Part 1

"You've got to be kidding me."

Eric Bischoff looked over his desk to the young woman standing there. Seconds before she had been seated calmly in the chair opposite his, only to shoot to her feet when he explained the reason for their meeting. "I assure you that this is not a joke."

She eyed him suspiciously, crossing her arms over her chest. There had to be some way to change his mind. "What if I refuse?"

The dark-haired man rolled his eyes, beginning to straighten the papers on his desk. "If you plan on throwing a tantrum or making a huge ordeal out of this, don't bother. It's a done deal. Put simply: you refuse this position and you're fired. It's not a tough decision. Hell, there is no decision. It's this or the unemployment line. What's done is done. Besides, most managers would jump at the chance like this. I'm handing you the World Heavyweight Champion."

If she could spit venom, right now she would. "Well there's your first mistake. I'm not a manager, I'm a wrestler."

She saw a cocky smirk take over his lips. "But not a *real* wrestler. You're a woman for Christ's sake."

Her arms dropped to her sides, her hands curled into tight fists causing her painted nails to dig into her palms. She attempted to coach herself through a couple deep breaths. Reaching across the desk and slugging her boss was not a good idea, though she did think it'd probably make her feel better. She had to calm down. Deep breath. It wasn't working. "Excuse me?" Her tone was low, disbelieving, extremely pissed off.

"You heard me. You broads aren't real wrestlers anyhow, so don't go pouting about your new position. Be happy that you even have one. Don't act like this is below you."

That was it, she swore could feel her blood begin to boil beneath her skin. Not only was he insulting her, but every woman on the roster who busted their ass each week to be good, to be more than eye candy. The Women's Division was the best it had ever been thanks to people like Victoria, Jazz, and Trish, who had improved leaps and bounds over the past year or so. "You know what," she was beyond angry but she wouldn't lose her temper. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction. "I'm not even going to dignify that with a response."

"Lita honey," he was so damn cocky, "That's the best thing you've said all day."

The redhead narrowed her eyes. If looks could kill� what was it that King always said? Right now Bischoff would be pushing up daisies. "Don't call me 'honey.' What about him? What did he have to say about all this?"

Bischoff shrugged, looking as if he could care less. "He doesn't know yet. I'll be meeting with him shortly."

Lita shook her head in frustrated disbelief. She was surprised he hadn't wanted to clear this with the other man first, she thought for sure that Eric wouldn't want to upset his precious little champion. There had to be some way to get out of this. She always heard stories about how evil Bischoff could be, but she hoped they had been exaggerated for effect. Apparently they hadn't been. "I don't�How did you even come up with this? What makes you think this is a good idea? We'll hate each other, the fans won't like us together, it's a bad idea."

"All my ideas are good, Lita."

"Yeah," she scoffed. "Just like your match with Austin."

Lita saw the flash of anger in his eyes. Maybe she'd gone too far. After all, he was still, unfortunately, her boss. He stood behind his desk, leaning forward, his knuckles pressed against the dark wood. "You listen here, I've sent Three Minute Warning after you once. Don't think for a second that I wouldn't do it ag---"

A knock at the door interrupted Bischoff's threat. Eric's eyes never left Lita's, his stare angry and intense, as he called to whoever was at his door to come in. Lita broke the gaze first, turning her head when she heard the click of the door opening. She shifted her eyes to see who was entering, not able help the bubble of disgust that rose from her throat when she spotted the man. The man that, apparently, she would now be managing.

"Ric said you wanted to see me," he flicked a glance toward Lita as he stepped into the room, that ever present title belt slung over his shoulder. "What's your problem Red?" he questioned with a smirk, "You look pissed. PMS?"

If there was ever a time she wished she was a man, this was it. Then she could kick his ass. Both of them actually. That would make her feel a lot better.

Bischoff smirked at the woman's obvious anger at the Champion's comment. "Now now kids, you play nice. You actually have perfect timing, we were just talking about you."

The tall man glanced from Eric to the young woman next to him then back to Bischoff. He looked skeptical, suspicious. Lita would guess he wasn't a very trusting person. Unfortunately she would now have the time to find out. "What exactly were you discussing?"

Bischoff paused, unsure of how the man would react. He could very well be in for an ass-kicking if he got angry enough. He had one hell of a temper and he wouldn't put it past him to yank him across the desk, even if he was his boss. But it was decided. He had to tell him. "I want to introduce you to your new manager. Triple H, I'm sure you know Lita."

Part 2

"What?!?" Her eyes carefully watched the big man as his face turned red in an instant. Nice temper, this is what she was being forced to work with. "Are you fucking insane? This is fucking crazy, Bischoff."

"Nice mouth." The words slipped from her lips before she realized it.

Hunter sent her a dirty glare, "Shut the hell up."

Her fingers clenched into tight fists, no one talked to her like that. Matt had done that enough at the end of their relationship, she shouldn't have put up with it then and she certainly wouldn't now. "Excuse me? *You* shut the hell up."

Bischoff saw the tension between the two, he'd have to be blind not to, and decided to cut them both off now before it turned into an all out war of words. He could care less if they didn't get along, but he didn't want them destroying each other before they could make him any money. "Hey!" His voice did nothing to pull their angry stares away from one another. "Hey, knock it off you two. Hate it as much as you want, but you're together. That's final."

"Ugh," her face twisted in disgust. "I can't believe I have to work with him."

"It's no picnic in the park for me either," irritation dripped from the blond man's voice. "Don't go feeling all sorry for yourself." He turned his attention back to the asshole that happened to be his boss. "How did this happen?" He enunciated every word to make his point, no longer yelling but still clearly angry. "I got rid of one good for nothing woman and now I'm stuck with another?"

Her mouth dropped open. Good for nothing? That she most certainly was not. "Excuse me but I am WAY more of an asset than your wife ever was ok?"

"EX-wife. EX." She something flicker in his eyes, but it was covered up just as quickly as it came. Maybe she imagined it, there was no way Triple H actually had feelings. "This is bullshit Bischoff, and I'll be taking it up with Vince." He didn't see her roll her eyes, like Vince even cared what Bischoff did with this brand as long as he was making his money off it. She didn't know why she was surprised, she didn't expect more from him than to go crying to the boss when something didn't know the way he wanted.

"Mr. McMahon OK'd it before I met with either of you."

Hunter and Lita both scoffed under their breaths, knowing for sure that they were stuck with each other. When Vince ok'd something there was no changing his mind.

"What about Ric? Natche was doing just fine as my manager. Why the change?"

"Triple H, with all do respect," even though he was the boss, Bischoff seemed leery of Hunter, "we're not playing 20 questions here. Now if you two don't mind, I have other business to attend to."

They both sighed irritated before leaving the office, the blond man sending Bischoff one more dirty look before closing the door. He turned to say something to Lita, only to find her already halfway down the hall. "Hey," he called out to her, taking long strides to catch up with her. "Hey!"

She stopped, turning to face him with her arms crossed in front her. "What?"

He inwardly rolled his eyes, he hoped this storyline would be one that was phased out quickly. "I think we should talk about this."

"Talk about what Hunter?" She made no attempt to hide her feelings about her new job.

His nostrils flared, she was really beginning to piss him off. "About how we're going to get through this without me pedigreeing your ass."

She scoffed at his remark. "Oh please. Don't act like you got the short end of the stick here. Should I go over your past 'managers' Hunter?" She made finger quotes. He didn't like the way she said his name, with nothing but disgust in her voice. "Let's see there was Chyna, that obviously didn't work out. Then there was Stephanie who, oh wait, that's right. That didn't work out either. Shawn was your manager for like what, twenty minutes before your pedigreed him? I don't think that counts. Ya know, it seems like every life you touch you bring havoc to. You're right, this ought to be a joyous occasion, forgive if I'm not ecstatic."

He inwardly flinched at each name he said, though he wouldn't allow her to see it. There was a lot history with all three of those people. He never took the time to deal with those ghosts that still haunted him though he would never let her see that. "Flair's been with me for awhile now, he doesn't seem to have a problem with it." There, he'd show her.

"Flair?" she snorted. "Even you have to able to see that he's only latched himself to you for the glory of it. He was one of the greatest, but unfortunately in this business we're not trained on letting it go."

This woman was going to make his life a living hell. He'd find a way to get back at Bischoff for this, though he doubted Eric would climbing into a ring anytime soon after what Austin did to him. But she was right, even he knew what Ric was trying to do. He let it go because the older man could be an advantage for him once in a while. "Let's make a deal. You stay out of my way, I'll stay out of yours."

She sent a sarcastic laugh through the air, wishing it were that easy. "Believe me, if I could never speak to you again and still keep my job, that would be at the top of my to-do list. But unfortunately, that's not an option."

"Fine. You seem to have all the answers, what do you suggest?"

"I suggest us not speaking unless it is completely necessary, for starters. Second, you need to change your outlook on women being a hindrance and look at me as an asset."

"Yeah, you were some asset when you crawled on top of your little boyfriend Matt. How many chair shots did I give you that night? Five? Six? I lost count when it got to be so much fun." He saw a flash of something in her eyes, at the remembrance of the beating she had received. Or at the mention of Matt, he wasn't sure. He thought for the shortest of seconds that he shouldn't have brought that up, but then changed his mind. She had dragged out his past, he was pulling out hers.

"You're an asshole, you know that?"

He nodded, not even cracking a smile. "It's how I've made it where I am today."

She considered that for a moment, never breaking eye contact with the much bigger man as she tipped her head to the side. "You know," her voice seemed suddenly sympathetic. "Sad thing is you're probably right." Before he could answer, she turned on her heel and walked away, leaving him to wonder why she seemed saddened by that thought.

Part 3

Ivory raised her eyebrows, watching the redhead pace back and forth across the length of the room talking a mile a minute. Her stocking covered arms flew in every direction as she retold the events of her meeting with Bischoff and afterwards with Triple H. What was that she heard about red heads having tempers? She knew Lita's wasn't all natural and shrugged inwardly. Must be something in the dye.

"I mean seriously, Ivory," the older woman forced herself to focus on her friend. "Comparing me to Stephanie McMahon? Come on." The brunette couldn't hold back her smirk. She was feisty, it's part of what she loved about her friend. "You know me, I'm not one to brag but I *did* beat her for the women's title, which she shouldn't even have had in the first place. But I guess that's the perks of being a McMahon. And now I get stuck working with him? Not exactly the big return I was hoping to make, ya know? And he's just so�so� pompous. Ugh."

"Lita honey, take a breath."

The redhead continued, not even pausing. "You should have seen how smug he was when he brought up Matt. Like I even care about Matt anymore. If that's what he's going to try to use to get under my skin, he better try something el---what?" She stopped midstep, realizing that the other woman had spoken.

"Breathe!" Ivory couldn't help but laugh. "You have to try to calm down at least a little."

"But---"

"But nothing," Ivory cut in, not giving Lita the chance to go off on another tirade. "I feel for you, I really do. But we have to think about this in a rational manner."

Lita sighed, sinking into a chair across from Ivory, looking more than defeated. "What's to think about? There's no way I can get out of it."

"Not what I meant. I was talking about where we can hide the body because there's no way you're going to make it through the next few months without killing the man."

The redhead couldn't help the smile that spread over her lips. Ivory always did have a way of making her laugh, even when it was the last thing she wanted to do. She let out a deep breath. "I'm going to need a shrink after this is over."

"More than likely."

Lita rolled her eyes. "Gee, thanks for the support."

"Hey, I wouldn't be helping you out if I lied to you. Anyone forced to deal with a man with an ego like Hunter's would need professional help."

Lita leaned her head on the back of the chair, closing her eyes. "Wake me up when this whole thing has blown over."

Ivory glanced at the monitor on the other side of the room, furrowing her brows in confusion. The volume had been turned down when Lita had returned from her meeting from hell. "Um Li, when do you officially start as his manager?"

The redhead didn't open her eyes, her head still resting back on the chair. "Effective immediately. Ugh." Disgust filled her voice.

"Um," Ivory debated on whether to tell her friend that Hunter was now making his way down the ramp. "Did anyone tell him that?"

"I don't know," she sighed. "Why?"

"'Cause he's heading to the ring without you right now."

"What?!?" Her eyes flew open and she turned immediately to the monitor in the room, standing to turn the volume back on. She shook her head as she watched the display on the small monitor. "So far so good," she exhaled upon seeing Hunter hug his old friend, both men smiling. But quickly, things changed when the Game began to explain about the relationship between himself and Michaels. "Like he doesn't have enough enemies he has to get in the face of Nash, one of his only friends?"

Ivory leaned forward. "Well at least Shawn isn't out ---" she stopped short when she saw the Showstopper heading to the ring. "Never mind."

"Oh this can't be good." Lita scooted her chair closer to the monitor. Both women watched the scene fold out on the tiny tv, the redhead shaking her head at every comment Triple H made. "I don't understand, is he *trying* to get himself killed?"

"Nah," the brunette shook her head, "He knows Nash won't do anything to him. Kevin won't swing first, Hunter's banking on that."

Lita scrunched her nose up as she listened to the blond man talk about being the man around here, about calling the shots, being a general. "Ugh, now I wish Kevin would kick his ass." She watched as the Champion ducked under the rope to leave the ring, making one last comment before heading up the ramp.

Ivory raised her eyebrows when Lita suddenly stood up, heading toward the door. "Where are you going?" She already knew the answer. "What are you going to say to him?"

Lita's red hair flipped over her shoulder when she turned to look at the older woman. "Haven't thought that far ahead." Without a second thought, she turned and went in search of the Champion.

Part 4

"What in the hell was that?"

Triple H turned at the sound of the female voice, an angry one at that. "Hey Red, how's it hanging?" He smirked, repositioning the Championship belt hooked over his shoulder.

Lita rolled her eyes, shaking her head. "You didn't answer me, what the hell was that? If I'm going to manage you, you will not be pulling anymore stunts like that. There'll be no more little surprise run-ins with your old buddies, and for the love of God, don't make any more enemies around here ok? Kevin is one of the only people that can still stomach you and you're on the road to pissing him off too? I don't get you at all."

"Listen," his nostrils flared and he stepped toward her, towering over her small frame. Though, to her credit, he noticed that she didn't back down, not even an inch. "There's a lot that you, that nobody, knows about the three of us. It would be to your advantage to stay the hell out of it."

"Oh please," she scoffed, "Save the cryptic bullshit Hunter. You're right, I don't know what has happened between you guys and frankly, I don't care. But this shit you're pulling now�You have enough reasons to watch your back, let's not add another to the list." With one more steely gaze, she turned on her heel and headed down the hall.

"Oh by the way Lita," his voice called out to her, singsong and sweet.. "I talked to Vince about our little situation here."

She stopped then, curious as to what other trouble he'd been raising. Lita crossed her arms over her chest and turned back to eye him up again. "What did you do now?"

He took a few short strides toward her. "Nothing, just wanted to be perfectly clear on all the details of our new business arrangement." He did nothing to hide his enjoyment when he saw the uneasy look on her face. He knew that bringing up Vince, and the fact that they discussed her, would make her at least a little nervous. "Vince explained to me that while you've been cleared to start training again, you're not allowed to take any big bumps, right?"

She nodded, eyeing him curiously. "What are you getting at?"

"Well, since you're technically not 100% cleared, I convinced him that it would be far too dangerous for you to be at ringside just yet. Ya know, we wouldn't want anymore damage done to your pretty little neck here," he reached up to drag his fingers over her skin, pushing her hair aside. She pulled back, smacking his hand away. He only chuckled, shifting his belt up on his shoulder. "So you see, while he does want you as my manager, you'll have to do that from back here. You're not allowed in the ring, by the ring, anywhere near it just yet. You're a liability. You stay behind the curtain."

"What?" She dropped her hands to her side. It was bad enough that she actually had to interact with the man, but now he was stepping over the line. "Who in the hell do you think you are? You can't go around manipulating people into telling you want you want to hear just so you feel better about a situation."

"You know that no one, not even me, can manipulate Vince McMahon. Well, unless you have good rack and a tight ass," he paused, his gaze sliding over her body. "You could--- nah, probably not."

"You're a pig. Just so you're aware of that."

"Lita honey," he smirked at her, "I'm aware and quite proud."

"You would be. Do you get off on this? Having everyone you come in contact with hate you?" She raised her eyebrows, looking at him expectantly, "'Cause that's a really shitty way to live your life Hunter."

He opened his mouth to speak, only to be cut off when someone joined their conversation.

"Ooh what's this? A little lovers' spat?" They both turned at the sound of the third voice, a bubble of disgust rising from Lita's throat when she laid eyes on the person.

"Ugh Matt, what do you want?"

He held his hands up in a defenseless motion, "Take it easy Lita. I was just stopping to inquire about your new relationship with our Heavyweight Champion here. Sounds like things aren't going too well, you're being your hardheaded self again, aren't you?" He sarcastically berated her, a cocky smirk on his lips the whole time. He turned his attention to the Champion. "Watch out for this one Hunter, she can be a handful," he winked, "if you know what I mean."

He shot a look at Lita, there was no way to misread the emotions on her face. Triple H didn't know why he cared, or if he actually did at all. Maybe it was the fact that he didn't like that little prick Hardy to begin with. He stepped in front of the redhead, blocking Matt's view of her. He had to hold back the small laugh that rose within him at the look of shock and fear on the younger man's face. "Listen you little shit," he stared down at the dark-haired man, "I don't need your advice on how to handle anyone or anything. As for her," he motioned over his shoulder. "She's none of your business anymore, got it? You don't worry about what she does, who she talks to, or how she acts. I find out you so much as look at her the wrong way, and you're skinny little ass is mine." He tapped on Matt's cruiserweight belt. "Got it?"

Matt nodded slowly, taking a few steps back away from the Heavyweight Champion. He was sure to put a good distance between them before turning his back to him and heading down the hall.

"Y-you didn't have to do that," she sounded so small behind him. "But thank you."

He turned to look her in the eye, silently chiding himself for saying anything. He didn't even care about her, what did it matter if her ex-boyfriend made a few comments? He wouldn't let his guard slip again. "Don't get too turned on, I never liked that bastard."

Lita shook her head, exhaling loudly. "Are the words 'you're welcome' even in your vocabulary? Or is there just a list of insults and put-downs?" She raised her hand when he went to speak. "Don't. Don't even bother. You do something, dare I say, not completely repulsive and then have to turn right back into a jerk. You really are an ass." Without giving him room for rebuttal, she turned and hurried down the hall, her red hair flapping behind her as she walked.

Hunter watched her leave, internally struggling to find out why it seemed to hurt a little more every time she walked away from him angry like that.

Part 5

"You ready?"

Triple H looked up at the sound of the voice, and tried to hide his surprise with a small chuckle and sideways grin. "*I* am ready but what is it that you think you're doing?"

Lita crossed her arms over her chest, refusing to look away from Hunter's challenging glare. "You have a match. I'm your manager. I'm going with you, this really shouldn't surprise you as much as it is. That's how having a manager works."

His amusement turned into a sour smile, "I know how it works. What I'm confused about is how you think you're just going to parade out there when you know Vince put a stop to that."

The redhead let the smile slowly begin to grow on her lips. "You see, Hunter," she put the emphasis on his name. "You're not the only one that can talk to Mr. McMahon."

"What?"

She couldn't hide the amusement at the shocked look on his face. "What's the matter? Afraid that some little woman one upped you? Is that it?' She faked a small giggle at his obvious outrage. "'Cause that's exactly what I did. I signed a little thing called a waiver. Am I speaking slowly enough for you to understand? It said that as long as I agreed not to hold the company responsible for further injury, I could escort you to ringside."

Triple H clenched his jaw, stepping closer to the young woman. His anger caused his breathing to pick up, his chest slowly beginning to heave with each breath. She stood her ground, not backing away in any matter. She raised her chin and held her smirk tight on her lips, amused that Hunter honestly seemed to believe that she wouldn't have found some way around this. She wasn't stupid, and she wasn't foolish. Every agreement had a loophole and hers happened to be in the form of a liability waiver.

"Really Hunter, you need to relax. All that anger can't be good for a person."

"You little-"

"Oh!" She cut him off when the beginning of his music began to play. "We'll have to finish this later. That's our cue." She practically skipped ahead of him, not trying in the least to hide her amusement. If the only thing good that came out of this was irritating the living hell out of Hunter, she would go at it full throttle. She reached the curtain and turned back to look at him still standing in the same spot, clearly not happen with the redhead. She yelled over the music. "You coming?" She couldn't hear what he said but he was clearly cursing her out under his breath. He shouldered past her, and if Lita wouldn't have been expecting him to do just that she may have lost her balance. Luckily, she knew his type.

Triple H stepped through the curtain and onto the steel stage, pausing at the top to survey the crowd and his opponent in the ring. He was in full 'Game' mode, strong and tall, unwavering as he stood there. Lita bounded out behind him, the exact opposite of his demeanor as she played to the crowd and bounced around the stage. She met his eyes with a broad smile knowing that it was probably irritating the hell out of him, she was met with a dark glare before he proceeded down the ramp.

She quickly caught up with him, even passing him and began to climb the steps to the ring ahead of him, only to be stopped when his hand clamped down on her arm. With a slight tug on her arm he led her back down the few steps and backwards until her hips hit the black barricade. "You stay out here," he growled at her, surprising him by simply nodding with a weary look on her face. He stared her down for a few seconds trying to convey just how serious he was before he turned and made his way around the opposite side of the ring, water bottle in hand.

The crowd roared as a single spotlight shined on him, water cascading back down over his body. Even as the most hated man in the business, the fans still ate it up whenever he entered that ring. He stared out into the darkened seats for one last moment before turning to duck into the ring. He stopped halfway through the ropes, his eyes once again growing dark and angry. He got into the ring completely, crossing to the turnbuckle on the opposite side. He stood a few feet back, waiting until she bumped into his chest when she hopped down, turning to him with smug smirk on his face. Lita had climbed to the second rope, playing to the crowd and pumping her arms in the air when he turned to enter the ring.

"What?" She asked, mocking innocence. "Please Hunter, you didn't really think I'd stay out there just 'cause you told me to did you? I have a father and you're not it. Get over yourself."

He stepped closer to her, trying to resist the urge to throw her the ropes and outside of the ring where he told her to stay. He was about to say something when he saw her glance over his shoulder then shove him to the side. Before he could recover his footing enough, he fell into the ropes, holding his weight up with the their support. From the corner of his eye, he saw the redhead crumble to the mat with a thump and he shook his head, trying to focus on what exactly had just happened.

He saw movement behind him and forced himself to get his senses about him. Booker T, his opponent for the evening, was standing in the middle of the ring now watching as the referee checked on the fallen diva. It had been an accident, that was evident by the concern on his face, and the momentary distraction allowed Hunter to hit him with a hard clothesline, sending him to the mat. The Game flicked a glance over his shoulder, watching Earl Hebner help the young woman roll out of the ring though she kept waving off his assistance. She steadied herself against the apron once she was on the outside, and from the center of the squared circle, he could hear her telling the ref to get back in the ring and start the match. She had a certain fire about her, he'd give her that much. He watched as Earl slid back into the ring and signaled for the bell. He made quick work of Booker, using him as a sounding board for all the frustration he'd manage to build over the past few weeks.

He cast a sideways glance at one point halfway through the match, still surprised to find Lita there. Even more surprising was the fact that she seemed to be cheering for him, pounding her hand against the mat, yelling words of encouragement. It wasn't long after that the tired and worn down form that was Booker T was driven into the mat face first with a Pedigree and quickly rolled up for the pin.

The bell rung, signifying his win and before he even made his way to his feet, the redhead was at his side, surprising him once more by reaching out to try to steady him. He quickly pulled his arm away from her touch with more force than necessary and sent her another angry stare before grabbing his belt from the ref and leaving the ring. Sure, she may have cheered him on during his match but that didn't change the fact that he didn't like her. And she didn't like him.

He found her once again right next to him in a flash, taking quick strides to keep up with him. "See," he heard her say over the boos from the crowd, "that wasn't so bad now was it?" His jaw clenched and he turned to meet her eyes, hating the look of amusement found in her hazel pools.

He ducked through the black curtain and into the back stage area, heading straight for his locker room. He wasn't sure why she was still following him. The match was over, there was no more need for her to be present. He picked up his pace and managed to get a couple feet ahead of her, carrying on the brisk walk until he reached his room. He entered and slammed the door shut behind him immediately, knowing that the space between them wouldn't allow her to have snuck in the room that fast.

All he heard from the other side was an amused giggle. "Nice, real nice." He threw his title belt on the nearby couch, his dark eyes moving to the door when he heard another small laugh, followed by an overly amused tone.

"I'll see you next week Hunter!"