Magical Cosmic Princess YUYO vs. Marie Jones

[The Matt]

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June 22nd, 2024
Boston, Massachusetts
Off Camera
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Marie’s goal of obtaining redemption for her past crimes may have been successful, she may have even been successful in obtaining the trust of the SCW locker room and the support of her fans, but her career has yet again hit a bit of a snag. Ever since she lost the SCW Television Championship, The Phoenix has had a roller coaster ride of ups and downs. She defeated Gavin Taylor to earn a shot at the SCW Adrenaline Title but then failed to win the belt, she failed to win Taking Hold of the Flame, and then when granted a shot to get revenge against a former member of Infamous, Autumn Valentine, Marie failed to capitalize on that one and lost. Now she has yet another opportunity, this time against Magical Cosmic Princess YUYO of the Shining Maidens. YUYO is returning to SCW after a brief hiatus and has been on quite the roll. Stopping YUYO’s momentum dead in her tracks would be a boost to The Phoenix, one which could definitely right the ship. Unfortunately, a loss would mean another slide down for Jones. She cannot afford many more defeats or many more setbacks. Jones needs a win and she needs it badly. She needs to defeat The Magical Cosmic Princess in order to put herself back on track, otherwise her road towards Rise To Greatness will just continue to get worse and worse. The Phoenix is like a wounded animal, cornered and without many options. In cases like this, Marie turns to what is most comforting, what she knows works best. Which means she is turning to her famous mother, The Matriarch of the Jones Wrestling Family; Angelica Jones.

Angelica’s home is situated in the center of a lot of acreage she owns. Near the back end of her property is a massive workout and training center that she has built not only for herself to keep herself in ring shape but also for any other of her close relatives. Marie has known that this place has always been available to her whenever she wanted to use it. Jones and her sisters, Kim Williams and Jessica Lasiewicz, have all had the same fierce independent streak. They want to succeed on their own. They don’t want people thinking that they need the Jones name and influence to succeed. But there comes a time when you need to accept help wherever it comes, and she knows her mother is always willing to help. Besides, there is an ulterior motive behind it all. Marie’s teenage son, Sean Connor Jones, is expressing serious interest in potentially following into the family business of professional wrestling. He would be a third generation star if he did. Currently he has been working with Percy Matthews, Marie’s new boyfriend, on basic mma striking and self defense. But Marie knows her son would need to get well acquainted with actual professional wrestling sometime. What better place than his grandmother’s workout center? She actually has a standard regulation wrestling ring.

This is what brings Marie Jones to her mother’s property on this day in Boston, Massachusetts. The workout center itself is sleek and modern with shiny workout equipment that has been kept so clean that they almost appear as if they were brand new. Heavy bags and speed bags of a variety of colors for punching and kicking hang from the ceiling. In the center of the workout building is the aforementioned standard regulation sized professional wrestling ring. The Phoenix is sharing the ring with her mother, Angelica Jones. Both are in similar styled workout shorts and white t-shirts, except Marie’s shorts are a simple black color while Angelica’s is a bright red. Percy and Marie’s son Sean stand on the outside, watching as mother and daughter spar inside the ring.

“Now remember, Marie, prepare for anything. YUYO can be unpredictable and dangerous.”

“Dangerous?” Marie asks curiously as she and Angelica circle one another, both hesitant about making a mistake. “She seems friendly enough.”

“Have you seen YUYO?” Angelica smirks. “She is, if nothing else, unpredictable.” Angelica goes for a roundhouse kick but Marie sees it coming and rolls away from it before springing back to her feet. Angelica turns around and sees Marie smirking.

“You’re too slow.”

“Slow but smart.” Angelica charges and goes for a bicycle knee. Marie barely avoids contact but stumbles down onto the mat. Angelica leaps on top and wrenches in a side headlock.

“Wait…did you just…”

“Try one of YUYO’s moves? Yeah, I did.” Angelica puts more pressure on the side headlock. “Like I said, you need to be ready.”

Marie sighs and her face changes into one of determination. She plants one foot on the mat. She muscles her way back to her knees and then back to her feet. She stands up. Angelica tries to put more pressure by mounting Marie, going piggy back with the headlock still locked in. Marie goes back to her knees. But Marie fights back to her knees again. Angelica again goes piggy back. Finally Marie decides on a desperation move. She falls backward, with all of her bodyweight landing on Angelica. This forces the break of the side headlock. Marie rolls off of Angelica and then pushes herself back up. Marie gasps as she sees Angelica on the mat.

“Damn…are you ok?”

“I’m good.” Angelica chuckles. She sits up and then accepts Marie’s hand. Marie pulls her mother the rest of the way back to her feet. “I may not be a full time wrestler anymore, but I’m always in ring shape and I can take a fall. Don’t worry about me.” She pats Marie on the back. “You just focus on YUYO.”

“Got it.” Marie nods her head. “So are you ready to go another round or…”

“We’ve been sparring for a good hour or so, Marie.” Angelica says with a grin. “I may still be in ring shape but I’m not sure I have as much endurance as I used to have; I think I need a bit of a break before we go another round.” Angelica motions to Percy and Sean. “How about we let Sean go a few rounds? Get the feel for how an actual wrestling ring is like?”

“Yeah!” Sean exclaims happily. “That sounds sick!”

“I dunno…” Marie’s voice trails off, she did bring Sean here for the purpose of getting him more acquainted with the wrestling world, especially since he seems bound and determined to follow in her footsteps, but the idea of sparring with her own son does not appeal to her. In fact, she still has trouble accepting the idea of her son being a wrestler in the first place.

“Oh, c’mon mom.” Sean says.

“Yeah, what’s wrong Marie?” Angelica asks. “I think it would be great experience for him.”

“Look, I agree that it is a great experience. It’s just that…” she sighs “...I’m not sure I’m ready. Watching Sean is one thing, but being in here with him…” again her voice trails off and she shakes her head.

“Uh, I have a suggestion.” Percy raises his hand. Marie nods in acknowledgement. “How about I work with him?”

“Are you sure?” Marie asks, her eyes growing wide. “I mean, you said yourself that you are not a wrestler. You just know some basic mma and self defense.”

“That’s true, but I think I can still work the kid.” He shrugs. “I mean, it’d be no different from what me and Sean have been doing, it’s just it’d be in the ring. And that’s what this is all about right? Getting the kid a feel for the ring?”

“I’m not sure…” Marie is still unsure of this idea. Neither Percy nor Sean has been in a wrestling ring before. But Sean’s eyes immediately light up upon this idea proposed by Percy.

“That’d rock!” He looks with pleading eyes at Marie. “Please mom! Can we?”

“Oh alright…” Sean’s pleading eyes are enough to disarm The Phoenix “...I suppose I could probably use a break myself, anyway.”

“Yeah!” Sean seems absolutely thrilled, ecstatic even, as he slides into the ring. Marie walks up to him and gives him a big hug. “Be safe, kiddo.”

“I will.”

Marie then exits through the ropes and onto the ring apron. Percy approaches.

“You be safe too.” Marie says. “This isn’t exactly your world.”

“I know.” He says before kissing Marie on the lips. “Trust me.”

Percy enters the ring and Marie then hops down off of the ring apron. Marie walks over and joins her mother Angelica Jones. She sits down next to her in a steel folding chair. Angelica looks over into her daughter’s eyes. She can sense that Marie is troubled. Angelica gives her a gentle pat on the back.

“It’s tough watching them grow up, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.” Marie sighs. “I suppose this is how you felt when I decided to wrestle.”

“Damn right. Hell, I took it worse than you.”

“I remember.” Marie laughs a little despite herself. “You were very overprotective back then.”

“Can you blame me? I thought I had lost you and Kim forever. But I got you back. I didn’t want to risk losing you to this business that I knew firsthand was ruthless and cutthroat.”

“Yet you let me make my own way.”

“Not really.” Angelica points out. “If you recall, you made your own way despite my wishes. It led to us growing apart for a while. Looking back, I should have known I couldn’t keep you from this.”

“Are you suggesting that I let Sean get into the family business?” Marie asks. Angelica nods her head.

“You won’t be able to keep him from it. If this is really what he wants, he will find a way to do it. It’s best to be there to support him and to teach him everything you know so that he will be ready. If you do what I did and try to keep him away, he’ll grow to resent you for it.”

“You have a point.” Marie sighs. “But who can train him? I mean, I can’t. I don’t have that much time to devote to taking on a student right now. I’m back to a full time schedule with Supreme Championship Wrestling. And after the hard work I put in to win over some good will, to repair and rebuild my reputation in that company, I cannot afford to just ditch everything, even for Sean. And right now it’s Rise To Greatness season and I am starting it on a very bad note. I lost my Adrenaline Title Match, I didn’t win Taking Hold of the Flame, and I didn’t beat Autumn Valentine.”

“Your sister’s Rise To Greatness season didn’t get off to a great start, either.” Angelica points out. “She lost the Underground Title thanks to that asshole James Evans.”

“I need this win, mom.” Marie points out. “I need to beat YUYO. I can’t afford to be distracted.”

“I understand.” Angelica nods her head. “There are other options, other avenues we can take to working with Sean.”

“What about you?” Marie asks. “You worked with me and Jess. You’ve been working with Kim lately. You could work with Sean too.”

“I could if I had the time.” Angelica shakes her head. “But like you I’m pretty busy myself. I am serving as your advocate and Kim’s advocate in SCW. I’m also a part time wrestler myself.” Just then Angelica’s eyes light up, as if a light bulb went off over her head. She got an idea. She grins as she looks over at Marie. “What about Glory?”

“You mean cousin Glory?” Marie asks. Angelica nods her head.

“Not her specifically but her wrestling school. Glory has some great wrestlers operating it; Randall Williams, Sophie and Mark O’Brian, Julia Braddock…that place has produced former world champions. Sean would be in great hands.”

“True…” Marie sighs and then shakes her head “...oh but wait, isn’t it too early for Sean to enter any wrestling school, let alone one so far away?”

“It isn’t too early.” Angelica shakes her head. “Lots of kids his age get started this early. And it isn’t like he’d be a stranger over there. The Braddocks are our cousins. Unless…” Angelica looks deep into Marie’s eyes “...you just have trouble letting go.”

“Is it that obvious?” Marie says with a soft laugh.

“I get it, Marie. I truly do. Like you said, I was very overprotective of you, I did not want to let go of you because I was worried that without me, something would go wrong with you and your life.” She wraps an arm around Marie’s shoulder. “But like I said, don’t make the same mistakes I did. You need to learn to let go and let him grow up.”

“I’m not sure I can…” Marie says quietly.

“Well you will have to eventually. But lucky for you, you don’t have to cross that bridge for a long time now. Sean is still just learning the basics and he can learn the basics before entering any formal wrestling school or training of any kind.” She motions to Sean in the ring as he learns from Percy Matthews. “Just look at the two of them in there.”

Marie looks over into the ring. Percy is throwing some roundhouse kicks and does some shadow boxing. Sean watches on in awe of this massive muscular biker known as Death’s Head. The Phoenix can only think of how lucky she was to have found him. After many different relationship failures, after so many heartaches, Marie seems to finally have found the so-called Mr. Right. And the irony lies in the fact that both needed each other, they both needed support systems as they tried to reintegrate back into society, Marie from her past in a cult and Percy from his criminal past. They needed one another and they found one another and they have been there for one another the entire time. As much as Marie loves Percy, the best thing about him is how he relates to Sean. Percy seems to care for Sean as if Sean were his own son. And that is one thing Marie has longed for, has been desperately seeking; a father figure for Sean. Percy fulfills all of her wants and needs. Marie is grateful to have him.

“Yeah, Sean adores Percy.” Marie says with a pleasant, happy smile. “There are times I have to pinch myself to make sure I’m not dreaming. This is what I’ve always wanted, a man that I love and who is also a good father figure for Sean.”

“There you go.” Angelica says approvingly. “You seem to have your solution right there in the ring.”

“What do you mean?”

“I think it’s a good idea to just let Percy work with Sean for the foreseeable future. Let him learn from Percy as long as he can before you have to think about formal training as a professional wrestler.”

“I suppose you’re right.”

“Of course I’m right.” Angelica says, sporting an ear to ear grin. “Look, Marie, I know how much you have wanted this, how long you have been looking for the right guy who can love and care for you and, at the same time, be a father to Sean. At the time I thought you were grasping at a fairy tale but now it seems as if your fairy tale has come true.”

“It isn’t just a silly girl’s fairy tale dream.” Marie shakes her head. “You remember how…” Marie fights back the tears brought about from the painful memories “...you remember how Sean was conceived.”

“I do.” Angelica nods her head. “No one should have to go through that.”

“But I carried Sean to term. I wanted to give him…my son…a good life. I also wanted him to have a real father. I had almost given up hope of that ever coming to pass. That’s part of why I joined Inner Peace. I was willing to throw my entire life away in service of a con man and his cult because I had begun to believe that life itself had conspired against me.” She looks back at Percy and Sean in the ring. “But Percy gave me hope again. He gave me hope that maybe my dreams can come true.”

“Then don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.” Angelica states. “He’s there to help you and he loves Sean like a father would love his son. If he wants to help, let him help.”

The Phoenix may have a difficult Rise To Greatness season ahead of her, including a challenging match against a game Magical Cosmic Princess YUYO. She may be in desperate need of a win to get her professional career back on track. But there is a glimmer of hope, there is a silver lining and that is the fact that her personal life seems to be going very well. She has a man she loves and who loves her in return. That man also loves her son and is willing to help raise him as if he were his own. A single mother couldn’t ask for much more than that.