Coming Clean (for CaptainL)

[Pegasus]

William chuckled at Astrid clapping him on the back and saying how she has her students at the dorm as her kids to look after. Will thought Astrid would make a great mother to any kid as she knew how to keep people on the straight and narrow as well as be a kind heart to those in need. A friend in need is a friend indeed his mother always taught him, but he was just mixing up lessons in his mind thinking they sounded somewhat connected. However, when Molly asked if they needed to address anything else, he looked over at Jonathan and rubbed his chin. He then ducked down scooting over to one of the tables and brought out a big rectangular black box out from the shadows.

“Uh….are you gonna play an instrument for us?” Jonathan asked with a raised eyebrow.

“First off, you know I suck at making music and secondly….this has been a secret project I’ve been working on. A wool company wanted to attach itself onto The Reformation and wanted to create us armbands to upgrade our appearance. I signed off on it and promoted their business on social media. They gave me these,” William replied as she unlatched the box and opened it to reveal 14 black armbands.

Each armband has the name “THE REFORMATION” in big grey lettering and the first stick of the M was designed as a lightning bolt. Every armband also had the initials of the member they belonged to. For Jonathan and William, there is “JS” and “WA”’in grey lettering, but there were others like “MF,” “SC,” “ML,” “AO,” “RM,” “JH,” “BT,” and “HE.” Jonathan grabbed each one as he inspected the initials and widened his eyes looking at William.

“You can’t mean-there’s six of us now,” Jonathan stated in disbelief.

“And you always said you wanted female members. Think of the careers you, me, and the guys have helped ever since we started wrestling. You’re training them and producing results. I get to fight alongside them and even made great friends with them. I want them to join us. Astrid, Tornado, Sheila, Molly, Rylie, Jem, Harmonia, and Meiyun. They all deserve this,” William replied.

[CaptainL]

As it turned out, Molly had inadvertently stumbled upon something even bigger than she could have imagined. As William produced the box from under the table, everyone turned to watch with wide eyes - they could only imagine what might be inside. And when he revealed the contents, everyone gasped. They knew Jonathan and William had a stable in the works, but they didn't realize that he had plans to draw all of them into the loop. But when they saw their initials on the armbands, they knew exactly what his plans were.

"Well! It's good to know we can take our partnership to the next level, yeah?" Astrid chuckled, giving her husband a playful elbow in the side as she slipped her armband on and flexed her bicep, beaming with pride. "You didn't even tell me you were making these."

"Ooh, these are cool!" Meiyun quickly found her own armband, slipping it on and throwing some punches in the air, accompanying each with a battle cry. Sheila, however, seemed a little more confused. She sorted through the different bands, noting the initials on each, and while she could find her own easily enough, others left her looking back at the rest of the guests, mentally running through all their initials and comparing them to those on the armbands. "Wait, I think some of these have mistakes on them! Who's RM? Or JH? Or BT?"

Brianna chuckled to her, taking her own armband and pulling it on her arm as she struck a pose. "Well, I know that one," she said with a wink, causing Sheila to let out an "Ohhhh" when she remembered her ring name. The rest would soon be revealed, as William discussed expanding the roster. And at that, Molly beamed with a grin, sitting up taller in her seat.

"Oh, man," she said, reaching for her and Harmonia's armbands. "I can't wait to tell Moni about this! She's gonna be so excited we can be a part of this together!" To Molly, this offer was as an even more exciting one. Jonathan and William were involved in multiple promotions, between LAW, WFPW, and beyond. The Reformation could only follow them around the world. And now, all of them had the opportunity to expand their reach to new corners of the wrestling business. Molly knew how determined Harmonia was to make the Superstars into wrestling's next big sensation - the two of them were already chosen to be co-commissioners of WFPW, and that alone was enough to excite both of them for what the future would bring. But with both of them joining a faction that already boasted several champions among its members, it seemed like they were shoe-ins for success; they could only propel each other through their fame!

Everyone seemed to agree - and it wasn't long before the implications were known to everyone. With a smile on her face, Astrid turned to her husband and nodded her head. "Let me be the first to say...thanks a lot, Will. It means a lot to know that you have such faith in all of us to go this far. And I look forward to going on this journey with you. Both with our daughter, and with the Reformation."

"Yeah!! Thank you, William!" Sheila cheered - and her sentiment would soon be echoed by Molly, Brianna, and Meiyun, all of whom were eager to greet what the future might bring!

[Pegasus]

William loved seeing everyone around him get their armbands as Astrid flexed with hers on, Meiyun did some practice punches, and Molly gushed grabbing hers and Harmonia’s. Jonathan wanted to rebuild what the old faction was and it was only them and their friends. Jonathan had been wanting to include his wife in the faction for the longest time, but Brianna’s multiple reigns with the Wildcat Championship kept her busy the last few years along with other high-profile feuds allowing her to make a name for herself. Plus, Tornado had come to LAW and was busy with her open challenges taking on Jem Holland last summer in her debut match. The gamer girl and superhero wrestler became fast friends after the match and even collaborated a few times for gaming streams on ThePrinceandGeekiness YouTube Channel Jonathan and Brianna owned.

For his little pal, Sheila, and her friend, Meiyun, they needed the exposure with some top tier wrestlers that knew their stuff. They’ll still build on their resume here at LAW and even in WFPW, but there was nothing wrong with having a numbers game hanging in the background for them. Sheila already seemed impressive enough becoming undefeated in TLC matches and Meiyun managed to last surprisingly well against Rose Gold before her inevitable loss and humiliation. These two knew how to wrestle and everyone would be watching them going forward as potential big names. The Young Lionesses sure had some sweet apples in the basket.

“Well then, back to dinner, shall we? We can discuss ideas while stuffing our faces,” William stated

[CaptainL]

The plan was set. When the group returned to Tokyo, they were going to seek out Sarabeth Chummers - Sheila and Meiyun would be able to reach out to her as equals, and Astrid, as a mentor and trainer and as a supportive ear, would be there to guide her through any questions she still had. Soon, they would be ready to put to rest something that had been left unanswered for too long. But that wasn't the only thing they had planned. Soon enough, all of them would be making their presence known as fellow members of the Reformation - and when they were already all close friends, it could only be imagined what they could accomplish when they came together in the ring. There was a lot on the horizon to be sure - and as everyone set to dinner, the prospects the future held were the first thoughts on everyone's minds.

Meiyun was barely through chewing a mouthful of food before she sat up straight in her seat, jittering with excitement. "Oh, oh!! I've got a big match coming up - Best of 5 Submissions! It'll be my first big match since coming back to LAW. Maybe I could wear the armband for it! It'd be sure to get a lot of attention!"

That only gave Sheila an idea. "Oh! And Hank was talking to me about booking me in WFPW's World Cup tournament! What if we talk about it there, too?"

"I'll have to talk to Moni about it," Molly said, "but she's got a good eye for publicity. I'm sure that she'll be able to get out the good word for us. Maybe even design our merch. If she's going to be in it, we might as well take advantage."

"Okay, we would all look good together on a t-shirt," Brianna said - but then she looked back at William. "But I think I've got the real question on everyone's mind here. When's gonna be the first time we make an appearance as a group?"

[Pegasus]

William pondered on Brianna’s question as he tapped his chin in thought and looked over at Jonathan. Jonathan was touted as the leader of the faction and had all the plans ready for his group. He wasn’t expecting to take on new members so soon and he was more concerned with the fact his best friend had a daughter he never mentioned once for two decades. Jonathan crossed his arms and sighed a little bit as he closed his eyes. He drank some water and thought about it some more.

“To be fair on myself, I’m not really sure. I didn’t know Will wanted to include you all so that’s a tall order to take into consideration. Wearing your armbands during promos and matches is a good start and until Molly can speak to Moni on merch, things are limited for us marketing wise. I’ll have to think on a first official appearance. It may be with WFPW since most of the guys want to focus on their careers there and don’t want to jump back and forth between here and Japan,” Jonathan explained.

“That’s fair. I know you said you wanted to rebuild a few years ago and I’ve been thinking about it a lot, but wanted to focus on our reign as The Tag Team Gods. I can’t believe we held nearly all of the main tag team titles on the indies,” William replied back.

“They also need to know new members exist. I’ll arrange a Skype call tomorrow,” Jonathan stated.

[CaptainL]

When Astrid heard Jonathan bring up that he hadn't been told anything about the plans, she cast William a disapproving look. She knew her husband well enough to know that Jonathan was the brains between them, and any plans he had for the stable to go forward would rest on him...which wouldn't be so easy to sort out when he now found the number of wrestlers he had to work with had grown exponentially. "William..." she said in a cautioning tone.

Molly, however, was there to pat her on the arm, causing her to stop before she could say any more. "Hey, hey, relax...all he wanted was to surprise us all. I can't be mad at him for that."

The others listened closely as they discussed where they were going to go next, and Brianna nodded her head in agreement. "I have my open challenge going at LAW, so it'll be a way to draw attention to us. I've already got plenty of accomplishments for the announcers to brag about when they introduce me, so why not add another? As far as I see it, that'll help get the word out on the Japan side of things."

"But WFPW is probably the best place to start in all seriousness," Meiyun added. "It's where you two are most famous, so your word will have more impact there. Plus...while we're around in the States, we might as well make the most of our stay, right, Sheila?"

Meiyun had glanced over at her fellow Young Lioness...but Sheila was too focused on Jonathan and William's description of their prior accomplishments to stay in tune with this conversation. Now, she was leaning over toward Jonathan and William, her elbows on the table and her chin in her hands as she looked on with a grin. "Whoah, you held all the tag belts? Like, at once? That's so cool!!~" she cheered, to which Meiyun could only shrug her shoulders as she looked back at Molly and Astrid.

[Pegasus]

William smirked at his wife’s disapproving tone and Molly telling her to calm down. “Starting to sound like a mother there, Astrid. You’re the perfect one for Sarabeth.”

Everyone would finish their dinner and discard their plates into the sink as they all thought to turn in for the night, but Jonathan and Brianna would stay up with Will and Astrid to have a double date movie night. They watched a Nightmare on Elm Street film before they turned in themselves around 11:30 at night. The next morning, Will and Astrid asked their friends to help out with the morning chores as Astrid assigned Sheila and Meiyun to help her in the pig pen while Molly went to feed the horses. Jonathan, Brianna, and William would be left to collecting corn stalks and Will would pull out his tractor to plow the fields.

[CaptainL]

When Molly quelled her outburst, Astrid briefly took a pause, glancing down. At first, she was embarrassed to think that she hadn't been able to control her temper, especially knowing this wasn't the time for it - not when they were all friends, and they had such good things to look forward to. But what William said made her look back at him with a warm smile on her face. Maybe it was for the best she thought this way. Maybe, now, it was just what the family needed. "Heh...I guess you're right," she said.

Soon, she and Brianna settled down on the couch for a movie together, and the Wildcat Champion smirked as she stretched out on the couch, her hands behind her head. "Man...it really is good to be back together," she said. Since Astrid had won the championship, she had been spending more and more time in Japan to defend her title, as well as to promote the company around the world - but now that Jonathan, William, Ryan, and the others had found their way to LAW as well, they could all catch up with old friends. "I really missed hanging out, just as group. Doesn't hurt that this is a movie that never gets old, either," she added with a smirk.

"Oh, yeah...I wonder if it'll still make William scream like a girl," Astrid added with a chuckle, patting her husband's shoulder. Just in case, she leaned a little closer to his side, reaching to take his hand.

Come the next morning, everyone was early to rise - after all, as Sheila knew well, there was always work to be done on a farm, and no one was going to get away with visiting without chipping in. Luckily, the sun was shining, the breeze was gentle, and everyone was eager to help out. As Astrid gave out the tasks, Meiyun was quick to grab Sheila by the hand and pull her along, practically lunging at the Norsewoman with enthusiasm. "YES!! This is my dream come true. I can pet the piggies, right?"

Astrid chuckled to her. "You can, as long as you're careful. Don't forget, pigs can bite."

"And they smell bad, too," Sheila grumbled.

"Hey, they can't help that!!"

Molly, meanwhile, nodded her head. "Okay! My aunt has horses, so I've gotten to work with them before. I can handle this just fine!"

Brianna turned back to Jonathan, tightening the band of a hat around her head. "Well, looks like we've got the dirty work. I can count you boys to pitch in, though, yeah?" She was a city girl, and she had never gathered corn stalks before, but she was ready for it nonetheless. She was always happy to take on a challenge - and besides, how hard could it be?

[Pegasus]

William finished clipping his blue overalls and put on his straw hat as he nodded at Brianna, but then had a thought cross his mind. He looked over at Molly and knew she could probably handle herself, but some of the horses could be a little bit rough. He better send some support just in case.

“I’d be happy to show you how to bring in corn. I’m a little worried about Molly taking on the horses alone, though. Certain ones like being rowdy and some outright reject the food. We also got a new one named Dottie and she’s a primmadonna if she doesn’t get enough attention. Jonathan, go help her out the best you can. I’ll show Brianna the ropes,” William explained.

“That is a good call. She definitely doesn’t know how to handle the horses like you or Astrid could. I’ve worked with horses sometimes so I at least have experience to use if needed,” Jonathan stated as he went off to follow Molly to the horse stables.

“I rather be safe than sorry. Plus, Harmonia would kill me if Molly somehow got hurt or injured,” William whispered to Brianna.

They both stood in front of the corn stalks as William went over to the side of the chicken coop grabbing a metal bucket. He put it down near their first stalk and reached to pull down the crusty green leaves surrounding the corn before picking it. Will brought it down and started picking out hard solid pieces before showing Brianna.

“Gotta make sure to get out the really hard cubes. Can’t eat those,” William explained.

As for the pig pen, five pigs were already up in the morning as they all had name tags attached around their necks with black leashes. They were named Porkrind, Roscoe, Jimmy, Jenny and Fredrick.

[CaptainL]

Brianna eyed William as he explained himself - but as soon as he mentioned not wanting to draw Harmonia's ire, that was enough to tell her he had the right idea. She nodded her head, glancing back in the direction Molly had gone. "Yeah...I've seen the sort of stuff she's been up to now, and trust me, you do not want to get on her bad side." Even if William was no slouch himself when it came to his size and strength, she had no doubt that Harmonia could make short work of him without even breaking a sweat.

While Molly proceeded to the horse stables, stopping to extend her hand to the nearest horse's muzzle for a pat as she entered, Brianna turned to watch William explain harvesting the corn. She bit her lip a little nervously as it quickly dawned on her that she had never performed anything remotely approaching this line of work in her life. Still, it didn't seem like it would be that hard. Following William's lead, she too went to shuck the leaves away from the corn before sorting through the kernels on the ear. "Alright, I see, I see...like this?" she asked, letting William see what she was doing.

As soon as the pigs moved out to greet her, Meiyun grinned excitedly, leaning down to scratch a few of them on the head. They sniffed at her and swarmed around her, which only made her vibrate with glee. "You didn't tell me they all had names," she said, turning back to Astrid.

"Oh, yes. Pigs are very smart. They'll come if you call them. Watch!" With that, the Norsewoman clapped her hands, and the pigs came running her way. She scooped up a bag of feed from beside the fence and dumped it into their trough, and they quickly set to work. "Now that they're distracted," she said, dusting off her hands, "we'll have the time to get to work on what we really came here for. Cleaning the manure."

At the sound of that word, the color drained away from Sheila's face. Suddenly, this was looking a lot less fun than she thought it would be. "...oh," she muttered, biting at her lip.

Meiyun looked back over to her with an eyebrow raised questioningly. "Didn't you grow up on a farm?"

"Yeah," Sheila cut back, "with cows, and they're a lot cleaner!"

"Pigs actually prefer to be clean," Astrid explained. "People just think they're dirty because they wallow in mud to stay cool. But it's important we keep the mess in their pen under control for that reason. That's what the gutters are for." Picking up a scraper, Astrid began to push the contents of the pen toward a gutter running along its length. And, getting the idea, Sheila and Meiyun were quick to fall in behind. "See? Not so bad."