Healing: Part 11

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Scene 1

Off Camera

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Breakdown from Indianapolis, Indiana was just the shot in the arm Marie Annabelle Jones needed.  The Phoenix defeated Blake Mason on Breakdown, giving her much needed momentum heading into her United States Championship rematch against Jinn on Breakdown from El Paso, Texas.  A victory over Blake Mason, someone who has been in the main event against the likes of Kelcey Wallace, Selena Frost, and others, was a big boost for Marie’s confidence.  Now, more than ever, she feels she is ready to take on Jinn and she is feeling confident about her chances to recapture the SCW United States Championship.

If only she felt just as confident about repairing the fractured Jones family.

Jones can’t help but feel responsible, in a way, for a lot of the problems that have been plaguing the Jones family recently.  Her mother, Angelica Jones, has always favored her over the other children, including Jessica, Marie’s half-sister and Kimberly, Marie’s identical twin sister.  Marie, according to Angelica, was the glue that kept her sane.  Needless to say, this created friction amongst Marie and Jessica, friction that would grow over the years.

Kimberly would take her rage to a new level by attempting to destroy the family, going to the point of even kidnapping Marie and attempting to replace her in her life.  Jessica, though, rescued Marie.  To this day, Marie does not know what all Jessica went through to rescue her, but Jessica claims she sacrificed a great deal to rescue her half-sister.

Now Kimberly is repentant.  She feels bad for what she has done and wants only to be welcomed back into the family.  Marie has accepted her and has even gone to the lengths of helping Kim to get the mental help she needed.

Jessica, on the other hand, is unwilling to accept Kimberly back into the family.  One can understand Jessica’s perspective.  Kimberly has performed many dastardly deeds during her lifetime, many of those crimes against the Jones family.  It’s hard to ignore those facts.  But there’s more to Jessica’s reaction to Kimberly than just mere skepticism…

…Jessica is jealous, and that jealousy boiled over in a bad way one day earlier, when Jessica and Marie met at the Hope and Anchor bar in El Paso, hoping to hammer out their differences.  Unfortunately things did not turn out too well for Marie when Jessica lost her temper and knocked her to the ground.

Lucky for Marie, she does have one more chance to try and make things right between the two of them.  She recently received a text from her half-sister Jessica.  She wants to meet, alone, in an old park on the outskirts of El Paso.

Entering the park, a slight breeze rustles the leaves making them fall to the solid ground one by one.  The park, once resplendent in the town's heyday was a scrub of moss and weeds.  Used needles lay amidst the shabby greenery, invisible and able to pierce the common light-weight shoes the children wear.  They had benches, ornamental trees, flowers year round and water fountains in clear lakes.  The air was warm, the beams of sunlight glowing on Marie’s skin as she makes her way through the grass.

The beautiful redhead is wearing an ankle length flowing floral print skirt, a black sleeveless top, and flip flops. Her  long red hair hangs unrestrained to shoulder length.  The Crown Jewel of Professional Wrestling scans the area, looking for her temperamental half-sister, and it isn’t long until she hits pay dirt…

…just over the hill she spots an old bench.  Sitting hunched over on the bench is Jessica Jones.  Marie, being a devout Catholic, feels that the best way to prepare for this is to invoke the man upstairs, so she makes the sign of the cross over her chest before making her way up the hill and towards the bench.

“Jessica!” Marie calls out, but Jessica doesn’t acknowledge it.  “Jess!”

This time Jessica does look up just as Marie stops right at the bench.  Jessica sighs and nods her head.

“Hi there, Marie.”

“Greetings, Jess.” Marie says, forcing a pleasant smile. “I’m glad you texted me.  You had me worried.”

“Yeah, is that so?” Jessica chuckles. “Well trust me, I had to think long and hard about this before arranging this meeting.”

Jessica scoots over a little and pats the bench, motioning for Marie to sit down next to her. “Come on, Marie. Sit down.  I promise not to bite.”

“Yeah, lately I’m not so sure.”

“Yeah, you got a point there, but I mean it.  You’re safe.”

Marie sighs and then sits down on the bench next to her half-sister Jessica.  “So I’m safe?”

“Yeah, you’re safe.” Jessica says, nodding her head. “I apologize for attacking you back at Hope and Anchor, I just my temper but all is well.  My temper is under control.”

“Your temper is well known.” Marie begins. “I’m not surprised at all, but for you to lose control the way you did, to not only attack me but attack me in public the way you did.  You do realize the danger you were in, don’t you?”

Jessica nods her head. “Yeah…”

“Had I pressed charges you could’ve been arrested. Or worse.”

“Well thanks for not pressing charges, then.”

“Yes, but that’s not the point.” Marie says, shaking her head. “The point is that I haven’t seen you lose control the way you did yesterday.  What gives, Jess?  What’s wrong?  And if any of this is my fault…”

Marie’s voice trails off as she shakes her head “…if any of this is my fault, I’m sorry.  I…”

“No, stop.” Jessica says, shaking her head. “None of this is your fault.  I don’t even have a problem with Kimberly.”

“Then who do you have a problem with?”

“Our mother.”

Marie nods her head in realization.  She suspected this much from the beginning.  It isn’t as if Angelica Jones has been trying to cause rifts or stir up trouble between her children, but the sins of her past has come back to haunt the family.  The sins of Angelica neglecting Kimberly and neglecting Jessica have finally come back to create problems between the three children.  Kimberly had long since lost control over the situation and now seemingly it’s Jessica’s turn to lose control.

Marie just hopes that she can help Jessica find her way back.  But first, she has to hear about her sister’s problem…

“This isn’t easy for me, Marie.” Jessica begins. “It’s easy for you because you are mom’s favorite but I was neglected.”

“You had your father.”  Marie answers back.  “I didn’t have that.”

“True, but my father was so obsessed with his wrestling career that sometimes I felt neglected by him, as well.  I felt ignored, Marie.  And then to see you give so much attention to Kimberly…”

She chuckles “…I’ll admit, I was rather intrigued at the possibility of Kimberly being normal.  But then as I thought about it more and more I began to consider the very real possibility of Kimberly rejoining the family….”

Jessica shakes her head “…I got jealous.  I admit it, I was jealous of the fact that I was ignored, I was loyal but ignored, and Kimberly tried to destroy the family once and yet she’s being accepted back in with open arms?  No consequences?”

“That’s where you’re wrong.” Marie says, shaking her head. “Kimberly is normal now, her mind is right, and that means she feels guilt, the guilt over what she did in the past to me, to you, to our mother.  She will have to live with that guilt for the rest of her life.  Do you want consequences, Jess?  How is that for consequences?”

“Ok, I’ll give you that,” Jessica says, nodding her head “assuming you’re right and Kimberly has changed, then yeah, guilt would be consequence enough.”

“And that right there is what I’m talking about,” Marie says “Kimberly HAS changed.  She went through a great deal to make amends for the past and to change her life.  She took your worst beating and never fought back.  Remember?”

Jessica sighs and nods her head. “Yes…”

“What I’m trying to say is that anyone can find their way back from that dark place.” Marie rests a hand on her sister’s knee. “I found my way back when many thought I was lost.  Kimberly has found her way back, whether you believe it or not.  And Jessica…”

Marie smiles warmly “…you can find your way back too.”

“But Marie,” tears are forming in Jessica’s eyes “why would I want to find my way back?  Why return to a family where Angelica Jones, OUR MOTHER, favors you and maybe even Kimberly over me?”

“Jessica, I can’t change our mother, and I can’t change your opinion of our mother, but our mother, even if she is the matriarch of the Jones family, is just one member of the family.”

Marie smiles warmly. “Think of the rest of the family; Aunt Kayla, our sister little Kelly, and of course Kimberly.”

“Yeah…” Jessica says quietly, not sounding very confident.

“I’m not asking you to make amends, Jessica.” Marie begins. “I’m just asking you to try.”

“You want me to try?”

“Yeah,” Marie says, nodding her head “just try.”

“I think I can do that.” Jessica says, smiling warmly. “I want to do that.  If for no one else then for you.”

Jessica embraces Marie in a tight hug. “I hate us feuding, Marie.”

“Me too, Jess.  Never again, right?”

“Right.  Never again.”

After breaking the embrace, Marie smiles knowingly. “I got an idea, Jess; an idea for some sisterly bonding.”

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Scene 2

Off Camera

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Marie and Jessica, at least, seem to have repaired the rift that had formed between them.  For Marie, that is a good start.  Is there a long way yet to go?  Of course.  Will Jessica forgive Kimberly and accept her back into the family?  That remains to be seen.  Will Jessica forgive Angelica for what she claims is a lifetime of neglect?  That also remains to be seen.  But at least Jessica has made amends with Marie and at least she has seemed willing to entertain the possibility of making amends with the rest of the family.  For Marie, that is a victory.

Jessica was certainly willing to engage in the “sisterly bonding” that Marie brought up earlier in the day.  She didn’t know it at the time but now she realizes that the “sisterly bonding” is specifically some training for Marie’s United States Championship match on Breakdown.

The sounds of a female grunting as well the echoes of feet against a heavy bag are heard throughout an empty gymnasium on the outskirts of El Paso, Texas.  The concrete floor is gray and the walls are painted an off-white color, at least the walls that still have paint on them, as most of the paint on the walls have begun to peel.  There is a standard wrestling set up in the center, weights scattered all over the floor.  At one of the far ends of the room is a red heavy bag.  The lovely Marie Jones is standing there at the heavy bag dressed in a pair of workout shorts, black tanktop, and her long red hair pulled into a ponytail in the back, as she viciously attacks the heavy bag with her well-educated feet.

The Phoenix lost to Jinn at Supreme Saturday from Puerto Rico and that loss cost her the SCW United States Championship.  Marie is getting a rematch now in El Paso and she realizes that if she fails this time that she may not get another opportunity for a very long time. And not only that, but this is still the road to Rise To Greatness.  Marie wanted to walk into Rise To Greatness as a champion but Jinn put those plans in doubt.  Marie will now have to fix things, she will have to repair the damage that was done in Puerto Rico and reclaim the SCW United States Championship in order to right the ship and punch her ticket to the biggest event of the year.

With each kick, from roundhouse kicks to jumping spin kicks, Marie grunts loudly and the bag heaves back and forth.  The force of these kicks would be enough to take the head off of any competitor; she just hopes they will be effective against Jinn on Breakdown.   The kicks continue, increasing in ferocity and intensity, until Marie finally decides to take a break.

“Stopping so early?”

The beautiful red-head reaches down and picks her white towel up off of the blue mat she had been standing on.  She wipes the sweat from her forehead and then drapes the towel over her right shoulders and sighs. She turns around in the direction of the voice.  It’s her sister, Jessica Jones, who is watching her closely.

“Early?  I’ve been beating this bag to death.” Marie remarks somewhat incredulously. “And that’s not to mention the running, the weight lifting, and the sparring…”

“You’ve done no sparring, Marie.” Jessica says with a smirk.

“Alright, fine,” Marie says chuckling “there was no sparring, at least not yet.”

“Sparring would do you some good.” Jessica remarks. “But who do you have in mind?”

Marie points a finger at Jessica. “You…”

“I could,” Jessica sighs and shakes her head “but let’s be honest, Jinn is more of a high flyer, I’m a mat technician. I’m a submission wrestler. If you want to defeat Jinn, if you want to be ready for Jinn, then you need to be sparring against someone who is a high flyer.  You also need to prepare your speed.  That’s why that running earlier was a good idea.”

Marie doesn’t answer right away, she just smiles, grinning from ear to ear.  Jessica looks on, rather puzzled. “What?”

“I’m just glad the two of us are back together and back on the same page, Jess.” Marie answers. “That’s all.  We work best when we’re on the same page.”

“Damn right we do.” Jessica says, nodding her head.

Marie and Jessica lean in and embrace in a tight hug.  After breaking the embrace Marie just sighs and motions away, towards the doors.

“Well, come on then, Jess.”

“Where are we going?”

“Let’s leave.” She says. “If I can’t spar today then I may as well leave.  Sparring was the last thing I wanted to do anyway, maybe I can get in some last minute sparring the morning of?”

Jessica shrugs her shoulders. “I wouldn’t suggest it, but suit yourself.”

Marie immediately makes a beeline towards the doors with Jessica following closely behind.  Marie pushes the doors open and steps outside, Jessica follows her outside.  Jessica immediately stops dead in her tracks as she spots Kimberly standing just a few feet away from herself and Marie.  Jessica looks quizzically at her half-sister.

“Marie, what is this?”

“Jess, please, I asked for Kimberly to come.” Marie quickly gets in between Kimberly and Jessica, in fear that another physical confrontation may erupt. “You did say you would try to make amends.”

“Right, but Marie,” Jessica frowns “aren’t you putting me on the spot?”

“Remember what we talked about?” Marie asks insistently. “Remember what we stand for?  Redemption.”

Redemption was the name of the tag team that Marie and Jessica once formed.  They used the name Redemption because they felt that the purpose of the tag team was to redeem the Jones family.  They believed in the idea of redemption.  Marie hopes that she can get her sister to remember the value of redemption right now.

“Yeah, I remember Redemption alright,” Jessica begins, “but…”

“No, wait a minute.” Kimberly steps in front of Marie, getting face to face with Jessica. “Let me talk to her.”

Kimberly sighs. “Jessica, I’m not going to stand here and say that I’m a saint now.  Far from it, I’m still a dirty bitch.  But am I a Jones?”

She nods her head. “I am…Jones blood runs through my body…and do I feel guilty over what I did to my sister and to our mother?”

Tears, real tears, form in Kimberly’s eyes. “Yes, yes I do.  Jess, I’ve never had a real family.  That’s what I want.  I just want the chance to have a real family.”

Jessica pauses for a long period of time, staring incredulously at Kimberly and then she turns and glares at Marie.

“Why did you set this up?”

“Because I want to fix things for us, for this family.” Marie states definitively. “And because I believe in redemption.  I’ve needed it, Kimberly needed it, you needed it.  And Jess, I think you still believe in redemption too.”

Jessica rolls her eyes as she turns back to face Kimberly. “Kimberly, I’m keeping my eyes on you…and I may never ever trust you, not after what you have done…”

She sighs “…but I do still believe in redemption.  So yes, I’ll give you a chance.”

Jessica extends a hand.  Kimberly accepts the handshake. “That’s all I want.  I just want a chance.”

Jessica grins. “Welcome to the family.”

What Jessica and Kimberly do not notice as they shake hands are the tears, tears of joy, flowing down the cheeks of Marie Annabelle Jones.  The Crown Jewel of Professional Wrestling does still have a material possession to win, the United States Championship, but she has perhaps won a bigger victory here.  She has achieved a healing that her family has so desperately needed.  She healed the family and now, while the future is unclear still for Kimberly and Jessica as well as Marie, the future is now much more promising.

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On Camera

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“Redemption is not perfection.  The redeemed must realize their imperfections.”

Redemption is something that means a great deal to me.  I believe in redemption because I have needed it, my sisters have needed it, and hell, if she’s honest with you, my own mother has needed it.  Redemption, I’d dare say, is something that almost all of us have needed at least once in our lifetime.  So to me, redemption is a very important aspect of life.

If I was perfect, living in a perfect world, I would have beaten you in Puerto Rico, Jinn, and this match between you and I in El Paso would not be necessary.  I would be coasting into Rise To Greatness as the SCW United States Champion.  But on that night my best just wasn’t good enough.  On that night my best was not perfect; I was imperfect and you managed to take advantage of my imperfections to get a win over me and claim the United States Championship.

Good job on that one, Jinn.

This is why redemption is not and never will be perfection.  Once redemption has been achieved you still have to work at it, you still have to fight carnal urges that tend you towards imperfection, and you have to also realize that everyone has the potential to improve in some manner, no matter how good they are.

So really and truly, redemption is a never ending journey to better yourself.  And Jinn, I’ve done a great deal of introspection ever since Puerto Rico.  I’ve watched that match again and again to see what went wrong and to see how I can improve myself, because El Paso, Texas the tables have been turned.  You’re the champion and I’m back in the role of challenger.  This is my rematch and I know that I may not get many more opportunities at the United States Championship after this, so I’d better make it count.

And this isn’t just about improving myself, Jinn.  This is also about Rise To Greatness.  We are squarely in that oh so special season where everyone wants to make their mark, everyone wants to make an impact heading into the biggest event of the year.

This is my first Rise To Greatness since joining Supreme Championship Wrestling.  But if you think I have no idea what this is all about, what Rise To Greatness is all about, then you are dead wrong.  I know exactly what’s at stake, I know exactly what this great event means to the athletes here in SCW.

My mother has been with this company for years now.  I’ve been on the sidelines witnessing Rise To Greatness come and go for her and in that time I have come to realize that Rise To Greatness is that time when your legacy can be forever written in the stars in one match and in one night.  My legacy as an SCW athlete has yet to be determined, but Rise To Greatness very well could go a long way to determining what my legacy here with this company will be.

I’ll get a spot on the card, either on the main show or on the pre-show, I’m sure of it, that much doesn’t bother me.  But I would love nothing more than to walk into this great event as the SCW United States Champion.  I would love nothing more than to defend the United States Championship on the grandest stage of them all.

It’s what I was born to do, Jinn.  It’s what I was bred to do.  Wrestling is in my blood, it flows through my body.  I live for the cheers of the fans and I live for those moments when the referee raises my hand in victory and the announcer tells the world that I’ve won the match.  I live for those moments.  Just like this past Breakdown when I drove Blake Mason’s head into the canvas with Ave Maria.  I made the cover and heard the referee count the pin.  Then I heard the voice of our announcer, Phillips, declare…

“Here is your winner, via pinfall, Marie Jones!”

…I live for those moments, Jinn, not because I’m arrogant and want to have my ego stroked, but because those moments are shining examples of hard work paying off.  I busted my ass several months ago not just to make my return to the SCW roster but to return the right way in the right frame of mind, with the determination that I could get the job done without any tricks or cheap tactics.  People doubted my sincerity but I knew who I was and what I was capable of, and I knew that my hard work would pay off eventually.

Defeating Tyler Tucker to become SCW United States Champion was just the perfect, sweetest example of my hard work paying dividends.

Now I have another task on my hands and that involves winning that championship back.  My task now doesn’t involve proving myself because people know now what I’m capable of doing inside of the wrestling ring.  My task doesn’t involve proving that I can win without cheap tricks, because ever since returning I have beaten the likes of Tyler Tucker, Regan Street, and Blake Mason all without resorting to under handed tactics.

My task now is to rise to greatness, pardon the pun.  My task is to become a two-time SCW United States Champion, thus punching my ticket to the self-named greatest event on the SCW calendar, allowing myself to walk in as the defending champion.

That means defeating you, Jinn.

You want to keep this championship safe from the evil-doers, or that’s what you say.  If by “evil-doers” you mean people like Regan Street then I would definitely agree.  Her actions as of late have not been those of someone worthy to represent this great company as a champion.  And Jinn, if it puts your mind at ease in any way, I will promise to make sure people like Regan Street and others who subscribe to her philosophy do not get anywhere near that championship.

But this is where I burst your bubble, because this isn’t about the forces of good against the forces of evil.  Hell, some would say that Supreme Championship Wrestling, as of late, has been evidence that pure good and pure evil may not exist anymore.  The best of individuals, or at least those we thought were the best of individuals, have proven to have spotty records while those who were the worst scum of humanity once upon a time now are working to improve themselves.

Ask them and they’ll tell you that there is a time and a place for the discussion of good and evil, but that place is not inside of the wrestling ring.  When that bell rings, Jinn, it doesn’t matter who is good and who is evil.  What matters is who is the best athlete.  What matters is who is worthy of carrying that United States Championship into Rise To Greatness and representing this company as champion on that grand stage?

I know that I can be that person, Jinn.  I was that person once before and I know I can do it again.  You got one over on my in Puerto Rico and that cost me the title, that cost me my spot at the top of the mountain.

You can fool me once, Jinn, but now that I’ve wrestled you, now that I have experience against you, I will be more prepared than ever before.  I have studied the tape and have found my imperfections.  Those imperfections have been improved.  The mistakes I made in Puerto Rico will not be made again.

El Paso will not be easy for you, Jinn, I can guarantee you that.  If you want to walk into Rise To Greatness as champion and defend that belt against the “forces of evil” then you’re going to have to earn that spot at Rise To Greatness in the fight of your life against The Crown Jewel of Professional Wrestling, against The Phoenix.

And I know deep down in my heart and soul that I am in for the same fight, that I am also in for the fight of my life.  I remember quite well what it was like to win my first singles championship here in SCW and I was not ready to give it up so easily.  I fought like hell to keep it.

Just ask Regan Street and Tyler Tucker what I was willing to do, what I was willing to sacrifice, in order to keep that championship.

I know the feeling that you must have, being SCW United States Champion, and so I know you must be experiencing similar feelings, similar desires of wanting maintain that grip on the championship.  So I know full well that taking the championship away from you in El Paso will be a tough task, but it will be a task that I am ready for, a task that I am capable of achieving, because I want that title back, I want it badly, and I will sacrifice my body if necessary in order to get the job done.

Puerto Rico is in the rearview mirror. I’m moving on and looking forward into the future and that future has you in my sights, Jinn.  You have the United States title that I want and we’re both on that same road to Rise To Greatness.  I just have to get past you in order to get to the promised land, so to speak.

You knocked me down, Jinn, and in the process you took my championship.  Fair play to you, but understand who I am, or more specifically WHAT I am.  I am The Phoenix and if you know you know mythology then you know that even when the Phoenix dies, it is resurrected in fire.

The fire of my passion for this business still burns bright and hot, Jinn, and this Phoenix will be resurrected in El Paso, Texas when I reclaim the SCW United States Championship and I ride on past you and into Rise To Greatness where I will begin to write my own legacy.