Clash of Loyalties

[Weonna]

"Did you say you have a rough time here?"

Christina couldn't help but laugh in disbelief that a rich and privellaged French girl told her about rough times.

"Girl, a hard time for you is when your caviar isn't imported from the Caspian Sea."

Christina joked with Alanna before hugging her back and going instantly to Emma.

"So Golden Girl, looks like your nickname wasn't just fool's gold after all!"

Christina also joked with Emma as Emma would smile and hug Christina in a friendly embrace.

As Christina and Emma shared a friendly embrace, the sound of laughter filled the luxurious penthouse. The four friends (plus Marine) settled into comfortable chairs, surrounded by the breathtaking view of the city skyline. Glasses of sparkling water in hand...

"So Emma~"

Christina began, a playful glint in her eye,

"I'm curious why you invited all of us to your penthouse today. Are you planning to challenge us to a match right here?"

"Well...kinda...but not in the way you think...you see...The next pay-per-view is just a month away, and the bookers have me scheduled to wrestle against Alanna, which I'm not particularly fond of. I thought a tag team match with all of you would be a great way to shake things up and have some fun in the ring before that match. Plus...we get to go to Austria!"

[ScylliasExoter]

”I know, I know, first world problems. Get over here.”
Alanna hugged Christina back. When everyone got settled in with their drinks and finished the small talk, the tone turned more serious.
”Emma’s being diplomatic. Truth be told, neither of us want to fight the other. At all. My original plan was to lie down for her-“
“Which is unacceptable for her career,” Marine interrupted.
“… But Emma came up with this idea.”
”Hell yes!” Helen interjected. Let’s do it!
”Just one problem. You have to call management and convince them,” Marine posited.

[Weonna]

Alanna: ”Emma’s being diplomatic. Truth be told, neither of us want to fight the other. At all. My original plan was to lie down for her-“

Emma: "Wait that was the plan?...because I was gonna lie down for you..."

Emma blushed and hid her face. As the conversation was going on Marine said that the group would need to convince management about having a tag team match.

Christina: "Not a problem! We have a whole month ahead of ourselves to convince management to give us a tag team match. This should be easy. Heck I'll call now!"

Christina reaches for her phone as she cleared her throat and waited for a manager to answer the phone...

Emma: ""Wait, we shouldn't jump the gun just yet,"

Emma interjected, her expression thoughtful,

Emma: "I think it might be better to come up with a solid plan first and then approach management as a unified front. We want to present a strong case for the tag team match and show them that we've thought everything through."

[ScylliasExoter]

Alanna sat up upon hearing Emma say that she would lie down for her.
”No. I would lie down for you at the PPV. If we can’t get this alternate match, I’ll fight you for who gets to lie down for the other.” Alanna looked into Emma’s eyes, ready for a challenge.
Marine had an incredulous look on her face.
Helen, who was on her second glass of wine, giggled at the whole scene.
”I think Emma’s right. United front and angle. Maybe we can have an “incident” here at our little party that gets caught on video? What did you have in mind?”
Marine piped up, ”If you want to play good cop, bad cop, you can start with the soft approach and I can swoop in more firmly if that doesn’t work.”

[Weonna]

While everyone was throwing out ideas on how the tag team match would be presented, Christina finally got a call from one of management as, Christina tells everyone to quiet down as she puts the call on speaker.

Voice from Management: "Greetings! May I know the name of the person I'm speaking with? It's a pleasure to connect with you."

Christina: [on the phone] "Hey there, it's Christina Perez. I've got something important to discuss about my PPV match with Helen at Fight the LAW 3. I'm actually here with my fellow wrestlers, Alanna Antoinette and Emma Leblanc, and we were wondering if there's any chance we could switch our singles matches to a tag team match. It would be me and Helen against Emma and Alanna. What do you think?"

Voice from Management: "Hey Christina, I understand your request, but unfortunately, we've already locked in the match lineup for Fight the LAW 3. So, we won't be able to make the changes you're suggesting right now."

Christina: [to the phone] "I understand. Is there any room for flexibility though? We believe a tag team match would really elevate the excitement for the event."

Voice from Management: I appreciate your enthusiasm, Christina, but the decision has been made. The current matchups will remain as planned.

[ScylliasExoter]

Marine rolled her eyes upon hearing Christina’s conversation with management. She turned to Alanna,
”If this tag match happens, can I be at ringside?”
”Bien sûr.”
After management’s final denial, Marine got up, walked over to Christina, and snatched the phone from her.

“This is Marine Antoinette of Séraphin Corporation, who is this?… Okay, Takeshita, fuck face, why don’t you take a step back and literally VA TE FAIRE ENCULER!! Je m’en fous what you want! Emma and Alanna are THE power couple representing my fashion line! Your match emotionally and physically hurts the face of MY brand. I don’t know what you get off on when you sit on the toilet and Take a Shit-A, but Emma and Alanna will wrestle a tag match together as they just asked or my lawyers will rain an unholy firestorm upon your company. They’ll teach about it in business and law school after what I’ll do to you. I’m talking scorched earth, fils de pute! I WILL MASSACRE YOU. I WILL FUCK YOU UP!”

She clicked the phone off and tossed it back to Christina.
”Oh. I suppose we should call back and find out what they say.”

[Weonna]

The room falls silent as Marine finishes her heated conversation with management. She turns back to the group, her expression a mix of defiance and determination.

Marine: "Oh. I suppose we should call back and find out what they say."

Christina: [staring at Marine in disbelief] Marine, that was... quite a conversation.

Emma: [smirking] I think "scorched earth" might be an understatement.

[ScylliasExoter]

"Oh boy Queen Antoinette is at it again..." Alanna groaned and hugged Emma, hoping Marine's gamble worked.
Marine turned to the others.
"By labor laws, you're independent contractors. Normally, you're just a cog in their machine with no rights. But now you have another company in your corner. Hold firm and they'll come around. Let them sweat and call back."
Marine drained her wine as they waited for LAW's callback.

[Weonna]

As they waited for the callback from LAW, tension filled the room. Alanna and Emma exchanged worried glances, unsure of how the situation would unfold. Christina, on the other hand, appeared composed, her steely demeanor revealing nothing of the storm brewing inside her.

After what felt like an eternity, the phone finally rang. Christina glanced at the caller ID and took a deep breath before answering.

"Yes this is Christina Perez speaking?...oh?...umm...ok..."

Christina would look at Marine and pass the phone to her.

"They want to talk to you..."

The voice on the other end of the line belonged to Takeshita, the representative from LAW.

"Ms. Antoinette, I understand your concerns, but making demands in such a manner is not how we conduct business,"

he said, his tone laced with irritation.

[ScylliasExoter]

Marine smirked at their callback. ”Allo?… Yes this is Marine Antoinette… I think we can all move forward doing business the right way. That is why you called back, yes? To do business. So let’s do business. What do you want for this to be a tag match instead of a couple match?”

Helen, who had drained her second glass of wine, mimicked, “Excuse me, I want to speak with the manager.” She giggled and hugged Christina.