People are not going to forget you.”

“I hope so.”

“-YOU TWO!”

The loud hiss that came rushing at them from the curtain sent shivers down both their spines. Scarlett and Penny turned their heads and saw an engaged Diana, pointing her stubby finger at their direction.

“I AM GOING TO KILL YOU TWO FOR THE CRAP YOU PULLED OUT THERE.”, the Wrestling Goddess shot out as she marched their way, limping a little. “You’re Wayne and Vanessa’s kid, right?”

“What does that have to do with anything?”, Scarlett snapped back, turning her head a little.

“I’ve met your parents, I don’t know them but I’ve got to work with them a few times before.”, Diana began. “They’re good people and good people are hard to come by in this business.”

“And look how far that got them!”

“I’m sorry for what this business, this sport- whatever you want to call it. But I’m sorry for what it’s done to your family, but when you’re on the road and starting out, its people like you’re parents who make it seem like it’s worth it to stand another day. And it would be a shame if all the negativity of wrestling got to you.”

Scarlett scoffed.

“I can already see it happening right now. You’re a tall girl who actually has enough mass in her to f*ck someone up if she wanted to. Sadly, I was screwed over in the height department and that’s for me to deal with, and not you. So don’t get all preachy on when you don’t even know what I’m going through.”

“Fair enough.”, Diana replied somewhat sternly, getting really close to Scarlett now. “But there’s also a better way. I’m a big girl, I know that, and if I really wanted to, I could break you in half. Girl you’re size, with that much inexperience, it would be easy for me to abuse you in that ring.”

“So, what stopped you?”

“I’m a believer in a fair right and I wanted to give that to you.”

“Thanks, because unlike some people, I took advantage of that and got myself and my bestie over here a win.”, Scarlett chuckled.

Diana scoffed a smile and raised her eyebrows. “Good luck, little girl. I mean that.”.

<***>

March 18, 2013. 

… Two Hours after Psycho Circus

“Isn’t it the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen?”

“I’ve seen a lot prettier things than that, hun.”, Penny shot back, smiling a little as she sat next to Scarlett on the benches. “But, it’s a looker, I’ll give you that.”

Scarlett turned back to Penny with a tired smile and brought her newly won WFWF World Championship belt to her chest, holding it as close and as tight as she could.
Penny was sure that they were the only two people left in the building, but it really didn’t matter. After having ben through a hell of an evening, the girls needed that space to breathe. Hell, Penny was all cleaned up already, but Scarlet was still in her wrestling gear; dried blood and sweat literally covering her entire body.

“I did it.”, Scarlett sighed. “I actually won!”

“You were gonna win anyway.”

“Yeah?”

“I mean, something in you’s changed. Ever since you became part of that match, it was like something kinda snapped. I mean, you ing spat on your dad’s face.”

“I did that…”

“But, it got you here.”

“And that’s why I can’t lose it.”, Scarlett said, looking forward. “I wasn’t even a champion for like a minute when Malakai showed up, bragging about his title shot, forgetting that I went into that ring tonight ready to die if it was the last thing I had to do to win MY title!”

“You are covered in blood.”

Scarlett turned her head to Penny, trembling a little. “This is a moment I’ve dreamed of my entire life. I grew up in this sport- this backstage, this locker room you and I are sitting in right now, these places are my backyard. I know these walls a little too well for my own good for someone who’s only been wrestling for a year. This is my life and tonight, I managed to make a dream come true a lot sooner than I hope it ever had.”

“-I know.”

“No, you don’t Penny.”, Scarlett sighed. “This is me. This is my life. I am wrestling! I am wrestling personified and if me winning this title tonight doesn’t mean something, then I don’t know what I’ve been living for. This is it. And I can’t lose it.”

Okay, that was kind of intense.
Penny licked her lips and took a deep breath, not really looking at Scarlett.

“Whatever happens from this moment forward.”, Scarlett began, holding Penny’s hand. “I can’t lose. I can not lose- at whatever it cost, it can’t happen. I can’t let it happen. You can’t let it happen. We’re not making it ever happen, okay?”

“Ayt.”

“Good. It’s a thing now. There’s no going back.”

“Scar.”, Penny sighed, looking right into her eyes now. “Chill out, okay? You’ve been through a hell of a night to get here and you got what you came for. Let’s not let this bother us, alright? We can breathe a little bit now. , we’ve ing proven ourselves! We’re good.”

“No, we’re not!”, Scarlett shot back. “As long as there are other wrestlers out there, they’re all going to be after us. They’re going to want to take us don’t and out-do us, and they are going to do whatever it takes, so we’re going to do whatever it takes to make sure this whole world knows that we are the last c*nts on Earth they’re ever going to want to mess with.”

Penny dropped her head against Scarlett’s forehead and leaned in close, as she held her head close. “Let’s break some balls, girl!”.
God, she hoped she knew what she was doing.

<***>

October 17, 2013
WFWF Revolution

Scarlett didn’t need Penny out there with her, she was only going against Yukio Blaze- who, let’s face it, was kind of a walk in the park for someone like Scarlett.
Penny let herself hang back in the locker room. She didn’t have a match that night and she was pretty much being paid to do whatever the she wanted, just as long as she was within the borders of the Baton Rouge River Center.
It was about time for Scarlett’s match, so Penny grabbed some munchies from catering and sat on the bench as she loaded up a pipe; she was curious to see what Scarlett had in store for Yukio, so it was sure to be entertaining.

Penny took a nice clean drag off her pipe, tilting her head back as her index finger pulled back on the opening, controlling the amount of smoke she was taking in. On the monitor, she watched Scarlett make her walk into the ring. And without a knock, the door to her locker room opened up.

“… Penny.”

Penny looked over and belched out a cough of smoke that went down the wrong tube, the Velocity Grrrl sinking to her knees. “What the do you want?”

Trace closed the door behind him and stepped forward.

On instinct, Penny rose to her feet staring down Trace, looking him right into the eyes as he approached her.
Penny paced a little back at Trace looked Penny right in the eyes, grinning now as he lunged forward and charged at her. Penny ducked away, but Trace threw his arms around her waist, lifting her off the ground now and he threw her into the wooden bench, breaking it in half.
Penny tried to get back up to her feet, but Trace charged forward with a hard kick across the gut, knocking the wind right out of her.
Penny gasped out loud; still trying to push herself off the ground as Trace came charging again with another kick. He lifted up one foot and swung it right between her legs.
A deep cry bellowed from Penny’s body as her body shook, one hand reaching low for a pain she just didn’t know how to handle.

“Doesn’t feel as good when you’re the one taking it, huh?”, Trace shot out, lighting himself a cigarette as he stood back and watched Penny wither.

Penny looked up and spat into Trace, but with hardly anything in her tank, the hock of spit landed on his boot.

“I really don’t want to do this, Penny.” Trace said before charging over again with another stomp; lifting his knee now as he drove his boot right into Penny’s jaw, knocking her head back violently. “You’re an investment and despite my behavior as of the moment, I still see a future for you in this company.”

Trace knelt before Penny and held her up by her pig-tails- her face a broken and bloodied mess. “But, I don’t think there is going to be anything here for you if you stick around Scarlett for much longer.”

Trace pulled up Penny’s head and had her face the monitor, where inside the ring, Yukio Blaze was stalling what was supposed to be the main event of the evening with a “shoot”.

“Look at her.”, Trace spoke. “We both know that she’s way over her head. She’s changed- you know, her parents know it. Hell, I’ve watched that girl grow up right before my eyes, so I sure as hell know that we are not dealing with the same girl who walked into this company one year ago.”

Trace gently cupped his hand beneath Penny’s broken jaw and continued watching the monitor.
“You knew it would come to this, Penny. I’m not just a wrestler anymore, I’m a promoter who has to do what he sees fit to ensure the company has a bright future and Scarlett isn’t strong or capable enough to carry that belt or this company. I love that girl- you could almost say that she’s a sister to me, in a manner of speaking. So know that my actions don’t come with a heavy heart, because what I’m doing is for the best.”

Penny’s face twitched, her eyes rolling up as she shook her head a quiet ‘no’.

Trace gently turned Penny’s jaw to make sure she was facing him.

“Don’t look at me like that, we both know that not only is this for her own good, but it’s for yours too. The both of you are my responsibility, and it would be a shame- a terrible, terrible shame if she got hurt enough to never be able to step into a wrestling ring ever again.”

Trace clenched his fingers around Penny’s jaw and yanked her closer to him. “This is me being kind. You may want to hurt me- I wouldn’t even hold it against you if you were castrating me in that pretty little head of yours right now. But if this display of my brutality can mean anything.”, Trace leaned in closer. “Just imagine what I could do without the kindness I reserve for the ones I keep close.”

“Do the right thing.” Trace said, closing his eyes as he nodded. “Put a stop to her and finish her off before I do.”

Penny’s lips quivered as the weight beneath her eyes began to give in with saline, dripping down her face. Penny closed her eyes and nodded her head, wanting to turn around and look away if she could.
Trace closed his eyes and pressed a kiss on her forehead- cupping the back of her neck as she did to gently lay her back on the ground.
Trace stepped away and took a long drag off his cigarette, looking down upon Penny.

“It’s for the best, Penny.”, Trace said, withdrawing a crowbar from his coat.

He stepped forward slowly and swung it over head, swinging it down with a mighty force as he hushed, “It’s for the best.”.

<***>

December 15, 2013
Scars & Stripes

Penny watched the match from the curtain. She knew when she had to come out and made her move. She didn’t even have to think about it, it was her job and she knew what she had to do.

“ my life right now.”, Penny hissed, watching the match from the Gorilla Position.

She closed her eyes and nibbled on her fingernails as she watched Scarlett and Trace go right at it. Scarlett was giving him a fight- despite knowing what was going to happen, and knowing full well what she had to do, Penny couldn’t help but smile a little as something deep down inside of her hoped that somehow Scarlett could just sneak a win before she could even make it into the ring.
She just wanted Scarlett to surprise her… But the match was running longer than it was supposed to, and Penny knew what was going to happen to the both of them if she didn’t go ahead and do it, as promised.

“ my life in its ing ass.”, Penny hissed as she stepped out from the curtain and made a slow walk down the ramp. There were already people in the arena who were turning their heads at her, a lot of them already cheering while Scarlett and Trace seemed to be too caught up in their fight to notice.
It was like she wasn’t even there.
She took her time around the ring as she plucked a chair from the timekeeper and slipped into the ring at just the right opening that Scarlett didn’t even see her come forward.
Penny drove the steel chair across Scarlett’s forehead and watched her tumble down into the canvass- it wasn’t hitting her that felt weird and kind of painful. Scarlett was just another wrestler right now as far as she was concerned- that was easy.
It was that really sick feeling in her belly that bothered her like a bad stomach after Indian food, especially when she saw Scarlett lying there with her blood on the center of the steel chair.

“ my life.”, Penny sighed, closing her eyes as she turned her head. “.”

Snapping herself out of it, Penny threw the chair away and marched over to Trace to pry him away from the wreck of wood and tacks that decorated his near broken frame.

“What the hell are you waiting for?!”, Trace shot out, pushing Penny off as he pointed at Scarlett. “Pick her up.”

“Ugh.”, Penny grunted as she did as ordered and held up the girl who up until a moment ago, was a girl she had sworn to protect even if it killed her.
Penny took Scarlett by the arms, hoisting her with underhooks, as she held her up for Trace to come in and impale her in the forehead with a metal spike, really sinking it the moment he felt the blade pierce through her flesh.
Penny let Scarlett go and watched her stumble down into the canvas, crying in agony as she reached her hand over the top of her head, just feeling the metal wedged up there.
It wasn’t enough, at least not yet for Trace. He grabbed a handful of hair and metal and stood Scarlett up to finish her off with the Demonstration of Hell.

A moment later, Penny heard the sound of Trace’s music and it was more than Penny could stand without doing anything stupid. She rushed out of the ring, grabbed the belt and handed it to Trace.
She just wanted to get the usual post-victory celebration over and done with.

[veronicaaaahhhh]

Cameron Stone: F*ck Penny, I didn’t know crap got that intense.

Penny: -hissing out smoke- Well, now you know.

Cameron Stone: I really don’t know where to go after that.

Penny: Right? –leans into her bong and takes another rip- … I really didn’t want to do what I did- but as much as I hate to admit it, Trace was right and it was better that I did something about it.

Cameron Stone: Do you still keep in touch?

Penny: -shaking her head-

Cameron Stone: Sorry, dude.

Penny: Yeah, I’m sorry too.

Cameron Stone: What did you do after?

Penny: I went home and got really, really stoned.

January 2014
Little Olympia

“Good afternoon, sis.”, Kevin said, leaning over the counter of the Whistlestop as he watched Penny come through the backroom of the Whistlestop. They kept an apartment above the store. They inherited the whole place some seven years ago when their mom died.

Kevin must’ve been nineteen, Penny seventeen.

Their mom ran the store when they were growing up and had enough to keep them living in the ‘burbs, but when she died and with all the expenses, it just made sense to move into the space above the store and just run the store from there. 

It was always the one thing they had they could fall back to in the event that Kevin’s music career and Penny’s wrestling sorta bit itself in the butt.

Which is what was happening. 

Penny was still in her Jedi-robe when she came into the store, lazily gliding past the cold section. Not really minding anything- she was just tired of seeing her room and she needed to look at something else, so she went down to the store. 

She sorta figured she’d need something there anyway.

“… Penny?”

“Hey, bro!”, Penny nodded, opening one of the refrigerators and grab a purple colored vodka cooler thing. 

“Hey.”, Kevin said, hopping over the counter. “How’re you?”

“Meh.”, Penny shrugged as she popped the cap open and hopped on top of the counter. “What’s up?”

“Nothing much.”, Kevin said, leaning against the counter as he stood next to his sister. “The store’s good, I can’t complain.”

“That’s cool.”, Penny nodded.

“You?”

“I think I feel like crap.”

“You look like crap.”

“Do I smell like crap too?”

Kevin leaned close and sniffed his sister’s shoulder. “A bit.”

“That’s cool.”

“Sh*t, what happened to you?”

“A lot of things.”, Penny said, sipping her purple colored vodka cooler thing. “I really don’t want to talk about it.”

Kevin held up his hand and waved it, “I’m not looking for a story here.”

“Yeah, I know.”, Penny nodded as she sipped her drink again and looked at him. “I’ll do something about it.”

Kevin dug his hand into his pockets and nodded. “Cool.”

“Yeah, bro.”, Penny sipped her drink again. “Cool.”

…

…

… “Wanna split this joint with me?”

“Let me close the store.”.

<***>

Penny was back in her room the moment that joint was done. She didn’t even get anything from the store outside of another vodka cooler. She really didn’t want to do anything. 

Behind the blinds, she could see the sun starting to set as the mesh of orange and dark blue sprawled into a web of color that decorated the light in Penny’s room with a strange, purple-orangey kind of hue. 

It was nice, actually. 

She almost didn’t want to get up from her beanbag. 

Her phone rang. 

Penny lurched her head up and looked at bed; her iPhone lit up and shaking as her phone rang and rang. 

Penny pushed herself off the beanbag, grabbed the phone and slid the call on. 

“Hello?”

“Penny? Hi.”

“Mrs. Mc’G.”, Penny sighed, falling back into the beanbag. “What’s up?”

“Not a lot, but I thought I would check in on you.”

“I’m alright.”

“Are you really?”

“I’m not alright.”, Penny said. 

“Look, I know it might be strange that I called you.”, Vanessa began. “Considering what you’ve done to my daughter.”

Penny rolled her eyes and sighed, waiting for it…

“I’m not mad, I’m not disappointed. Like a lot of us, we’re all in this really strange situation in regards to Scarlett. All the success, it was too much too soon.”

“But it’s what she wanted.”

“I know, it was.”, Vanessa said. “And that’s my fault. I should have really grounded her about the business growing up, but I didn’t. I had just assumed that having been around the business all her life, she would have been numb about it.”

“Like, smarter?”

“Yes. We all don’t know what to do- you can try to talk to her and reason with her but all you want, and you know that she’s listening, but it’s as if nothing is getting through. She’s listening but she’s not accepting it.”

“She’s nineteen, we gotta cut her some slack.”

“We did, and look what happened.”, Vanessa sighed. “Wayne took it upon himself to be the bad guy in all this, so I can only do so much. The most I can do is be a mother to her, when it kills me inside that I can’t do what Wayne’s doing myself. And that is why I’m calling- I’m calling to thank you.”

“What?”

“We all know what Trace did to you, and I know him- he can get to anyone if he spends time with them enough, that’s why I always kept him within arm’s reach.”

“Somebody has to.”

“Exactly.”

“So, what now?”

“I’ve given this a lot of thought.”, Vanessa said. “And, if this business really means as much as it does to Scarlett, then she won’t allow it to stop her. She can come out a lot wiser from all this, and I trust her enough to know that she’s got a good head on her shoulders to eventually see it through.”

“I hope so.”

“One day, she will understand why you did what you did. And I’m sure she does, but as for now, and while she’s starting to really learn about how to survive as a wrestler, there isn’t anything you can do anymore.”

“So, what’re ya’ saying?”

“Be selfish.”, Vanessa said. “Start focusing on your career and really make something of yourself. You’re a good wrestler, Penny. And you have what it takes to really make something of yourself, just as much as Scarlett and you’ve given her so much, that I think you’ve forgotten that.”

“Woah.”, Penny sighed. “I really dunno what to say, Mrs. Mc’G, but thanks.”

“You deserve to know, Penny. You’re a good kid with a bright future- make something of it. Wanna know something about growing up?”

“Please!”

“Things are never turn up as bad as it seems.”, Vanessa said. “It’s different, you’ll probably feel the things you thought you would be feeling, but it’s never as bad as you make. And one way, or another, things just work themselves out.”

“You’re not saying this to make me feel better are you?”

“Of course I am.”, Vanessa said. “Doesn’t make it any less true. Take it from me, I’ve been around the block and back around.”

“Alright, Mrs. Mc’G.”, Penny nodded, smiling a little. “Thanks a bunch.”.

<***>

It was a nice Monday morning in Little Olympia. Despite the incoming traces of snow falling down the little ‘burb on the mountain, it was a very clear morning. 

The sun was shining and Penny, Slanted, and Enchanted were actually up early for a change, and it really felt like they were doing something.

Here they were- the three of them all smushed into Penny’s white Volkswagen Beatle, the Bratmobile, leaving town with the whole world right in front of them to take. 

Penny was on the driver’s side, obviously. 

Enchanted was right next to her on the passenger’s seat, smoking a cigarettle- lookin’ cool as she sipped from an iced coffee from (thankfully) the only Starbucks in town. 

And there was Slanted in the backseat, doodling whatever on a notebook.

Penny couldn’t help but smile, it was stupid. 

“You feel that?”, Slanted said, leaning over the backseat. 

“Feel what?”, Penny shot out.

“I soo know where you’re going with this.”, Enchanted said, gleefully as she turned back to Slanted and lifted her shades. 

Slanted leaned back and wrapped his hands around the back of his neck as he smiled. “Today is the first day of the rest of our lives.”

“You’re not even supposed to be here today.”, Enchanted grinned, winking at Slanted. 

Penny rolled her eyes knowing full well that if they kept it up, they’d be making out all over her backseat!

Hmmm, Penny didn’t mind seeing that actually.

Slanted pushed himself off the seat and looked over at Enchanted, serenading her now. “They say misery… Loves compannieeey.”

“We can start a company.”, Enchanted sang back, looking deep into her boyfriend’s eyes. “And make miseryyyy!”

“Frustrated incorporated!”, Slanted and Enchanted sang. “… I KNOW JUST WHAT YOU NEED. I MIGHT JUST HAVE THE FIX… I know what you paid-”

“-To see…”, Penny started singing, holding up a clench fist as she drove with one hand.

“PUT ME OUT OF MY MISERY!”, the three of them sang, at the top of their lungs. “I’D DO IT FOR YOU, WOULD YOU DO IT FOR ME? WE WILL ALWAYS BE BUSY… MAKING- MISERYYYYYYY!”.

Penny: TehVirgins didn’t last that long.

Cameron Stone: I will say this… If there was ever going to an eclectic and cartoonishly messed up trio that could actually work, it would have been the three of you.

Penny: It seems really stupid to think about now, but I really had a lot of high hopes for the three of us.

Cameron Stone: What happened?

Penny: I wasn’t being booked that often and there was a lot of focus on Slanted and Enchanted- and it wasn’t like they didn’t try, because they did. But they were so caught up in making a bigger impression than Scarlett did that they kinda overthought everything they did and it got in the way. Like they’d do all these cool things, but they just never-

Cameron Stone: … Paid off?

Penny: Yeah and after that, the company didn’t really see the point in them so they got crap-canned.

Cameron Stone: But they kept you.

Penny: I was- still am on a contract. When Trace signed up as Scarlett’s back-up, I got a three year deal. No specifics or anything, but I could just pretty much do whatever I wanted and still get paid for it.

Cameron Stone: That’s actually pretty cool.

Penny: Not as cool though as the deal just got for me- like, that dude knows how to take care of his people. He’s a good man.

Cameron Stone: And that’s something you don’t often say.

Penny: I know, right? Like Josh and Nikki are such sweet people. Like yeah, they can be pretty lame and stuff, but I like them.

Cameron Stone: Would it be fair to say that you wouldn’t be where you are right now if it wasn’t for the support of the Deans?

Penny: Totally- and Biggie Dave D. too. They took me in when I really didn’t know where to go and I dunno –Penny scratches the back of her head- They kinda got me on my feet and in fighting shape again. I love them all to death, and if there are people that just make me actually be a more responsible human being, it’s them.

Cameron Stone: They helped you grow up.

Penny: -snapping her head at Cameron- It’s not growing up, sir. It’s called being more “responsible” and there’s a difference.

Cameron Stone: -holding up his hands, chuckling- Whatever you say, Penny.

Penny: Shut it, Calgary! –Penny hisses and playfully slaps him on the arm- Let me talk.

Cameron Stone: Isn’t that what I’ve been doing?

Penny: Yeah, I’m learning how to be more responsible because there are a lot of things that I want to do and I’m learning how to do all that without giving up all the things I like.

Cameron: Girls, weed, and wrestling!

Penny: That is correct.

Cameron Stone: Yeah, I can dig that.

-3-

Dig Me Out

July 24, 2014

Dean Manor

It was still pretty dark out and Penny figured that Josh and Nikki closed up and Dave went home. Man, this place was a lot bigger than what Penny thought it would be. It took forever just for her to find her way downstairs that it was a miracle that she was able to find her way to the backyard. 

Penny got herself pool side, sitting all chill’n injun style, getting a nice ember going from one of the blunts she still had on her.

Penny puffed and puffed away until she was satisfied with the little fire she had going that she titled her head and took what she felt was a well served hit, really soaking in the smoke that was filling her system. 

Penny opened her mouth and let out little heart-shaped smoke rings before sweeping her head forward and push out a stream of smoke right through the smokey heart.

… That was ing sweet!

Penny brought the blunt closer to her lips and let it hang there, bopping her head now as she reached her hand into the pouch of her hoodie for her iPhone, ready to trip out to some nice tunes beneath the stars. 

“… Sendin’ out an S.O.S.”, she heard Josh sing from somewhere she couldn’t see. 

Penny pulled the blunt from her lips and waved at Josh as he came walking forward, holding a bottle of bear, looking tired but steady- like, he was on good vibrations this evening. 

“You’re in a good mood.”

“I had a good evening.”, Josh said, sipping his beer. 

Penny held out the blunt, “Wanna get high?”

Josh waved up his hand. “I’m good.”

“You sure?”

“I’m pretty good, thanks though.”, Josh replied.

“Oh right, the missus.”

“You are correct.”. Josh sat down next to Penny and lit himself a cigarette. “I made a vow to keep that girl happy. And if she don’t want that around me or the boys, then it won’t be anywhere near ‘em.”

“You’re a good man, Josh.”

“Thank you, I try.”

Penny smiled and nodded. “Is it chill if I smoke this?”

“I don’t have a problem with it.”, Josh said taking another drag.

“Thanks, dude.”, Penny said, looking to the side now as she took another hit. “But honest though, you’ve got a good woman . I can totally see why you just wanna keep her happy.” Penny sighed, “Kinda wished I had that in my life again.”

“It’ll happen for you, you’ll see.”

“Thanks.”, Penny turned, nodding to Josh as she pulled the blunt away from her lips. “I appreciate that.”

“You’re coming back to the WFWF. There are big things waiting for you.”

“I really hope so, because if I don’t get through this match- that’s it for me.” Penny said. “After Slanted and Enchanted, and Scarlett, I don’t know if I could actually show my face in that place.”

“Getting over rough times, huh?”

Penny smiled and nodded. 

Josh sipped his beer and said, “It shows. To tell the truth, I’m not used to hearing you sound like this.”

“Sound like what?”

“Mopey?”

“I’m mopey?”

Josh chuckled, “Little bit.”

“WOW.”, Penny shot out. “I really suck right now!”

“It’s nothing to beat yourself up about.” Josh said, taking a drag off his cigarette. “It happens to the best of us.”

“That’s what everyone’s been telling me.”

“Honestly, Penny.”, Josh said, turning his head a little now as he took another sip. “I’m excited?”

“Yeah?”

“Here I am, back in the company, surrounded with good company. The right kind of company. Now, this might be booze talkin’ for me-”

“-It’s probably the booze.”

“It obviously is, but that’s beside the point- point is, I’m excited to be back because I think this time, all of us can do something different. A change from the corruption that is so open and rampant in that company and actually return it to something it used to be. A place that represented professional wrestling for what it’s supposed to be. Like, when did you start watchin’ the company?”

“I don’t know.”, Penny said, taking a hit as she thought about it. “2006, I think? It was around the time Reverend Shadow was the champion, I was a huge Obo fan back then.”

“Don’t surprise me.” Josh said before asking, “Was that around the time you got into those backyard Ninja Battles?”

“No, I started maybe a year and a half after all that. Why?”

“Nothin’.”, Josh replied. “Just wondering. But anyway- you started off with the Higher Authority, but I remember watching way back when they still had Johnny Michaels, Zmaster- back when this company was actually a god damn wrestling promotion. We’re fans of the same promotion but of different generations.”

“So, you see the company differently from the way I do?”

“Somewhat.”, Josh nodded. “But what connects us is that as fans of a promotion, we know what kind of place the WFWF is like when they’re doing something right.”

“Yes!”

“And after what you’ve been through in that company, you gotta admit that something is very wrong with that place and half the roster wouldn’t even consider doing anything about it because they’re too afraid of losing their places to actually want to stand up and say something about it.

But not us- things don’t ever have to be this way again. You, me, Nikki, and Dave, we can change this place together and live the careers we’ve all dreamed of having.”

Penny looked at him, almost wanting to nod in agreement if she hadn’t already heard all of this kind of talk before, especially from herself. 

“They’ve seen the rest of us.”, Josh said. “Let’s give them the best of us and change things once for the better once and for all.”

Penny leaned forward and held out her pinkie. “I’m not promising anything, but I’m going to do my best. Whatever you guys got planned, I’m in?”

“Why don’t you want to make a promise?”

“Because I don’t know if I can keep it yet.”

Josh closed his eyes and nodded. “Fair enough.”

“But I’m extending my pinkie because I want to make a deal with you.”

Josh took a drag off his cigarette. “Go on.”

“Don’t me over or anything, and I won’t you over.”

Josh held out his pinkie. “I can do that.”

“I’m here, I’m going to go out there and be we,, a wrestler, even when sometimes I don’t feel like being a wrestler, but I’m going to go out there and do it, because I just know I can’t let myself stopped whatever it is I’ve started.”

“Sounds good to me.”

Penny locked her pinkie around Josh’s pinkie and smiled. “It’s a deal.”

“There’s no backing out now.”

“I know.”, Penny nodded, smiling. 

<***>

August 04, 2014

Dean Manor

Just how big was Dean Manor? The place was so big it had a gym with a ing wrestling ring!

It was the smaller types they used mostly in small indie shows, but for a home set-up, it did the job and judging from all the marks all over the canvas, it’s already seen its fare share of damage.

Penny sidestepped the incoming superkick from Nikki, sending her leg slide up a little too early that Penny was able to counter a move that, theoretically, you’re opponent isn’t supposed to know was coming. Like would really grind her gears was seeing wrestlers who’d stomp on the mat before executing the move- good, let your opponent know what you’re going to do next. 

Smart wrestling?!

Penny was so caught up thinking about that and wanting to shoot herself in her own head because of it that she didn’t notice Nikki spring her body forward with a roll-up take down. 

Penny pushed herself out of and scrambled back to her feet and clipped Nikki down with a hard chop across the face. Forcing her into the turnbuckle, Penny sent her to the corner with an Irish-whip and charged over with a dropkick, connecting to Nikki’s mid-section as she dropped to the canvass, giving Penny room to pull her to the center of the ring, hooking the leg. 

“One, two.”, Penny counted.

Nikki kicked out. 

Penny got back to her feet and held her by the head, guiding her back to her feet, but Nikki knocks her in the jaw with a forearm and locks her arms around Penny’s neck to take her down with a sitting cutter. 

Nikki with the cover.

“One, two.”, Nikki counted.

Penny kicked out. 

They chilled out in the ring after the practice match. Penny sat on the top rope as Nikki rested down on the canvass, sipping on a bottle of water now. 

“Thanks for showing me a couple things in there, Penny.”, Nikki said. “Appreciate it.”

“It’s cool.”, Penny waved her off. “I mean, you’ve guys been letting me crash here and stuff. It’s the least I could do.”

Nikki smiled and pushed herself off the canvass, sitting up as she wiped herself off with a hand towel. “What do you think? Am I ready for Battle at the Garden?”

“Hun, you’re getting into the ring against two other guys.”, Penny replied. “You’ve never been in a Three-Way-Dance, so nothing you train for can ever prepare you for what’s going to happen in there unless you’ve been in at least a couple.”

“Gee, I guess I didn’t think of it that way.”

Penny hopped off the top rope and sat down across from Nikki. “I’m not tryin’ to be mean or anything, I’m just talking from experience here.”

“I know.”, Nikki nodded. “I appreciate the honesty.”

“I just think it’s just stupid to lie to you about something like that.”

“Thank you. What do you think I should do in there?”

“Survive!”, Penny shot out, chuckling. “It depends on what’s going in that match. There’s a good chance they might try to pick you off real quick and just spend the rest of the match beating each other up. Even worse, it’s even more possible that they’d be looking at you for an easy win. It’s a tough thing to walk into.”

“Is it also the same when you wrestle girls?”

“No, because we don’t see each other as girls, we see each other as wrestlers. Boys can’t see that, at least most of them can’t. They just don’t want to and it makes them uncomfortable to think about, but you can use that to your advantage and beat them at their own game.”

“How come?”

“Because being a wrestler is the last thing they expect you to be.”, Penny replied. “You wanna change that, you take them head on and don’t give in- no matter how painful it feels do not give in and just don’t stop fighting until you’ve gotten what you came for.”

“Was that how it was like? With Scarlett?”

“Yeah, but she took it too far. At least, you’re with Josh, Dave, and me- we’ve been ed over so many times that we’ve learned to know better. We’re going to watch out for you.”

“You really mean that?”, Nikki asked. 

“I do.”.

<***>

November 30, 2014

Dave & Penny’s Apartment , Toronto

“Damn dude.”, Penny shot out, all snugged out on the couch with her Jedi Snuggie on, looking over at Biggie Dave D, who was smoked out. 

“Yeah?”, Dave asked, his eyes squinty and watery as he looked over at Penny. 

“You’re faded.”

“It’s been awhile since I’ve smoked.”, Dave nodded, taking a glance back on the TV. Cinemax was marathoning Kill Bill Vol.1 and Vol.2, so they decided to make a night out of it and just stay in and order a pizza and get ridiculously baked. 

“I know.”, Penny nodded. “I’m a bad influence.”

“I figured I’d be smoking again when you moved in.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

“It isn’t.”, Biggie Dave D. shrugged. “I just didn’t imagine smoking this stuff again.”

“See, that right there!”, Penny shot out. “That’s what I don’t get with people- they say like smoking weed is a bad thing, like it’s something they did in a time of their lives they sorta wished they’d forget.”

“Makes it easier to tolerate a lot of things.”

“But isn’t that good?”

“It can be, when you put it that way.”

“That’s the thing people gotta remember: weed is good!”

Dave chuckled. 

“I’m serious, dude!”

“I’m sure you are.”

“Let me tell you something: if you’re having a bad trip, it’s because you brought it there. You wanna smoke weed and have a good time, all you got to do is just want it and you’ll have such a good time that you’ll forget why you even wanted to be sober.”

“We all have to come back down sooner or later, you know?”

“Maybe, but there’s nothing wrong with sitting up in the clouds and making cool crap.”

“Not everyone’s like you, Penny.”, Biggie Davie D. said. “Not everyone can be a functional stoner, let alone want to be one.”

“And?”

“And nothing It’s cool, really.”

“Thanks. But you really don’t need to say that.”

“Pen, I didn’t mean anything by it.”

“I know.”, Penny nodded. “I know, but still. I would be back here if wasn’t for you guys, but a lot of that came from me because I was just so ing fed up of feeling like crap all the time and I made myself do something about that, and I just happened to stumble into something incredibly good, because I have you guys now and I don’t know, everything feels like where it should be.”

“Almost everything.”, Biggie Dave D. sighed. 

Penny scooted forward and dropped her head against Dave’s shoulders- it was like resting on a constant flex. “You’ll see your little girl again one day. But maybe right now isn’t the right time for that? You love that girl and you will always love her, dude. And you’ll be together with her again one day, but right now, you’ve got your entire career to look forward to- you’re International champion! Our careers are finally starting to go somewhere. So maybe having your daughter back in your life might get in the way of what you could be doing?”

“I don’t know, Penny.”

“I don’t either, but hey, look at us- we’re both at a better place now than we were a year ago.”

Dave wrapped his arm around Penny and pulled her close for a bear-hug with enough force to strangle an elk, and whatever woodland creatures they have up here.

“This is it, dude.”, Penny hugged back. “We made it.”.

<***>

Cameron Stone: Alright, one last question before we wrap things up.

Penny: There’s more?

Cameron Stone: Yeah, just one. But it’s the last one.

Penny: You promise?

Cameron Stone: -leaning forward and holding out his pinkie- I pinkie promise.

Penny: -leaning forward and pinkie promising Cameron Stone- Pinky promise.

Cameron Stone: -leaning back to his chair as he rests his elbow on the arm, thinking as he looks at Penny- … Is it fair to say that you’re happy?

Penny: Yeah. –Penny smiles- For the first time, in a long, long time, I’m actually happy. I can’t think of a single thing that could really up my life right now, and even if I could, why would I want to? I am soo in’ hot right now, that look! –Penny grabs something from behind her beanbag and holds up an action figure to Cameron’s face- LOOK! I FINALLY HAVE AN ACTION FIGURE!

Cameron Stone: … You have f*cking action figure and I don’t?

Penny: It was in my contract.

Cameron Stone: The one Josh got you.

Penny: That is correct, sir!

Cameron Stone: SON OF A BITCH!

[Penny continues to wave up the new Penny Shannon action figure into Cameron Stone’s face, just wobbling it around until he grabs it from her hand and looks at it.]

Penny: You can keep that one. Merry Christmas!

Cameron Stone: Gee, thanks Penny!

Penny: -xD- You’re welcome!

Cameron Stone: -turns to the camera- Well, I hope you’ve enjoyed this exclusive interview with the Velocity Grrrl-slash-Canadian National, Penny Shannon. In these last couple hours, you’ve listened to the life story of one of the brightest stars in this sport today.

Penny: Awww, dude!

Cameron Stone: -looking back at Penny- This was fun(ish), thanks for having me sit down with you.

Penny: Thanks for asking me crap I didn’t want to answer.

Cameron Stone: Any last words?

Penny: Buy my merch off my website and not WFWFShop.Com

Cameron Stone: How come?

Penny: I get more money from orders off my site and it funds me directly as a wrestler.

Cameron Stone: Nice.

Penny: That’s it?

Cameron Stone: Just about.

Penny: Cool.

[The camera pans out to a wide shot of Penny’s room, showing everything from her bed, to the couch, and the beanbag and finally, Lez Zeppelin who have began rockin’ out an excellent rendition of “Trampled Under Foot”.
Penny and Cameron lean close and say things that we obviously won’t know as the screen quietly fades to black.]

[veronicaaaahhhh]

“Hey.”

The sound of that voice sent an unwelcome shudder down Penny’s spine. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to hear that voice, but it was just something she just wasn’t in the mood to deal with.

Penny turned back to Scarlett and spun on her seat. “Hey.”

It had been a good while since Penny had last seen Scarlett and outside of longer hair, and a couple pounds gained, she was still as cute as button. Nothing much had changed, tough she seemed a little more chilled out.
But then again, she was half French-Canadian and the beastling of one Vanessa McGurk, so that girl had a soul as deep as an ocean.
… .

“How’ve you been?”

“Been alright.”

“Cool.”, Scarlett nodded, clenching the strap of her carryon real close as she took a deep breath and approached the bar.

“You want a drink?”, Penny asked, watching her come over.

“I’ve got time to kill.”

“Cool.”, Penny said, reaching for her glass of Absolute Currant with a splash of Sprite.

“You drink now?”

“Me?”, Penny shrugged. “Kinda… I’ve been hanging out with the Deans.”

“I know, it’s on TV.”

“You know, you’re the first person who’s ever brought that to my attention.”

Scarlett dropped the carryon and took the stool beside Penny. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”, Penny nodded as she chewed on a chunk of broken ice. “Like I still don’t like booze on the whole, but what can I say? It’s a tasty little thing and it gives good head.”

Scarlett chuckled.

“Well?”, Penny shot out. “What’re you waiting for, hun? Order something.”

“Irish Coffee.”, Scarlett said, turning over to the redhead who was working the bar for that shift. “Iced.”

She turned back to Scarlett with a soft smile and said, “Comin’ right up.”

Penny couldn't help but grin as she watched Scarlett stare at her. It was so obvious she was checking the girl out.

“Like what you see?”

Scarlett raised an eyebrow and looked over at Penny as she plucked her lips sealed.

Penny leaned in close and hushed. “You know, there’s nothing wrong with checking someone out. You’re just appreciating what she looks like.”

“I know that.”, Scarlett hushed back, leaning close to Penny. “I just don’t wanna be too obvious about it.”

“Don’t you want her to see you back?”

“Kinda.”, Scarlett shrugged. “But I also don’t want her to think I’m some kind of weirdo or something.”

“You’re not.”, Penny shot out.

“Keep your voice down!”

Penny rolled her eyes up and said, “Look, as far as I’m concerned, and I say this as someone who knows you, you’re a decent human being. As long as you’re straight up with what you’re feeling, you’ll be fine.”

“That does make a lot of sense.”

Penny pat Scarlett on the head. “I know, hun. I know.”

The lady bartender came over with Scarlett’s drink and a variety of sugar and sweetener packets. “Iced Irish whisky.”

“Thanks.”, Scarlett smiled.

The lady bartender smiled back and turned away.

“What did I tell you?”

Scarlett opened a packet of brown sugar and dropped the bits inside her drink and gave it a nice stir with the straw the pretty bartender was kind enough to give her.
Scarlett brought her drink close with both hands and sipped from the straw and glared at Penny with a slight grin.

“Nice.”, Penny said, reaching for her glass to take another sip.

…
…
…

“Isn’t it weird how you always see the last people you’d expect to see, let alone want to see, you end up seeing anyway in an airport bar?”

“Kind of?”

Scarlett sipped from her straw again and gently put her glass back on the counter. “My mom and dad met in an airport bar.”

“Yeah?”

“Mhm.”, Scarlett nodded. “It was Christmas and they were both snowed in. My mom was supposed to go back home to Montreal and my dad had a show in Japan. They met in a place like this, started talking, and two years later, boom, I came along.”

“And here you are now.”, Penny said. “Talking to me.”

“I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“I didn’t either.”

“I didn’t know if I even wanted to talk to you.”

“I don’t even know why you did.”

“I just had this really sick feeling in my gut like I’d regret it if I didn’t say something.”

“Catholic guilt?”, Penny chuckled.

“I blame my abuelita for that one.”

“She’s a cool old lady.”

“She is.”, Scarlett smiled. “But she can be so out there sometimes and as trippy as she is.”

“-Oh, I’m pretty sure she’s a witch.”

“She is a witch! And she still goes to mass every Sunday!”

“That’s badass.”

“It’s kinda weird.”, Scarlet shrugged. “But that’s probably why I’d feel guilty if I didn’t talk to you.”

“You did beat my ass up, so I’m sure you’ve released whatever physical aggression you might have towards me.”

“For the most part, but it does hurt sometimes to think about.”

Penny took another sip. “Oh, I bet it does.”

“I was World Champion, I had everything and then before I know it, my best friend stabs in the back and I lose my title and everything goes to hell after that.”

“Good.”

“No, it’s not.”

“Yeah, it is.”

“How is getting betrayed and losing my title good for me?”

“Want me to be honest here?”

“What have you got to lose at this point?”

“Not a lot I suppose…”

“That’s what I imagined.”

“I just gave in.”, Penny said, sipping her drink and topping it off with a crush of an ice cube between her teeth. “I wish there was something better I could say, but Trace got to me and I gave in. I could say that I was worried about where you were going and the influence I had on you, because maybe we both went a little bit too far sometimes, but I can’t use that because we were really doing what we had to do to make it out there. I gave into a moment of weakness that I shouldn’t have allowed myself to have in the first place.”

“Trace must’ve really given you a beating, huh?”

Penny reeled herself back and hissed, “He did. It scares me so much that I actually allowed a person to do that to me. It’s doesn't feel good when you feel that helpless.” 

The tone in Scarlett’s voice changed as she leaned in close to say, ‘I’m sure you gave him a fight.”

“It wasn't enough.”, Penny said, taking in another sip, just hoping she could feel an extra kick from the cold fire of the vodka. “And no matter what I did, the only thing I could do was scream and ask him to stop.”

“Is that why you called out Schneider and challenged him?”, Scarlett asked. “Use him to prove something that way I did? The way everyone else in this promotion does?”

Penny crushed another cube of ice. “You’ve been watching the shows.”

“It’s like if you ever need to prove a point to anyone in that place, you can always antagonize Philip Schneider and get him to beat the living crap out of you.”

“But you beat him. And for the title too.”

“I learned from my dad.”, Scarlett sighed. “He was real dick about it at the time, but he toughened me up for it.”

“I’m not too worried.”

“About you? Neither am I. You enjoy hurting people the way he does.”

“You can’t forgive me, can you?”

“I’d like to.”

“That’s what I thought.”, Penny nodded, reaching out for her phone as she took a moment to take a look at the time. “Well, I’ve got a plane to catch.”

Scarlett sipped her Irish Coffee and nodded.

“I guess I’ll see you around?”

Scarlett closed her eyes and nodded.

Penny slung her backpack over her shoulder and fished out her wallet as she looked over to the bartender and slipped a bill before turning back to Scarlett and said, “It’s on me.”

“Thanks.”

“I turned on you and I was responsible for you losing your title.”, Penny said, slipping her wallet back into her backpack. “The least I could do is buy you a drink.”

“Yeah.”

Penny got off her seat and gave Scarlett a hug. “I’m sorry.”

Scarlett tensed up, but she held on to Penny’s wrist and held it as tight as she was hugging her. “I’m sorry too.”

That was it, really. Once the hug ran a second longer than it should have, Penny and Scarlett instinctively pulled away and just went on their separate ways.
For Scarlett, it was that glass of Iced Irish Coffee.
For Penny, it was out the door and into the loving arms of a terminal that was nowhere near ready for her flight.

Penny just had to get out of there. It was weird- she couldn’t really place it. Everything was fine, but it was like neither of them could really let go of what she did. Which Penny could totally get, if it just didn’t really suck as much as it was starting to really suck right now.
Penny slipped on her headphones to alleviate the sucky feels that was swelling in her belly right now, but she really wasn’t getting what she wanted from Jack Off Jill and before she knew it, while listening to the opening of “Strawberry Gashes”, Penny thought of a song she probably hadn’t heard since she was ten or something.
It was some Carly Simon song her mom used to play in the drive to school. She always played her Carly Simon mixtape in the morning and there was something about it that Penny was starting to miss, which was even worse because the very reason to put on her headphones right now was just to make sure she wouldn’t have to feel a thing again!

“Baaah!”, Penny grumbled as she slipped down her head phones and shrugged her hands into the pouch of her hoodie, walking.
Just walking.
Waiting for a flight that wasn’t set to leave for another forty five minutes; good lord!

“Excuse me!”, a lady somewhere around Penny shot out.

Penny turned her head. “What was that?”

And as soon as those words came out of her mouth, Penny saw a lady who was probably in her thirties who was walking her way with her offspring. “Me?”

“Hi.”, the lady in her thirties who was obvious that kid’s mom said. “I didn’t mean to bother you at all, but are you Penny Shannon?”

“Yeah, why?”

That Kid’s Mom’s eyes lit up as she tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear. “My daughter is such a huge fan of yours!”

Penny looked down at the little girl. “Really?”

That Kid’s Mom nodded.

“WOW, that’s sooo ing cool!”, Penny shot out, having to step back for a moment to kinda let things sit in for a bit. “… But wait, a minute? You’ve obviously seen the WFWF and not to be a bitch or anything, but really, you make you’re kid watch it? I mean, that’s pretty cool but we do some pretty ed up things.”

That Kid’s Mom’s blinked for a little as she replied. “We only catch the highlight show, anyway, she only really watches it for you.”

“Awww.”, Penny sighed, looking at the mini riot grrrl who was very a very-Penny like hoodie, until her train of thought kicked back in and she had to look back her mom, asking, “And you’re okay with that.”

“Granted.”, That Kid’s Mom began.

Penny nodded, totally ready for this.

“Granted, your matches tend to be incredibly violent and your language can be quite hard.”

“I do swear like a ****.”

“But you’re an honest young woman who is fighting for her place in the world, and I think that at the end of the day that’s the kind of influence I’d like my daughter to have instead of something manufactured that’s only going to lie to her when she’s old enough to really think for herself.”

“… Wow. I just don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything, I think.”, That Kid’s Mom said. “But I was wondering since you’re here, if it would be fine if you could take a picture with my daughter?”

“Are you ing crapting me?!”, Penny shot out as she wobbled towards the child with open arms. “OF COURSE I WOULD TAKE A PICTURE WITH YOU!”

Penny dropped down to her knees and wrapped her arm around her minion, locking her in the biggest embrace she could ever give another living creature.

“Hold it right there!”, That Kid’s Mom said as she held up her phone and leaned back, trying to find the perfect angle to snap a picture of the two of them. “Got it.”

Penny looked up at That Kid’s Mom and asked, “Think you can take another one?”

“Sure!”

“WAIT!”, yelled her minion, throwing out her arms as she pushed her back front to the front of her and grabbed toy championship belt.

“OH MY GOD!”, Penny shot out. “Do you wear this all the time?”

“She’s never anywhere without it.”, That Kid’s Mom replied.

“Right on!”, Penny nodded, her mind racing now with potential shots they could take together. “Okay.”, Penny nodded, licking her lips as she let herself lie in the floor of the terminal, her body in the form of a snow angel now as she turned towards That Kid’s Mom with her tongue sticking out; playing dead.
Her minion saw her opening and stomped her foot upon Penny’s chest as she looked up at her mom and held up her toy championship belt.

One click later, her Minion got her foot off Penny’s chest and darted over to her mom, unintentionally kicking Penny right in the boob.

Penny clutched her boob as she pushed herself back up and walked over to the two of them. “You really kicked the crap outta me, kid.”

“YAY!”

“That’s what I’m talking about!”, Penny shot out, holding up her hand for the mightiest of high fives, which the minion gladly took.

“What’s your name anyways?”

“Kim!”

“Possible?”

“Call me, beep me.”, her minion replied.

“Do you want to reach me?”

“Like, yeah?”

“Cool!”, Penny said, looking at That Kid’s Mom now. “Lemme give you my email address. I’d like to keep in touch, if that’s cool?”

“That would be really nice of you.”

“Thanks.”, Penny nodded, dropping her hands back into the pouch of her hoodie. “Yeah, if I’m ever in your area, let’s catch up and stuff.”

“WOW”, That Kid’s Mom nodded. “Thank you.”

“No, thank you.”, Penny shrugged. “This doesn’t always happen to me and you guys look like good people.”

They exchanged numbers and that was pretty much all there is to it. The boarding call for their flight echoed around the airport and one more high-five later, they were gone.
Penny kept herself where she was as she watched them both walk away. She was glad it happened and considering what had happened with Scarlett just a short while ago, it felt nice; like she had something in her now to make her want to breathe again.

“Huh.”, Penny shrugged. “I guess I am starting to grow up.”.
...
...
...
Crap. Penny just totally forgot to give that girl an action figure!

[Prophet of Ash]

The only advice I can give is the Jim Ross advice. These kids just need to slow it down. When you're writing, at least every paragraph or segment, give it a quick once over. The biggest flaw that you have in your writing is that you sometimes drop words. You can get everything said still, it's usually the bridge words that get dropped.

The piece overall was very good and told a nice story.

[Rated R]

I loved this man, I knew some of what was coming from what you sent to me but I wasn't expecting anything this solid, fleshed out and entertaining as the end result. Sure I'm with Schneider on that you need to proof read to avoid simple mistakes but other than that you hit it out of the park for me. It's funny that we both used the same kind of framing technique to tell very similar kind of stories and I think you did it really well, we got some really good insight into Penny as a character, fleshed out some of her rougher edges and overall I think she came out of this as a much stronger character and gave you some really great footing to tell future stories with her, basically everything you could possibly ask for from a piece like this. Great job.

[Drakz]

This was great man. It was nice to get a bit more of a fleshed out version of Penny beyond her joking around etc. I think the combination of her jokes and moments of despair make the best Shannon RPs. My favorite one prior to this was the one with the public toilet finger bang scene for similar reasons, but this took it a step further.

I wasn't really around for the main event run with Scarlet so it was great both getting an insight into that time period and also seeing Penny's side of the story. The forced hand.

My biggest problem, and it's already been mentioned, is just how many mistakes there are in the writing. I personally found it really off putting as almost every other sentence had either a key word missing from it or another typo of some sort. Usually I can overlook and forget this but in this instance there were o many mistakes that it really effected the flow of the RP for me.

If you had sorted that issue this would have been amazing. Still very very solid stuff though.