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Lacklan · (03-25-2023)

When Sarah Met Kenzi

~~December 2nd, 2016~~

“We are here, Blood Princess.”

Sarah Selena Lacklan smiles at herself in the mirror of her compact, pleased to see the excellent ‘war paint’ work she had done at the airport. Her lips were painted ruby and the black eyeliner wings stretched all the way to her temples, tiny nuances to accentuate her moonlight skin and red eyes. She puckers her lips and gives her reflection an air kiss before closing the compact and lowering her veil back over her face.

“The speed of our arrival was not TOO slow. I am nearly pleased.”

The man in the driver’s seat of the car gives her a deep nod, clearly happy to receive such high praise from her. As he should! As he exits the car and runs around to the back in order to open the door for her, she looks up at the ceiling of the car and uses the mirror to check her chest: Just the right amount of cleavage spilling out over the bodice, with a vial attached to a silver necklace nestled in between, and her pale shoulders giving way to long sleeves of lace which glittered with diamond dust. Before the door opens, she reaches into her purse and pulls out a small glass vial filled with red powder, pulls out the cork, places the edge to her nose, and snorts a nose-full of the powder. She shuts her eyes and groans as a shiver fills her body and drums her feet on the floor of the car.

And then she looks back up into the mirror and smiles contentedly.

She is Driven.

She wipes away a smudge of the red dust under her nose, gives the reflection another pouty-lipped kiss, and scoots out of the car, her stiletto heels clicking onto the pavement with a sharp ting!. Behind her, the doors of her escort car, also a stretched Lincoln, open and let four men out, all with buzzed heads and military uniforms. Sarah raises her right hand into the air and moves her fingers in a complicated series of gestures, and the four men rush forward and toward the large building beside them, each understanding her instructions.

“So pleased with myself for creating that language.”

Sarah looks up at the building as the four enter to secure it, her eyes running over the large C-T-N lettering. She blinks several times at the lights, which grow fuzzy as she looks at them, and growls.

“Ugh...I swear to Baby Jesus...I just got this new prescription. At this rate, I’ll need glasses before I turn twenty!”

She shakes her head at the nuisance of her contacts and strides forward, with the full knowledge that her driver would follow with her bag. Two of her men open the door for her, and she gives them the barest of smiles, and they bow their heads in sheer joy as she walks by. Through a hall she goes and her other two men hold open another set of doors. She gives them their greatest gift of her almost giving them her approval and walks into a crowded room.

Which stops all in one moment.

She had dealt with this her entire life. The infamous “Vampire of Lacklanland,” the sole heir to the House of Lacklan fortune, was an albino of such rarity where her skin and hair were the color of the moon and her eyes that of rubies. With a back straighter than any board and a chin raised a touch above the horizon, the Blood Princess had been an imposing figure even as a tiny child, and everyone in the world at least gave her a second take. Fear, revulsion, confusion, disgust.

The Circle Television Thanksgiving Party was no exception.

“Sarah!”

The Blood Princess’ face brightens under her veil when she hears a strong Chinese accent break from the crowd. With dark hair and pale skin, the monk known as Orchid broke through the crowd and made her way over, the action seeming to break the room’s haze and help them return to their party-going activities. Orchid steps a few feet away from Sarah, and the Blood Princess gives her a nod.

“Friend Orchid.”

Orchid shakes her head at the overly formal and guarded tone from Sarah.

“I am glad you could make it. And I’m sure Blasted Monk will be, too.”

Sarah rolls her eyes at the wink from her newfound friend. But when she opens her mouth to reply with some quick, another Chinese voice comes to her ears, though this one far less than natural.

“You leave now, Rat Eyes! No one want you here!”

Sarah lets out a long breath as a brunette with a pronounced nose storms over toward her.

“I have had about enough of your blatant racism, Dani. We albinos-”

“Not just eyes! Face like rat, too! Monk no want cold Ratface! Monk want Chinese curves!”

Sarah lets out another long breath over the words of the very, very, very NOT Chinese Dani Chow.

“For the seventh time...today...you are literally a Jewish lawyer! In fact-”

The clearing of a throat breaks up the argument and Sarah turns to see another Chinese woman, this one actually authentic, and she gives another small nod.

“Song.”

The woman returns Sarah’s nod and gives her a small smile.

“I am happy you could make it. I am sure Blasted Monk will be, as well.”

Sarah rolls her eyes as Orchid snickers behind her and Dani scowls with eyes full of daggers.

“Have you met Kenzi, yet?”

Sarah raises one of her exquisitely maintained eyebrows in question and Song smiles and turns away from them.

“Nutty Buddy! Come meet Blasted Monks...friend.”

Sarah grumbles internally over the adopted sisters of a certain constantly high monk with killer abs who was fine for an occasional booty ca-

Sarah’s thoughts become cloudy and her eyes fill with 1000 colors. She is positive she can hear the whispers of angels in her ears.

“This-”

...what...what am I seeing?

“-is-”

Have you taken me, Heavenly Father, and brought me into the face of your greatest angel?

“-Kenzi.”

Kenzi Grey smiles while throwing back a headful of tiny braids and looks Sarah up and down.

“‘Sup?”

Sarah Lacklan, a young woman known for viciousness, who was about to step into the ring on a mission from God, was speechless.

“I...I...um...hello.”

Kenzi reaches forward and places both hands on Sarah’s bare shoulders, their eyes meeting one another without a flinch.

“We are going to be the BEST of friends!”

Sarah can only blink.

The night flew by in a rush for the debuting professional wrestler. Kenzi was a force, a tempest, moving about the party with a deft as equal to Sarah’s in her compound dealing with the social and political elite of Maine, and introduce her new best friend to a variety of people, from fellow wrestlers Ashley Marie Chase, Kate Steele, and Maria Salvatore, to media and television staff like Maleek Raheem and Bobbi London. They spent what felt like hours discussing wrestling, as both were second generation wrestlers, but with widely different paths. They spoke of Maine vs. California, of Kenzi’s growing career in Ladies All-Star, and of Sarah being prepared to sign her first contract with FSociety Wrestling.

“Hey! My buddy Mel is signing with them, too! They’ve got their Insurrection pay per view in town in a few weeks and I’m going. You should come with us!”

It had taken the better part of the evening to catch her breath, but Sarah was now back in control of herself, even in the face of this...force of fierceness...that was Kenzi. She gives a deep nod and a smile.

“I would appreciate that. I know little of your state.”

Kenzi’s mouth drops open for a moment as her dark eyes shine.

“Oh! We can get our nails did!”

She takes Sarah’s hands in hers...which causes a sudden chill to course through Sarah’s entire body...and pulls her in close enough for their noses to nearly touch.

“I know a great place!”

Sarah can only nod.

Back in the rear seat of her stretched Lincoln, the Lacklanland driver and guard taking her to the hotel near the airport, Sarah’s thoughts are jumbled. She wasn’t sure exactly what she went through this evening, but she knew one thing was for certain when it come to Kenzi Grey, the woman who had looked right at her and not even blink over how different she looked:

She needed this person in her life.

At any cost.

Lacklan · (04-06-2023)

The Formation of the #CoolKids

~~Sunday, August 6th, 2017~~

Spirit of 77 was lively this Sunday night, with the sports bar playing host to a variety of sports and beer fans. Several small televisions were scattered throughout the place in various corners, each showing a different athletical flavor, but the giant screen comprised of the 16 monitors above the bar showed one thing:

Stacy Jones.

Sarah Selena Lacklan bit the bottom of her lip as the sports channel went over the results and possible fallout of the Ladies All Star wrestling event held within the city that night, just a few blocks from where she sat. The albino wrestler was in somewhat incognito mode, with her platinum hair partially covered by her Hello Kitty beanie and large sunglasses covering her pale face and red eyes. The bar was not bright by any means, which was well due to her difficulty seeing in bright lights, but she was simply not in the mood to deal with fans, reporters, or drunken men.

She takes her eyes off the television, off the reminder that the night had not gone the way she had planned, in ANY form, and looked down the long table at which she sat. She was not alone, of course, as her fiance Kenzi Grey sat next to her, here caramel lover also wearing shades. But even then, the sheer star power of Kenzi was a sight to behold: A head full of long braids that fell down past her breasts and an intangible yet still unmistakable sheen of SOMETHING that emanated from her, a glow of stardom and fierceness.

Sarah was not precisely sure when she realized that she was gay, especially considering that she had had a male lover less than a month before she and Kenzi started dating, but she fully knows she is now. Her tearful admission to her father that she “might” be gay had turned into a full-blown acceptance of that fact at some point a few months ago, even to the point of asking a woman to marry her. And she WAS going to marry that woman, regardless of what her future mother-in-law had to say on the matter.

She looks at the rest of the table and cannot help but smirk. No one had seen it coming, but over the last couple of weeks, she had been instrumental in bringing together a sort of fight club, and they were all at the table in the sports bar tonight. Roxy Cotton, the bombastic peroxide queen who made people run and hide when she went on a cyberbulling tear, also wearing sunglasses indoors, was busy giving the waiter the rough side of her tongue for bringing her the wrong order Sarah had been surprised by her being a vegan, as such lifestyles were difficult to uphold in their business, but the true vehemence of her string of heated swears at the waiter for forgetting her tofu was refreshing and fun.

Ashley Williams and Angelica Vaughn, both wearing sunglasses as well, were falling over themselves watching cat videos on their phones. Both blondes were trying to out-cute one another, finding video after video of kittens mewing, cats jumping, and even the occasional rabbit hopping. Angie was the current Cuteness Champion with her collection of cat-bread gifs, which boggled Sarah’s mind. How could there be so much media about such an obscure idea as a cat wearing a piece of bread like an article of clothing?

Milisandre Crowthorne, the only other brunette at the table aside from Kenzi, could not hide her annoyance behind her own set of sunglasses. The Oregon native was awkward in most social situations, which Sarah loved to tease her about, particularly since the brunette had gravitated towards her as naturally as Sarah had towards her. There was...something...to Milisandre that drew her. Something in her eyes, or in the way she bit her lip when she was amused. Or perhaps because they fought in similar ways, both delighting in the idea of making their opponents beg and plead for mercy.

She and her five friends represented...something...in Ladies All Star. She didn’t know what yet, but something. Kenzi had had a revolution as a wrestler in the calendar year, a fact that Sarah had claimed as her own influence. Ashley had fought for the company before in her own wide-ranging career, and had now brought her protege Angie to the fold. Roxy’s general bombastaty was a treat to watch and participate in, and she couldn’t WAIT until Smyth got a load of her brand of “respect.” And there was a quite hunger in Mil that was exciting to watch. Six bodies who were, at least for the moment, aligned in thought. They jokingly referred to themselves as “The Cool Kids” and had already chased off a few interested drunkards by telling them “You can’t sit with us.”

Her eyes turn back towards the television set where the talking heads had moved onto the main event of the evening, the farce of a match between Smyth and Reilly. A match that was filled with more people who only showed up in LAW for the occasional paycheck whenever they felt like it. Not like herself, how had been a prominent fixture and never missed a match or promotional deadline in her career, for ANY company. LAW was the same this week as it was last month, the same people showing up whenever they wanted to and never getting punished when they decided to not show up at all.

“It is time for a change.”

Her normally high voice is low as she speaks to herself.

“This is what the revolution is about. This is what the flames are for.”

She turns back to the table.

“Beloved?”

Kenzi turns from laughing with Roxy and gives her an exaggerated bow of her head.

“My Queen?”

Sarah would normally return such silliness with her own massive eyeroll but was not in the mood.

“I wish to spend time at the manor. To train. To focus. Will that be okay with your Hexx schedule?”

Kenzi shrugs and Sarah notices Milisandre’s eyes perk up at the word “manor.”

“I’m the boss! Gonna be FUN going back to Lacklanland!”

Sarah nods as she looks back up at the large television screen now showing the promotional graphic of Smyth vs. Roberts for the LAW Championship.

“Hoist the banner. Raise the colors.”

Lacklan · (04-22-2023)

When Sarah Met Sidney

LACKLANLAND WEST
West Hollywood, California
7 June 2017

The match ending at Validation and now the match ending at Battle Lines had both sapped Kenzi of her confidence and belief in herself inside the ring. It had made it even clearer that this needed to be her final match in LAW…if not her final match in the business. No matter how much she wanted to be like Sarah…to be a fighter and take the world by the throat didn’t much seem to be in the offering. She could only hope that her match with Gabby would be memorable…at least more memorable as her first match had been.

The two of them had not been back a day…hardly been over their jet lag as Sarah already had her curious red eyes on her next match. She was getting ready for the challenge of Courtney Steele, LAW’s resident homophobe, but she was also keenly aware of the challenge that her soulmate was up against. Sarah folded her legs underneath her as she flipped on the television and called out for Kenzi to join her. “Beloved! Do you want to make fun of that bitch talking about how she’s going to beat you? I saved it so we can watch it again after you kick her ass and laugh about how stupid she was.”

Kenzi walked in and saw Gabby on the screen and plucked the remote from Sarah’s hands and turned off the television. “I don’t need to see her or listen to any of her shit. It’s the same old thing over and over again anyway.” She sighed as she plopped down next to her battle-weary lover. “Besides…after Validation and then Battle Lines, maybe all the shit she’s saying is true.”

Sarah narrowed her ember colored eyes and took Kenzi by the shoulders, giving her a firm shake. “Knock that off! You are fierce! In all of you battles since you and I have been together, you have yet to be pinned and beaten. Hell! You would be the LAW Tag Team Champions right now had it not been for that lovesick idiot Kate Steele shitting the bed and getting pinned…AGAIN!” Sarah grinned, showing her twin rows of perfect white teeth. “Maya Jensen said it and it’s true…if you want to win those tag team titles, your only chance is with me…not Kate!”

Kenzi sighed heavily, not wanting to think about Kate at the moment. There would be plenty of time for that on Sunday. “Sarah, let’s not get into that again. I just want to move past that, have this last match, and then move on.”

Sarah’s mood darkened, “You are NOT quitting LAW! You are not a quitter…that is not the person I fell in love with!”

Kenzi rolled her eyes, not wanting to talk about it any further. She changed the subject, in the hopes that Sarah would drop it. “You fell in love with starving woman, that is what you did! You drug me half way around the world and made me eat hotel and airplane food for the last four days…I’d really like something good for a change.”

Sarah sucked her teeth, then picked up her phone as she messaged her men to prepare the car. She finished and leaned in, kissing Kenzi on the lips. “A Queen does not allow her Duchess to starve…”

Kenzi smiled as she got up, “GOOD! It’s about time that this noble title started paying off!”

Sarah stood up, eyeing Kenzi as she did. “…this conversation is not over Beloved…you will not be quitting LAW, in fact…you’ll be doing something quite the opposite. I have no intention of…”

Sarah is cut off by the sounds of a commotion outside followed by a knock at the door. Kenzi and Sarah look at one another, unsure of what to make of the noise. They walk over and open the door together. Standing outside, one of Sarah’s trusted guards, a man that Kenzi had named Frick. The large man looks nervously to his side as an older woman stands there impatiently tapping her foot. "My Queen...this woman says that she's your consort's...mother..."

Kenzi, who was holding Sarah's hand, quickly lets go as her mouth falls open. "...mom...wh-what are you doing here?"

Sidney Grey kicked Frick in the shin, but the large man merely grimaced, and kept his composure. Sid snorted and turned her attention to Kenzi and Sarah. "This big ape said he was taking you two out to eat...I told him that I was coming as well. I thought it was high time that I spent time with my daughter and her..." She looked at Sarah, arching her Botox injected eyebrows, as best she could. "...I'm sorry...what are you to my daughter?"

Sarah wants to glance at Kenzi. She wants to glance down at the hand that is no longer holding hers. They were past this. Past hiding. Past denying. But she realized that this, regardless of how they had prepared for its inevitability, was the strongest test to their relationship yet. She meets Sid's eye without a falter, her back straight, her chin elevated. "The person who starts her fires."

Sid looked at Kenzi, her expression confused. "Is this that Tina person? Is she the drug addict that helped you set fire to your apartment in New York?"

Kenzi sighed, as she responded, more like a little girl than the grown woman she'd become. "MOM!! No...no it's not!" She looked at Frick, exasperation etched into her face. "Get the car..." As he lumbered off, Ken looked at Sarah, and then at her mother. "Mom...this is...my...my friend..." She pauses, straightening herself. "...my girl...friend...my girlfriend!" She takes Sarah's hand back in hers. "I love her and we have lots of sex together. Lots of lesbian sex!" Kenzi stiffens her spine, “Those fires she starts…they are in my pants!”

Sid looks at their hands and then at Sarah. The Red Queen can only smirk as she mouthed the words '...a lot of fires...' Sid rolls her eyes, then walks off toward the elevators. "So...are we having lunch at some fancy gay restaurant then?"

Kenzi holds Sarah, whispering to her. "I'm sorry...I didn't know she was coming."

Sarah's eyes are full of fury. "We will discuss this later. In the throne room." She pulls Kenzi out the door and calls after Sid. "Well, Ma'am, we DO live in Hollywood! The gayest brunch joint in town has a table open for us at all times! It's called The Flaming Clam!"

Sid waves her hands in the air. "Figures...you people and your obsession with anything that smells of fish!"

Kenzi groans as she can only shake her head in annoyance. This could not have possibly come at a worse time. Not only did she have to worry about her final match in LAW…but now her she’d have to figure out why her mother was here and what in the hell she wanted.

THE FLAMING CLAM
Hollywood, California
--An Hour Later--

Sid sipped at her drink as she looked at Sarah with a smirk. "I was certain that you were pulling my leg about this place. But, damn good call! The gays make the best lunchtime cocktails!"

Kenzi rolled her eyes, certain that her mother and Courtney Steele would get along famously with their homophobic tendencies. Sarah took it in stride, likely the same way she would take her match against Courtney on Sunday. "The boys do ever enjoy their cock and tails. The 'Under the Table' service on Friday nights must be seen to be believed."

Kenzi remained silent, as Sid dominated the table. "Pity that it isn't Friday. I bet that's a sight to see in order to be believed." She finished her drink, then waved for another. She sat forward, eyes gleaming. "So...you're Jean-Paul's daughter? The little firestarter, huh?" She glanced at Ken, then gestured back and forth. "You been starting fires with my Kenzi?"

Sarah answered quickly, "Countless blazing infernos all over the world." She ponders for a moment and then nods to herself. "Literally!"

As she was poured another drink, Sid stared at Sarah, a slight chuckle escaping her. "You have no idea how many drinks it takes for my eyes to look like yours. I'm going to show you today..."

Kenzi spoke up in exasperation. "Mom!"

Sid looked at both of them in turn. "Christ! What did I do now? I'm just trying to break the ice here!"

Sarah stares at Sid, red eyes moving quickly as she studies her. "Mackenzie does not know it, but I have watched every episode of your reality show. Tell me: What do you have against those with darker skin than yours?"

Sid smirked, her eyes on the platinum haired girl. "Have you looked at my daughter? Apparently I have held vagina, among other things against people with darker skin that mines!" She snickered, sipping her drink. "I suppose you're asking if I'm a racist...and I suppose I am...but trust me Ms. Lacklan, I have good reason to hate everyone. Color is just the paper wrapper that happens to be holding in all of their shit."

Kenzi finally spoke up, her voice just a whisper. "...you called me 'rape baby'..."

Sid smiled, then snorted. "You were always too fucking sensitive."

Sarah glances at Kenzi for a moment out of the corner of her eyes. "Your daughter..." she says slowly in a hushed voice, "...is the most fierce person I have ever met." She looks to Sid squarely. "Your stretched skin may well hide a pile of dung, but her caramel hosts nothing but gold."

Sid smiles at Sarah. "I like you...you're much feistier than the others who were attracted to my little lesbian magnet. But, be careful...do try to speak with your head and not your vagina." Sid laced her fingers. "You two are young, dumb, and filled with lust...be careful you don't mistake this time of experimentation for something real. Once, I dated an Indian and I thought he'd take me on a dream quest...but he only bought me a goddamn Slurpee, it was the wrong kind of Indian!"

Kenzi spoke up. "MOM!!!"

Sid waved her off. "Your friend understands me. I can tell...we are cut from similar cloth."

Sarah blinks at that final observation. "Pardon?"

Sid sipped her drink. Her eyes on Sarah. "You and I...we are born fighters, not like Kenzi. We fight and we do what we must, we don't take a backwards step, ever! We take what we want...or in this case, what we think we want." Sid turned her attention to Kenzi. "I heard the rumors about you leaving LAW...finally quitting...and I came here to let you know that you are making the right choice. You were never cut out for being a wrestler. I knew that...that is why I kept you out of the ring and that is why I kept you away from your father. I didn't need you chasing after him, trying to be like him."

Kenzi stared at her, eyes blinking, she was unable to take in the full measure of what her mother was telling her. "You kept me from my father...because you didn't want me to be a professional wrestler?"

Sid chuckled, "No...I didn't want you to TRY to be a professional wrestler. There is a difference sweetie." She looked at Sarah, "She and I...despite our different appetites are born to do this. We fight...we take on the world..." she cast her eyes back on Kenzi, "...you entertain us Kenzi, that is what you do."

Sarah wanted to speak up, but she could see that this was import to Kenzi in away that she didn't dare interrupt. Kenzi spoke to Sid though gritted teeth. "You let me be alone all those years...you kept me from my father because you were afraid? Afraid that I would be...inspired?! AFRAID THAT I WOULD BE BETTER THAN YOU?!"

Sid let our an exasperated sigh, "Now you're talking crazy!" Sid sat forward, her eyes taking in those of her daughter. "I saw your matches Kenzi...even the ones that you caused me to miss. I saw them...each and every one of them. I even saw this last one at Validation." She reached over and took her daughter's hand. "Trust me when I say this...you are not cut out for this. Quitting is what you should do." She reached over and cupped her hand over Kenzi's. "Don't even bother facing Gabby. She's on the warpath and all she wants to do is hurt you...just quit and walk away. You're already more of a success than anyone there ever believed you'd be."

"...what about what I believe...?" Kenzi said in a whisper as she pulled her hand away.

Sarah saw her chance to interject and she took her lover's hand as she spoke, her red eyes on Sid. "Why can't you believe in her like she believes in herself? Why can't you want for her, what she want's for herself? I have no illusions about what I want, Ma'am. And your daughter has spit in the face of any and all detractors, fought back from failure to dominate those around her. Her spine is not jelly. She..." Sarah cannot help but smile with glistening eyes. "She inspires me."

Sid looks surprised, turning her attention to Kenzi. "What have you done to this girl? She's much deeper in love with you than that Cornett girl was, I..."

Kenzi pulled free of Sarah and smashed her fists on the table. Her face was hard and flushed with rage. "MOTHER! WHAT THE FUCK?! ARE YOU REALLY GOING TO BRING THAT UP TO THE WOMAN I LOVE?!"

Sid smirked, sipping her drink. "Love she says...you were pissing your diapers a few years ago! You know shit about love just like you know fuck all about wrestling!"

Kenzi looked from Sid to Sarah, desperate to show them both that she was not a child. She stood up, slamming her hands down as she leaned over the table, glaring at her mother. "Just because you couldn't keep a lover, don't presume that I don't know what love is! Sarah is my destiny...we're going to be married one day and you'll die alone you mean old BITCH!" She looked at Sarah, the shock of her words written in her face. Kenzi blushed, immediately embarrassed. "...excuse me...I need a minute alone." She wiped her face as she squeezed Sarah's shoulder and walked to the restroom.

Sid looked at Sarah and shrugged. "Well...that escalated quickly, huh?"

Sarah sits in stunned silence for a moment as Kenzi's words process in her mind. She wipes the corner of her mouth with her napkin and turns her eyes to Sid. "Well then, now that we are alone, I wish to say that I find you detestable, Ma'am. From the choices you have made, particularly those shoes going with that purse, and I find the fact that you have driven your own flesh and blood away the way you have to be unforgivable. But you have an opportunity, Ma'am. None can be so far into the darkness that they cannot see the Path of Light." She leans forward. "Here is a dose of actual reality for you and not the silliness you instituted to keep your name relevant as you drug Mackenzie though the dirt in the eyes of the world: Your daughter? Your flesh and blood? Is desperate for your love...even your respect. Even with as sick and dark of a heart as you have...she is desperate for it. And I promise you..." She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. "I goddamn PROMISE YOU..." She opens them, the red glistening. "That you will live to regret treating her the way you do. You...and how you have treated her...have been a sickness to her, a cancer, and I am her cure, her drug. I earnestly hope that you find solace in your daughter's happiness, because I will not shed a tear if I have to cut you out. Now, if you will excuse me, Ma'am..." Sarah pushes back her chair and stands. "I have a Consort to consul." Sarah begins to head towards the restroom but stops next to Sid, a smirk on her plump lips. "Oh! And by the bye: We had sex about 15 minutes before you showed up at our door. I bet if you try hard enough, you can still smell me on her breath." She skips towards the restroom.

Sid watches Sarah skip off and shakes her head with a smirk as she brings her drink back to her lips as she speaks to herself. "Silly girls...you have NO idea what you want."

Taking a moment to collect herself in the bathroom mirror, and after chasing off the bull dyke that was there before her, Sarah walks over to the stall Kenzi occupies and knocks softly. "Beloved?"

The door swings open and a dark hand juts out and snatches her inside, slamming the door closed behind her. Sarah is taken aback by Kenzi's appearance, her eyes red and cheeks hollow and stained with dark tears. She wipes at her eyes, making the scene even worse. "...sorry...I shouldn't have said that stuff. My mother...she just makes me crazy! She makes me feel like I'm 6 years old again!"

"It is quite alright," she says as she reaches into her purse to pull out a handful of tissues. "She is certainly a piece of work." She begins to help Kenzi wipe her face and chooses her next words carefully. "We say things in the heat of anger and frustration. I...I do not hold them against you." Kenzi’s offhanded mention of ‘marriage’ hanging in the air.

Kenzi is oblivious to the meaning behind Sarah's words as she wipes her eyes and tosses down the tissues in frustration. "SHE'S A GODDAMN CUNT AND I HATE HER!" Kenzi breaks down and hugs Sarah, weeping uncontrollably into her shoulder. "...why does she have to be like that? Am I that terrible...?"

Sarah holds her close with a hand on her back and one in her braids. "Shhhhh...." She lowers them down to the seat and positions Kenzi on her lap, never breaking the embrace. "It is not you, Mackenzie. It is her. She is vile and cruel. You are not her." She holds her close, ready to take a river of tears on her shoulder if she needed to.

Kenzi sighs, looking up at Sarah. "They all think I'm her Sar...they have always said I was her. No different...just in a different package. THAT STUPID BITCH, GABBY CAMACHO, she said it!" Kenzi took a breath, her hands becoming fists at her sides. "I am going to prove her wrong...I am going to prove Gabby and everyone else wrong! I can do this...I can be better than her!"

Sarah takes her hand from Kenzi's head and starts to tick off her fingers. "One: You are a far better dresser than she is. Two: You are a better actress. Three: You are naturally more beautiful both inside and out than she could ever manufacture for herself. And four: You have me, someone who both loves you and is IN love with you, two things which, from my research, she has never had."

Kenzi held Sarah's face, kissing her. "I'm sorry if I embarrassed you with my talk of destiny and...stuff." She took a deep breath. "...I just...it just came out. You know?"

Sarah trembles on the inside but she simply winks at Kenzi. "Just be mindful of getting drunk the next find we are in Vegas for Fucking Awesome...you might find yourself in another Hooters marriage." She leans forward to quickly peck a cheek. "Come on, let us see if we can overwhelm the evil shrew with gayocity!"

Kenzi wasn't ready to face up to her mother just yet, but sometimes we aren't ready to do the things that we must...

Lacklan · (04-22-2023)

Endgame

~~Saturday, April 15th, 2017~~

Sarah looks at the phone in her hand, anxiety filling her in a way she had not felt in weeks. The feeling of dread, initially pushed away by a cocktail of DRIVE, amphetamines, and liquor, and by the wild lifestyle she had lived with Kenzi in recent weeks, assaulted her like a stake being driven through the heart. Her fingers trembled as she stared at the name calling, a name which had only reason to call.

First Citizen.

Those shaking fingers bring the phone to her head, hand trembling so bad as to make her entire head bob.

“Skeeter?”

“Littul Sistur.” The voice on the other end was a heavy Arkansas accent. Most people had difficulty understanding what the mountain man had to say, but she had understood him from the first day. “Ah’m sawrry to say but Ah has sum bad noos.”

Sarah’s body slumps, her mouth going dry.

“My father...is...is he…?”

She cannot even get the word out of her mouth. The reality of his condition, the inevitability of his cancer, had weighed down on her the last six months since he had told her. Her nightmares of this moment were fresh in her mind.

“Naw, Littul Sistur, not right yet. He’s still alive, Ah reckin, but just burly. He can’t stand up on his own, ner get outta bed, ner even really see good. Ah dun all Ah kin do fer ‘im. And he’s been a’callin fer ye. He needs ye, Littul Sistur. This hur...Ah reckin this hur mat be it.”

Sarah nods, not even coherent enough to realize that he could not see. Luckily, she gives voice to the nod.

“Of course. We...we will be there as soon as possible. We…”

The phone falls out of her hand as her body slumps forward to the ground, landing on her knees. She sees nothing, hears nothing.

“Babe? You okay in there?”

Kenzi walks into the room and sees her Princess on her knees. She runs over to her and drops to her knees before her. She takes Sarah's head in her hands and looks into her red eyes.

“Sar?!”

Sarah looks blankly at her, taking a few moments to realize where she is. Was she on the floor? How did she end up on the floor? She was sitting...

"Got a bad phone call during my vlog. I think Father is dying. We need to go. Now."

Each word delivered in a monotone catches Kenzi's attention better than the words themselves.

"Baby..." She hugs Sarah, kissing her cheek. "...I'll get everything packed, have Frick and Frack get the car."

Kenzi bounds to her feet and runs into the room dedicated to Sarah’s clothing. Sarah does not hear the frantic gathering of clothing and travel belongings, does not hear the slams and curses. Her mind can only fall back to memories of her father. The times they sat back to back, supporting each other. Training together. Reading together. Laughing and dancing. Celebrating birthdays. Shedding a tear on the birthday of her mother. Always together. And now…

“Everything is ready,” says Kenzi, as she comes back into the room. “I let everyone know online that we were heading to Maine and to text me if they need anything. Mel called-”

She notices that Sarah is still kneeling on the floor, still staring. Her face is whiter than anything she has ever seen before, and that was certainly saying something for the albino vampire child. She rushes over to Sarah and lends her a hand, helping her to her feet. She sits her back in the computer chair from which she had initially fell.

“I will get Frick and Frack working on the bags and will take care of transportation. You just...um...sit here? I guess?”

“Good...good…”

Sarah’s voice is as hollow and far gone as her face. Kenzi bites her lip and rubs Sarah’s shoulder, but then does not hesitate. She has Frick and Frack taking everything down to the car in short order, her fingers flashing across her phone to make sure that a plane is available. Being a legitimate star in Hollywood has its perks, at times. Before long, she has thrown one of Sarah’s long coats across her shoulders and was leading her down the elevator and to the waiting car.

Everything was a blur to Sarah for the next several hours. Sights and sounds flew by without recognition. The only reality to her was Kenzi’s hand clutching hers, an anchor of strength against the anxiety and worry which assaulted her. Her body and mind craved a hit of something, whether it be out of a bottle or a vial of red powder up her nose, anything to push away the thoughts going through her head. The images of nightmares living. The thought of the only man who mattered in her life, of the only family member she had ever had, being taken from her. Anything to push those thoughts away.

She does not notice being rushed through security. Does not notice boarding the airplane. Does not feel the take-off or the turbulence during the early-morning flight. Even touching down at Bangor International Airport did not help her focus on anything other than memories of her father. Memories of grand balls and galas. Memories of lessons on how to manipulate and control people. Memories of waiting in the lobby of the hospital during his treatments. Memories of when he told her the truth of his condition, that he only had months to live.

The cold air of her homeland finally brings her back to reality. That famous Maine chill strikes her face and makes her gasp, her body tingling. Red eyes look around to see Kenzi next to her, worry and concern etched on her dark face, along with Frick and Frack carrying their bags. She is outside the airport and heading towards a long black car, the license plate clear in its exempt status. She was home. A man in a black suit, hair cut short to match that of her other two bodyguards, opens the door for her, and she is soon driving away, Kenzi’s hand clutching hers tightly.

The scenery flies by in a bit of a blur as a light rain begins to fall. Part of her mind wanders and giggles about how today’s forecast in Hollywood was all sunshine and not a cloud in the sky. Back in her life of fantasy. Back in her life of love, lust, and wild adventures with Kenzi. But here in reality, here in the darkness of her homeland, it rained with misery. Scenery flashes by. The checkpoint manned by two guards who saluted her, leading into the compound, into Lacklanland. The green grass, a green so bright that no one in California would believe her, the lushness that could only happen in Maine after a cold, snowy winter. Past the lines of houses of people who had followed her father across his career, believing in his message of being God’s Voice. She could see some of them, a few in fields even in the mounting rain, dealing with crops or animals. Past the famous blueberry farm where they produced the brightest and sweetest fruits you could imagine. Down Main Street and all its shops, the spectre of the Manor large and daunting, the spire that was part of Selena’s Square, the gathering place of the Denizens, piercing into the sky.

Out of the car and walking through the garden, Sarah finds it hard to breath. Kenzi clutching her hand, nearly painfully, helps to keep her in the here-and-now. She barely noticed the bowing of peasants on a normal day, and today is even worse: She simply sees dark blobs on the edge of her vision moving somewhat. She has noticed that her guard increased from Frick and Frack to an entire unit, 12 in total. She is not surprised; after all, even in the safety of the Manor, the presence of the Blood Princess and her Consort demanded extra attention. She was proud of her guard, what with their pressed and lined uniforms, their silver pins of rank shining in even the deepest of gloom.

Through doors, across rooms, up stairs. She finally finds them stopped before the door leading to her father’s room. She turned to give instructions to the guard, but Kenzi raises a hand a gives a few signals, silently communicating to them to stay outside the room. When did she start learning the sign language she had created for them? Kenzi was so full of surprises. Kenzi offers her a smile and Sarah tries to return one, but does not think she succeeded. Turning and squeezing Kenzi’s hand, she opens the door.

The stench of death nearly overwhelms her. The dark room is lit by candlelight and the bright glow of medical equipment. The room is silent aside from a gentle hum from the equipment and the steady beep of a heart monitor. She sees Skeeter, the First Citizen, standing to the side of her father’s bed, his dark hair and beard as wild as ever. Getting closer, she sees that they have far more grey than the last time she saw him. And was that a patch over his right eye? Had he lost an eye?!

Her eyes turn to the figure on the bed, a white sheet covering the massive frame of the man she grew up with. She glides over to him, her eyes shining with wetness, as she looks down at him. No mask today, the red and purple burn scars covering every inch of his scalp and face out for all to see, only the black hunk of metal attached to his nose and mouth, wires trailing down to pierce his throat, covering part of his face. That hunk of metal had allowed him to talk in a fashion for the last few months, the cancer attacking every organ viciously, including his vocal chords. She reaches down to touch his face, her delicate porcelain fingers standing out bright against the burns. He was beautiful.

“Sarah?”

His voice is labored, even more so than it always has been. His had always been a strong and deep baritone, a voice that commanded and demanded, but the sickness had taken away so much of that. But he still sounded like an angel to her. She takes her hand and finds one of his.

"I am here, Father. As are my Beloved and the First Citizen."

Her voice sounds hollow to her own ears and her throat hurts. She does not recall speaking any words to anyone since getting Skeeter’s phone call the night before. How did she even get here? Her thoughts are interrupted as her father nods his head slowly.

"I...gave my...life...to my mission. I fought..." His voice trails off, but Sarah squeezes his hand, trying to hold onto him. He continues. "I...I fought for...what was worth...fighting for. Did...did I defeat...the Ashtons?"

The Ashtons? Texas? That was months ago. Did he know where and when he was? Looking into his eyes, she sees that they are milky, cloudy. The blue was hidden behind cataracts.

"Um...Father...you have not fought in months. But you did fight them in December."

"Did...did I win?"

She does not immediately respond. How to tell him? How to tell him how his final battle in the ring came to an end? And what did it matter now? So she settles on that.

"Does it matter?"

He chuckles softly.

"I...I suppose not. But...I did fight...for what mattered...for what was...worth...fighting for, did I not? I...I fought for her."

Sarah can feel her tears break free of her eyes and fall atop her father. “Her.” Nikita. The woman he had learned to love over the last year. Nikita did not return the love, of course, but that did not matter. That he could learn to love again after so long, after her own mother had died the day she was born, had been a wonderful lesson to learn, and had been one of the cornerstones of her own young career: Fight for what mattered.

"Sarah? I...was a...terrible friend. But I...I tried to...to be a good father...please forgive my...failings."

She sobs. She cannot help it. Tears fall freely. She wants to tell him that he was the most amazing father a daughter could ever hope for. He was strong and loving, giving her a side which he never gave the world. He was everything to her. But all she could give him were tears falling onto his face.

"Give...give her my love. Even...even if...she does not want it. Please."

"Of course."

It is all she can croak out, but it seems to be enough.

"Good...good...Light...Light be with you...Sarah."

He closes his eyes. Sarah’s mouth goes dry. The insensate beeping sound of the heart monitor turns to a single long whine.

“Father?”

Silence.

“Father?!”

She is pulled away by unseen hands as men and women in white rush in.

“DADDY?!”

Tears fall like the rain pelting outside as she flails her arms, hands turning to fists, fists connecting solidly with flesh. A male grunt is all she hears as she is taken from the room by Skeeter, her Wolf, Kenzi right behind them. Tears flow like the Penobscot River overflowing as she lays on the ground in the hall outside, Kenzi holding her, Skeeter standing by the door. By the time the man in white comes out, his face dour, to tell her that he was gone, she had no more tears left. It was fitting, part of her mind supposed, a part of her mind that was still aware of her surroundings. After all, there was not enough moisture in the world to give adequate tears for this truth:

Jean-Paul Lacklan had closed his eyes and embraced the Light.

Kenzi would later tell her that she was in shock, but Sarah felt calm as she walked away from that room of death. Felt calm as she brought out her phone to make a call. Kenzi would later tell her that she had paced frantically as she made the call, had said over and again, “please pick up please pick up please pick up please” as the phone rang. But Sarah felt calm as the voice on the other end answered.

“Kid?”

“Yes, Sensei. I have news. He...he…”

When did she end up on the ground? Why was she on her knees? She was crying again? She thought she had run out of tears.

“He is gone, Nikita.”

Kenzi would later tell her that those four words were wailed out, that she had nearly screamed hysterically into the phone, but she felt that they were calm. Collected. Royal, even.

Silence. The silence hurt. Her ears hurt. Her eyes. Her head. It was hard to breathe.

“I...I will be there tonight, dearie.”

Sarah thought she said something after that. Probably had a nice witticism for her trainer and matron figure. But she does not remember much after that. She knows hours went by, knows that the public had been informed, that the Lacklanland flag was being flown at half-mast. She knows that there are meetings to hold over the next few days, meetings to make big decisions. Service to prepare. She is sure she and members of the compound spoke of them. But everything seems in a blur.

She does not remember Nikita entering the compound. She does not remember the raven-haired beauty with the green eyes making the entrance that would leave all but Lacklan family members on their knees, but she was there. The Marchioness Dolore ranked only just below the Lacklan proper, though she loathed the title more than could be imagined, but she had earned it for both the training she had provided Sarah and for the maternal love she had imparted. She does remember seeing that Nikita’s face was more lined than the last time she saw, her eyes more sunken. Her solitude in Canada had difficult, it seemed.

She remembers little of the whirlwind day. At times it seemed like only moments since her vlog had been interrupted by Skeeter, others as if it had been days. But one final feeling and memory lodged itself into her brain for eternity:

As she laid on a couch in the Great Hall, Kenzi by her feet with a hand on her legs, she laid her head on Nikita’s lap, her platinum hair running down her legs, her sensei's hand stroking. She cannot know how long she cried, cannot know how many people she would drown in her tears, but for the death of her father, there would never be enough.

Lacklan · (04-27-2023)

A Chaotic Dinner

“Now, now! Beloved. Step-Mumsie. Lets save the violence for the ring! We-"

Kenzi nudges forward and gently pushes me out of the way and then takes a step so that she is in Ava’s face again.

“I promised you. PROMISED you. I WILL bring a beautiful black baby into this family and you will THANK me later!”

I...um...what? What does-

I YELP, the cry coming out as kind of a high-pitched squeal, as Ava snarls and throws her hands around my Beloved’s throat.

RECORD SCRATCH

FREEZE FRAME

So, you’re probably wondering how I ended up here, huh? In a bar owned by a boss I pissed off, caught in the middle of a fight that is about to go DOWN between my Beloved wife Kenzi and my Evil Step-Mumsie Ava. Welp, we should probably back up a step to give you some context. So, if the three hawt-as-FLAME Schuyler Sisters (yes, even Peggy) could help me REWIND this real quick…

So...yeah...I’ve made some mistakes in my life. Like, no question, I’m pretty badass, and insanely hawt, and in the single GREATEST marriage in the long HISTORY of marriages to the kindest, funniest, sexiest, and down-right AMAZEBALLS wife that there has ever been, but I HAVE made a few mistakes. And because of that whole “cameras follow the rich white chick vlogger everywhere” aspect of my life, quite a few of those mistakes have been caught on camera for everyone to see. Things like New York. Trusting Angie to know what a pigeon’s diet consists of. Letting Roxy take me to that Indian restaurant even knowing what it did to HER stomach last time. Others. But the BIGGEST mistake of my life axly DIDN’T happen on camera, but hoo BOY has it been a mess ever since.

What feels like a lifetime ago, when I was trying to convince the world...including myself...that my albinism was axly vampirism so as to somehow make some sense of what I was and had to live like, back when I was doing this on-again, off-again thing with a future almost-rapist, back when I was first noticing the roundness of some of my cheerleading buddies curves but throwing all of those thoughts and feelings so far deep into the closet that even Liberace had to roll his eyes, I did something REALLY bad. I mean, I didn’t MEAN for what happened to happen! Well, not totally. I mean, like, I just wanted Ava to GO AWAY, ya know? Just DISAPPEAR. Just leave all of my father’s love, attention, and pampering on ME..where it BELONGED...and NOT on HER. Daddy had PLENTY of whores over the years, all those stupid bitches hoping to get some of that Lacklan Money before they realized the COST of my name, so why couldn’t Ava just be one of THOSE. But NO. OH NO. They had to LOVE each other.

So I got rid of her. Forged some documents. Wrote a fake letter or two. Busted out my l33t voice acting skills to make some phone calls. And before you know it, the bitch was GONE.

What a fucking mistake. If I could go back and see 15-year-old Sarah...or Sarha the Vampire of Lacklanland, anyway...I would slap the shit out of myself so fast and hard that every L I have handed out to the UGWC roster would look like beating up children. I didn’t know that her time in that hospital was going to progress the way it did. I didn’t know that they were going to literally beat the “fantasy” she held onto out of her. Or at least try. I didn’t know they were going to use shock therapy. I didn’t know what I didn’t know.

15-year-olds are fucking stupid.

I thought I could control the situation when she got out and popped up in my world as “Le Bord de Dieu,” the crazy lady singing nursery rhymes and living with a zombie chicken in a warehouse a few miles away from my house. I thought that I could keep everyone out of the loop, keep my mistakes my secret, and save my wife and friends the pain. I was wrong. And you fast forward a couple of years and we wind up here.

“I have NO intention of going.”

My Beloved had been pretty adamant about that. When I saw that announcement of the celebration at Mixxxie’s for Ava’s potential record-breaking run as Chaos Champion, I thought it would be a good opportunity for us all to be together with civility. It has been an odd road for that, tee bee atch. Kenzi initially wanted to heal the wounds between Ava and I, and she was right to do so, but neither Ava or I were ready for that. A year from there, I desperately want to fix the bridges, to bring my family back together, but now its Kenzi who has no intention of that happening.

“Let the dumb bitch have her party.”

I was done trying to get her to NOT refer to Ava as a bitch. I mean, she was, ya know? Sure, she has been LESS of a bitch lately (I even sent her a card on Mother’s Day mentioning that!), but that didn’t mean she WASN’T a bitch. And my attempts to get Kenzi to soften her language a bit on that front has generally lead to that cold stare she gives when she REALLY wants to punch me in the face. I’ve learned to NOT provoke her when she’s like that, just like how I’ve learned that “It’s fine” certainly does NOT mean something is fine!

But still, I persisted on this, and won, by utilizing my GREATEST weapon. Something better than all of my moves and tactics, better than my training, more effective than any one of the holds or strikes that I have made signatures of my offense:

I nagged.

And I nagged.

And I NAGGED.

FINALLY she agreed to go. Now, you might be wondering WHY I wanted to go, and that’s a good question, really. I mean, I’m literally the person who set up Kenzi with Lisa Seldon, a master deathmatch wrestler, to get some lessons in for this, at the time, eventual matchup. I KNEW that it was only a matter of time until the two fought. It wasn’t just the fact that they nearly killed one another last year on Chill. It wasn’t just the fact that Kenzi has gotten more and more aggressive with EVERYONE in UGWC since I left to go back to freelancing. It was also the fact that the two have been needling each other at all times, from in the locker rooms of UGWC and the LFL, to an outright FIGHT last week. A war...a FINAL battle...was coming between them, and my desires to see us brought together be damned, apparently. Still, there was something I could teach Kenzi, and perhaps remind Ava of, by having us go tonight:

Daddy believed that even the greatest of enemies could meet with civility. He and those he hated could dine together, though those dinners were testy as FLAME from when I remember, before they tried to kill each other the following day. And I believe that WE can do this, too. Much like how the #CoolKids believe that we can train and laugh together, beat the FUCK out of each other, and then laugh together afterward, I believe...BELIEVE...that my family can LOVE each other, too.

Holy fuck was I wrong.

We got to the bar and slipped in, the party well into it. Chaos noticed us as we got in, and I got a cold look from him. I don’t blame him, really. Not a single UGWC management member, past or present, was pleased by my decision to go elsewhere after that fight with Donovan. And they have been giving me dirty looks ever since whenever they see me in the halls with Kenzi. I have done my best to stay away, including staying in the back when Kenzi wrestles instead of being by her side. Still, the dirty looks. The snickers and sneers. The blatant attempts to get me to come back. But I do what is best for me, and I don’t allow myself to be pulled into any more circumstances for me to be taken advantage of. I have caught a few grumblings from Kenzi about me leaving...though I have also heard the word “abandoned” mumbled once or twice when she didn’t think I was paying attention...but she and I will come to peace with that. Eventually. But people like Chaos? Let them give the dirty looks, if it helps them feel superior.

Cold and dirty looks aside, we sat at a table and ordered a couple of drinks. Kenzi was still super standoffish, of course. She gave in to my nagging, because she has never had ANY “d” when it comes to me, but she still thought this was a bad idea. I had faith, though, and liquid courage, besides. Wine for me, that crappy organic beer for Kenzi. The night seemed to go okay, with various people giving small speeches about Ava and her legitimate successes with the Chaos Title. I hate to admit it, but while I myself have won three titles in the UGWC, I haven’t done a damn thing compared to my Step-Mumsie.

Throughout the night, I couldn’t just SEE Kenzi getting more and more agitated, I could FEEL her. She started mumbling. And THAT sucks, because she has been doing a MUCH better job with that, lately. But I could see her fingers twitching on her beer bottle. See her shifting in her seat.

And then she straight up leaped out of her seat, stormed over to the stage, and ripped the mic away from Ava before she could start her own speech. I follow quickly behind and try to pull Kenzi off the stage as the two start cutting promos on each other, but before I know it, Ava is choking Kenzi and they are rolling off the stage and to the floor.

I get involved as things get ugly, pulling at Ava’s hair and trying to pull them apart. But all that gets me is a jab to one of my knees, and in that instant, it felt like I was fresh out of my wheelchair and in a world of pain. It passed and by the time my eye cleared, Kenzi and Ava were being pulled apart by security, literally kicking and screaming at one another.

Sweet Baby Jesus, I am SO going to get a phat daddy “I told you so!” from Kenzi.

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