Chapter One
'Is this 'be nice to Molly night' or something?'
"Damn it, I knew I should have set off earlier."
Tires screeching, the classic convertible ground to an abrupt halt in the parking lot and the driver hurriedly clambered out. Clearly flustered by her late arrival, she picked up her gear and broke into a jog to get backstage.
Molly was a stickler for punctuality, so she had let her own very high standards slip. It was hardly ideal preparation for that night's show, especially as she had no idea whether she would be performing or not. Upon reaching the backstage area of the arena, she saw the familiar face of Gail Kim, who looked at her wrist as if to say 'where've you been?'
"Not now Gail, I'm not in the mood okay." Molly said abruptly.
Gail shrugged her shoulders as Molly bundled her way through. "Molly, somebody gave me a message to pass on."
Molly stopped dead in her tracks, threw her kit to the ground and turned to face her oriental colleague. Hands on hips, she impatiently asked who, "well are you going to spit it out?"
"Keep your hair on Molly!" Gail's quip went down like a lead balloon after what Molly had endured earlier that year at Wrestlemania - when Victoria saw fit to shave all her hair off. Despite the fact her brown hair had now grown back to shoulder length, Molly proved she was not in a jovial mood, as she marched over to Gail and pinned her against the wall. She loathed being reminded of one of the worst moments of her life.
"Listen Gail, cut the crap. Either you tell me this message now, or I will beat it out of you!"
The fear in Gail's eyes was evident as Molly applied a painful choke with her right hand. She squeaked out a breathless answer, "The G.M. wants to… hu… see you."
Molly held the choke for a few more excruciating seconds, before relinquishing her grip. She growled in discontent to Gail, flicking her hair out of her eyes, brushing herself down and then turning her back on her.
Gail happened to be one of her few 'friends', so her display of fury didn't make a whole lot of sense; she was only trying to be friendly after all. Whilst most of her peers would have viewed her actions to be reprehensible, one onlooker had witnessed her display of violence and liked what he saw; just what he had been looking for in fact.
Molly burst her way into the women's dressing room, slamming the door behind her. The room being empty, she tossed her bags into her locker and paused for a moment. She was out of puff after her clash with Gail, and needed a second or two to compose herself. A brief glance at a mirror in the changing area suggested that she needed to settle down somewhat. Her pride and joy, her silky locks of hair, were a bit of a mess after the scuffle. She ran her fingers through the strands, in a vain attempt to tidy it up - 'hey, at least I don't have to wear those grotesque wigs anymore' she thought to herself.
Her mind turned to the pending meeting with Eric Bischoff, the Raw G.M. She was pretty sure it was going to be a reprimand for her late arrival; she couldn't expect anything else really. There was only one way to find out, and that was to confront the guy right away.
On her way to his office she stumbled upon something of a roadblock in one of the narrow corridors of the backstage area. Four guys blocked her path, and they were not the sort of men you wanted to mess with - bad mood or not. Sheepishly, she put her head down and hoped she could slip past without attracting their attention. There would be no such luck, but she was grateful that no hassle was caused.
It was Evolution no less, and to her great surprise, Triple H ushered the other three members to one side to give Molly a way through. She had never really interacted with 'The Game', aside from the usual 'hi's' and 'byes' that everyone tended to do. She didn't know if him showing a nice side to his personality was a good thing or not, as most people found out with Hunter, he usually expects something in return.
"How you doing Molly?" Hunter asked, seeming sincere as he offered a rarely seen grin. It was hardly astounding that Molly was somewhat intimidated by the man mountain's presence, and all she could offer in return was a nervous smile. She crept through the gap made for her and continued on her way to Bischoff's office, letting out a distinct sigh of relief for the lack of confrontation. Picking fights on her fellow divas was one thing, but picking fights with a group of guys harbouring evil intentions was not high on her list of priorities.
"How you doing Molly?" Ric mocked Hunter's remark, "You're not going soft are you!" HHH did little to hide any embarrassment, but you could guarantee there was some sort of ulterior motive - he never handed out complements lightly and very rarely showed any interest in anybody else's affairs. Look after number one, was his motto.
He shook his head and left the rest of the team to scratch their heads about what they had just witnessed. "Molly Holly?!" Randy joked, aghast at the thought of his leader having a soft spot for her, "I mean have you seen the size of her ass?" Dave and Ric could only look at each other and chuckle at the observations of Evolutions resident protégé.
Most people would have felt a great sense of trepidation upon being summoned to Bischoff's office, especially if they had done something to incur his wrath. Molly didn't feel that anxious, her professional relationship with him had always been good in the past. 'Keep the boss happy and the boss will always be happy with you' was her way of looking at it.
Reaching his office, she knocked twice on the door, and awaited his call. She resolved to be apologetic and take whatever punishment he decided to dole out to her.
"Come in!" he yelled in his usual short-tempered manner. Molly gingerly opened the door and crept into his office, like a naughty school girl. Yes, hands behind her back and all.
"Ah, Molly. I've been waiting for you." He gave her another trademark of his, a sly grin that doesn't tell you if he is pleased or mad with you. It could easily be either of those two emotions. "Shut the door."
Complying with his request, Molly decided to offer an apology immediately, "Listen Mr. Bischoff, I'm really sorry for arriving late. It won't happen again."
Head bowed, she did a pretty good job of looking apologetic, but the full puppy dog eyes routine wasn't required in reality.
"Late?" he paused for a second, keeping Molly on tenterhooks, "Who gives a damn! You're here and that is all that matters, I have some good news for you."
Molly was confused by his disregard for her tardiness, but noticeably relieved at the same time. 'Is this 'be nice to Molly night' or something?' She was intrigued about what he had to say, "What would that be Mr. Bischoff?"
"Please, call me Eric." He said with another dastardly smile, to which Molly gave a nod of approval. "Here's the situation; Vince is not happy with the Women's Division here on Raw. He wants a champion who can give the division a measure of respectability."
Molly liked the sound of this; her initial reaction was that she would fit the bill perfectly.
"He wants a champion who can not only wrestle, but looks good too."
Not so great, even if Mr. McMahon had her in mind. She knew full well that most of the fans liked watching Lita or Victoria for their athleticism and great array of moves, and she couldn't compare with the likes of Trish or Stacy when it came to looks and figure. Ditto Gail. Hell she even felt like Nidia put her in the shade.
"I don't understand Mr. Bisch… I mean Eric." she said, with a puzzled look on her face.
"Well, starting tonight, it's going to be Victoria vs. Molly Holly for the Women's Championship!"
"Great… I think." Molly replied in an underwhelming tone. She couldn't comprehend the logic of this whole situation; for the past few weeks she had only performed on Sunday Night Heat, save for the odd fringe role in tag matches on Raw. There was no buildup to this feud and no real substance to it, unless you go back to what had occurred at Wrestlemania.
"How will this story work?" she asked, "What will the fans think?"
Eric was not concerned about the fans, and made it perfectly clear that Molly concerns were irrelevant, "Listen Molly, forget all the reasoning, just promise me you will go out there tonight and destroy Victoria!"
'With pleasure' she thought, avenging the head shaving incident along with capturing the title was all the incentive she needed.
"Let's just say that a good performance tonight will lead to bigger and better things." Bischoff added, just as Molly was about to leave. She glanced over her shoulder to see him wink. Not exactly her idea of fun, but being on the right side of the G.M. was certainly a good thing for her career development.
"Bye Molly." He really did admire the young diva, and got immense satisfaction from helping her out. He didn't need an excuse to eye her figure as she departed the room.
For the petite Minnesotan, this was a big break. The past few bleak months would be a thing of the past, if she could take down Victoria in the championship match that night. Thoroughly determined, she headed back to the women's locker room to change in preparation for her test.
• Chapter Two •
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