Post by Aurora Graves on May 13, 2018 21:31:33 GMT -5
Long Beach Polytechnic High School
Long Beach, CA
May 5, 2010
Aurora Quinn sat in a chair in the principal’s office, a glowering look on her face as she slouched, her arms crossed in front of her. The principal sat back in his chair, resting his arms on the armrests as he cast a disapproving glare at the 16-year-old blonde.
Principal Brown: Would you mind telling me what I saw back there?
Aurora continued to glare back at Principal Brown, her azure eyes peering through narrowed eyelids.
Aurora: Same thing I’ve been telling you about, but nothing seems to be getting done about it...
Principal Brown: So you took it upon yourself to take matters into your own hands.
Aurora: And why not? My father always tells me that if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.
Principal Brown: I highly doubt your father meant for you to shove a girl’s face into the bathroom wall....
Aurora: She tried to rip my bra off THROUGH MY SHIRT! What was I supposed to do? LET HER? And what about this?
Aurora reached down into her backpack, pulling out several sheets of slightly crumpled paper. She straightened them out as best she could, then emphatically slammed them down on Principal Brown’s desk. On the center of the top sheet, an image of Aurora’s face was printed, along with an obviously Photoshopped five o’clock shadow.
Aurora: It’s not the picture that bothers me, so much as what is printed around it.
Principal Brown scanned the paper, the color draining from his face as his eyes darted from one side of the paper to the other. Clearing his throat, he nervously set the papers down on his desk, folding his hands on top of them.
Principal Brown: While these are certainly... disturbing, Miss Quinn, I hardly see why this justifies you resorting to – ahem – physical violence.
Aurora: Because that seems to be the ONLY thing that they understand anymore! I’m not about to just sit around and let them keep doing this to me!
Principal Brown: In any event, Trinity Long is on her way to the hospital with a broken jaw; her parents may even press charges.
Aurora: I see how it is... I stand up for myself, and I’M the one that gets the book thrown at them.
Ian’s Voice: And if that girl’s parents even THINK about doing that, I’ll be countering and suing THEM for slander.
Aurora: Daddy!
Principal Brown: Mr. Quinn, I don’t see any reason to...
Ian: Sue the parents of the girl that’s been harassing my daughter for the last several weeks since she came back from major surgery?
Principal Brown: With all due respect, I don’t think this is the time to get into particulars, especially since neither one of us was present. All I can go on is what I’ve seen, and with things the way they are, I’m afraid I have no choice but to suspend your daughter.
Ian Quinn growled as he glared at Principal Brown, then turned his gaze back to Aurora. With an exasperated sigh, he held out his hand to his daughter.
Ian: Come on, Rory. Let’s get out of here.
Principal Brown: Perhaps you could use this time away from school to teach your daughter better coping methods....
Ian: NO! Perhaps YOU should teach these students not to be hateful little brats!
Aurora and Ian left Principal Brown’s office, leaving the school administrator sighing as he sat back in his chair.
Principal Brown: Well... now I see where she gets her temper from....
Vacation Rental
Philadelphia, PA
Present Day
Aurora sat in a glider, her infant daughter Ysera cradled in her arms as she gazed at her proudly. The young mother gently brushed back Ysera’s dark hair, letting her own blonde hair fall down from her shoulder. The ends lightly grazed the cheek of the four-month-old, who scrunched up her face in response.
Aurora: I guess Mommy should’ve worn a scrunchie, huh, Yssie?
She giggled as she pulled her hair away with her other hand.
Aurora: I may not have given birth to you, but your Daddy and I are going to make sure you grow up strong. You’re surrounded by fighters, Yssie, and not just the kind that like to beat people up. Though if you DO take up the family business when you grow up, your Daddy and I will be there to support you. But I’m going to make sure you know how to stand up for yourself, and to never let anyone get away with trying to keep you down.
Ysera yawned, arching her back as she stretched in her mother’s arms.
Aurora: Ready for your nap, Yssie? Okay... let’s get you settled in.
She got up from the glider and walked over to a port-a-crib, carefully laying Ysera inside. She watched as Ysera slowly drifted off to sleep, then slowly started to back away, not even noticing that her husband had slipped into the room. She continued to step backward, stopping only when she had backed into Damon, who merely smiled as he placed his hands on her shoulders.
Damon: And how are my favorite girls?
She giggled as Damon wrapped his arms around her. She settled into his embrace as they both gazed at their daughter.
Damon: I know it’s a little early, but since we’re gonna be busy beating the hell out of people on Sunday...
He reached into his pocket, pulling out a small plastic baggie, inside of which sat a coil of white gold. He pulled it out, revealing a necklace attached to a Claddagh pendant, the heart of which consisted of a cage containing three heart-shaped gemstones.
Aurora: Oh, Puddin’... it’s beautiful!
He draped it around Aurora’s neck as she reached up to touch the pendant.
Damon: There’s a stone for each of us in there... Aquamarine for you, sapphire for me, and of course...
Aurora: Blue topaz for Yssie... I love it; thank you!
She paused, a sudden pensive look coming over her face.
Damon: What is it, Harley?
Aurora: I just feel kinda bad that we’re on the other side of the country on Mother’s Day. Would’ve been great if we had brought Mom along with us.
Damon: I know. But once we’re back in Inglewood, we can celebrate after the fact.
Damon looked out the window, letting out a soft sigh.
Aurora: You okay, Puddin’?
Damon: Yeah... just thinking....
Aurora: About what?
Damon: How my mom would have loved being a grandmother.
Aurora: I’m sure she would have. Now come on... let’s sneak out of here so our daughter can sleep...
They turned around and slipped silently out of the room, closing the door behind them.
Wissachickon Valley Park
Philadelphia, PA
Saturday, May 12 2018
Aurora Graves walked along one of the many trails that cut through the dense woods that made up the park. She had no idea what about her surroundings warranted the name “Orange Trail,” but it provided a nice view of the Wissachickon Creek, which flowed by just a few feet from where she stepped.
The former Tag Team Champion walked with her hands stuffed into the pockets of her dark blue jeans, looking dreamily out in front of her, only briefly shooting a glance at the camera.
Aurora: Ah, Philadelphia... city of brotherly love and cheesesteak sandwiches.
She licked her lips at the mention of the greasy, yet much-loved edible icon, then continued.
Aurora: I’m not gonna lie; this is definitely not the way I had ever pictured celebrating my first Mother’s Day – you know, stepping into the ring and kicking the living shit out of someone – but hey, here we are. I’m not going to complain. After all, there was a time when the only creatures that would look to me as any sort of mother figure were of the four-legged variety.
But the annual celebration of the women that brought up the next generation of humanity is not the main reason I’m here. This Sunday at Dissension, I will be facing off against Daisy Rose’s sister Coral. And, as it turns out, she’s a former member of the Midnight Horsemen.
She gave the camera a derisive grin as she kicked a rock that sat in her path. It bounced off of one rock, then another, before rolling down into the creek.
Aurora: Can’t say that earns you any brownie points if I’m being brutally honest. But then again, none of those horse’s asses were all that high on my list of people I hold in high esteem. Of course, by that, I mean to say that not a single one of them made the list. So you’ll have to excuse me for not jumping for joy at the thought of facing a former heavyweight champion. You see, you’d just be one of many that I’ve stepped into the ring with over the last two years. Besides, you just got here; a win over you wouldn’t do all that much for my career.
But don’t delude yourself into thinking that I’m taking you lightly, because I’m not. However if my words manage to piss you off even the slightest, then maybe you’ll actually put up a decent fight. I guess we’ll find out one way or another at Dissension, won’t we, Coral?
Just know this... anyone that walks into a company and calls herself “Queen anything” gets zero respect in my book. To me, you’re just another pretentious cunt waiting to be taken down a peg or two. I’ve been given a chance to do just that, and I intend to make the most of that chance.
She smirked as she stooped down to pick up a fallen tree branch that stretched across the trail. Carefully, she set it off to the side.
Aurora: Honestly, I hope you do bring it this Sunday, Coral. Because if you don’t, I’ll be sorely disappointed.
See you in the ring.
She gave the camera one final smirk before making her way up the trail, disappearing as she passed behind a large bush. The camera then panned around to show off the scenery, fading slowly to black as it zoomed in on the water as it flowed over the rocky creek bed.