It's Not Over
Usual disclaimer - see Chapter 1 for the full details, but I own nothing, all the people own themselves, WWE owns the trademark names, I'm doing this to exercise my creativity and for the sheer pleasure of writing. Ask my therapist!
Chapter 5
An hour later, they walked out of the production van. Even Dacey was shocked, and she'd seen the rough cut. The promo was incredible. It had real heat, and it was quite obviously going to get a huge reaction. Jim Ross had flown down to see what they thought, and had been pleased when they were so knocked out by it. Which was good news, because it was going to be going to air tonight during Raw.
Tonight would be the first night that Taker and Kane would together have a confrontation with Dacey. The storyline obviously was that Kane had told Taker about Dacey, and the two of them were first going to meet her in a corridor.
The show showed that things were not going well for Ginger. First, there had been a replay of her loss against Jeff for the Intercontinental Championship. Then her match with Trish, which had been slated as a Womens Championship match, had been made non-title after Christian's appeal to Eric Bischoff. Ginger was not a happy camper, as the backstage cameras showed. She was on a rampage, but this was a different side of Ginger. Far from being simply angry, she seemed on edge as well.
Not long before her match with Trish, Ginger was seen pacing in a corridor, obviously agitated. The reason for her agitation came around the corner. Taker and Kane stood there, looking at her. Ginger stopped pacing and snarled at them, especially Kane. The men just looked at her, and Taker turned to Kane with a questioning look. Kane nodded, and Taker turned back to Ginger.
"Just who are you, girl?" he asked quietly.
Ginger looked up at him and gave him the same snarl, and then turned and strode off.
At ringside, Jerry Lawler turned to Jim Ross and said, "Well, what was that all about?"
Jim responded for the cameras, "Well, we've seen Ginger pretty upset tonight, and of course we thought losing the match for the Intercontinental Championship on Smackdown last week was the reason. But something happened after that match, and I think it might shed some light on what we just saw happen."
The promo was shown on the Titantron screen and for the TV audience. It was also seen on the monitors backstage, which was the first time any of the roster had seen it, although the plans for Darkness were well known. If the roster's reaction was anything to go by, the promo was a hit. The crowd in the stadium were stunned.
Jim Ross commented, "Well, it seems Ginger isn't exactly who she seems. But just who is she?"
Jerry, of course, was more interested in other things. "Wow! Did you see those puppies?"
"Well," Jim continued, "It seems that Taker and Kane know Ginger from somewhere. I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens with this."
Ginger's match with Trish was up next. Trish made her entrance, and waited for Ginger. There was a delay, which showed Ginger pacing again backstage in a very agitated state. Finally, she slammed a fist into the wall and headed for the ring. Her entrance music played, and she hit the ring.
Tonight, she would make her handspring entrance to the ring for the first time. Dacey had been a bit nervous about it earlier, as it had been a while since she had used it, but had spent time with the ring crew practising and getting it set up perfectly. She had practiced the run up a number of times, and small tape marks had been made on the ramp to show her where to start it to execute the leap. She and Trish has also rehearsed the entrance, so that Trish was ready for it and knew where Dacey would likely land.
The crowd was astonished when Ginger raced down the ramp, hit the well concealed springboard and somersaulted high over the top rope to land before Trish. The match was explosive, and Ginger and Trish battled furiously until Ginger finally scored the win. Of course, since Eric Bischoff had declared this a non-title match, Ginger's triumph was a bit hollow.
Trish left still holding the belt, walking out with Christian. Ginger stood in the ring, screaming her fury. And suddenly the lights dimmed, going red.
Jerry Lawler asked, "What's happening here?" as Taker and Kane appeared at the top of the ramp.
Jim responded, "I don't know, King, but it can't be good," as an unfamiliar theme played.
Nickelback's driving beat came up, as the footage of Ginger and Kane showed again on the Titantron screen. The lyrics played:
And now I know who you are
It wasn't that hard
Just to figure you out
Now and then you wonder why
And now I know who you are
It wasn't that hard
Just to figure you out
Now and then you wonder why
Not before - you never tried
Gone for good and this is it *
Ginger screamed in rage at the brothers, who stood motionless at the top of the ramp. And the show ended.
@@@
Dacey headed backstage after the show, wanting a hot shower and sleep. She had arranged to meet Glenn and Mark to ride back to the hotel with them, so she hurried through a quick shower. She was drying off when Amy Dumas poked her head in to the women's dressing room.
"Hey Dacey, that was an awesome promo! I'm envying you big time right now," Amy laughed.
Dacey blushed. Amy had been her teacher at OVW for a few weeks, and for it to be Dacey now involved in such a major storyline seemed a bit offkilter, but it didn't seem to bother Amy any. That was the fun part - the whole roster seemed so supportive of one another. There was little backstage nastiness or complaint. Everyone seemed to accept that there were times when they were part of a big storyline, and times they weren't. Management didn't play favourites - it was those with the ability who got the good pushes, so everyone worked hard to try to get those opportunities.
Still, Dacey felt a bit that she wasn't really deserving of this opportunity so soon. She was determined to make the most of it though, to prove that her ability warranted it. She walked out to the parking garage and went back to the hotel with Mark and Glenn.
The post-show recap the next morning went pretty quickly, and Glenn, Mark and Dacey were congratulated for their work setting up the new storyline. Further storylines for the whole roster were sketched out, and Dacey left knowing what matches she was to be working for. She, Mark and Glenn were travelling together pretty frequently, as their schedules at shows coincided. When they weren't flying, they shared the driving, laughingly setting up rules to prevent arguments over the radio or CD choices. They all liked music, but each had their favourites and the rule was that the driver had first choice.
Dacey shared Glenn's passion for big band music and swing. Mark tolerated it, but there were times when the opening bars from Zoot Suit Riot by the Cherry Poppin' Daddies made him groan out loud. Both Mark and Dacey often winced when Glenn sang along with AC/DC. Dacey was a bop girl. She loved pop/rock, to both men's disgust. She figured it was all those years as a personal trainer, but she loved to groove behind the wheel. As for Mark's eclectic tastes, they ranged from the bizarre to the dreadful. Dacey sometimes suspected he did it on purpose to get out of doing the driving.
That afternoon, they were heading from Philedelphia to New York, and Dacey volunteered to drive. She opted for a local radio station and Glenn lounged in the passenger seat and watched her. She drove well, never pushing the limits of the car or the condition. She tapped time with the music with her free foot, and with her fingers on the steering wheel. Her low voice was pleasant to listen to, and she sang along with almost anything. Including country music. Tamara Walker's Didn't We Love came on, and Dacey had the whole country girl wail happening. Glenn smiled as she got into the last chorus, belting it out:
Didn't we have it all back then?
Will I feel that way again?
Didn't we set the nights on fire?
Did ever a flame burn any higher?
Wasn't it so sweet? Wasn't it?
Didn't we love?
Isn't it bittersweet? Isn't it?
Didn't we love? ^
"Damn, Glenn, maybe you should go back to that whole pyro freak thing and we'll get Dacey to do this as your new theme," laughed Mark from the back seat, and Dacey and Glenn laughed with him. Inside, Glenn was, however, thinking more in terms of the bittersweet aspect of feeling such strong desire for Dacey at times that he felt it might just burn him up inside. He shied away from thoughts like that, not wanting to ruin their working relationship.
He navigated for her, and they were pulling up at the hotel in New York around 3.00pm. They walked in to the hotel together, each with their cases, and a few fans called out to Mark and Glenn. That was so common Dacey hardly heard it anymore, but when a couple of voices called for "Ginger", she was shocked. She turned and saw them, a couple of women and a man, waving madly and grinning at her. She did what Mark and Glenn usually did, smiled back and waved, but kept moving.
In the hotel lobby, she turned to Mark and Glenn, who were both looking at her. They had heard the calls for her too.
"It's a real buzz the first time it happens, isn't it?" Glenn said with a grin. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it. But expect more signs in the audience after last night, and I'll bet that you start getting asked to do autograph sessions too."
Dacey found it all a bit strange, but Glenn had been right on the money. The signs started showing up in the crowds. Mostly, they said "Ginger - you can smack my ass", which made her laugh, but there were a few that stated "Ginger's in control". She liked those ones, and hoped that the fans wouldn't find the switch to Sphinx a letdown.
The shows went on, and Ginger's descent into madness and eventually Darkness took its slow course. Some nights, nothing happened, but Ginger was a ticking timebomb regardless. Her outbursts and her pacing were the outward manifestations. And then she started doing in-ring spots to try to get Taker and Kane to leave her alone.
One night in Chicago was particularly spine tingling. Ginger entered to her usual theme, taking the mic and pacing the ring. Finally she spoke.
"I know you freaks are back there, waiting - so just come out here and let's have this out." No-one appeared, and Ginger began to speak again, expressing her inner thoughts. "There isn't anything wrong with me. I'm in control here. I know who I am - I'm me. Ginger, that's who I am. I don't know those freaks, they don't know me. This is all mind-games, and it's gonna stop right now. I can control this - I can, I know it. Why did they come here anyway? No-one knows about me - nothing to know, right? She died, I know she died. So she can't be here anymore - it's just Ginger here. And Ginger is in control. She's not here, she's just not. She can't be. But the mark - why is the mark coming back? I can hide the mark, if no-one sees the mark it will just go away again. I'm Ginger, she's dead. She's dead, damnit, I'm Ginger."
Jerry said to Jim Ross at ringside, "What is she talking about?" But before Jim could answer, the lights went red and the beat of the Nickelback theme started. In the ring, Ginger began to scream, as Taker and Kane appeared at the top of the ramp.
"No!! You don't know - no-one knows. I'm Ginger, I'm in control!" she raged at the challenge in the lyrics.
Taker and Kane slowly walked to the ring as Ginger continued to scream denial at them. They entered the ring from opposite corners, boxing her in. Neither spoke, just moved closer to her as she continued her diatribe.
"She's dead, damn you, dead! She doesn't exist anymore - she died! I'm Ginger! You don't know anything about me, you don't, I'm not her. Damn you, I'm not her! I'm Ginger, I'm Ginger, I'm here, I'm in control. Not her, not you."
As she raved, the two men moved closer, in a creepy stalking that looked even more sinister under the red lights. Eventually, Taker's big hand came out to grab her by the hair, looking down into her face. His other hand pulled open her top, revealing the tattoo on her belly, more pronounced in the red lights. He and Kane looked at one another, as Ginger pulled away screaming, "No!! It won't happen, it can't happen, she's dead! She's dead!"
She threw the mic down and ran from the ring, clutching her top together. The cameras caught her backstage, in a dressing room alone. She stood in front of the mirror, looking at the tattoo, which was showing even more red. She was shaking her head, muttering, "No, she's dead, I know she's dead - I'm Ginger, Ginger!" She then punched the mirror, shattering it and the image that had her so upset.
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Audience reaction to Ginger was strong. The fact that she was obviously so disturbed, and that she was somehow like Taker and Kane, had everyone buzzing. That alone was enough to have management decide to draw out the descent into Darkness angle.
Neither Dacey, Mark nor Glenn minded. The slow build up suited their in-ring personas and their own personalities. Dacey in particular needed more time to get used to the phenomenon that Ginger was becoming. More and more often, she was being hailed by fans waiting at hotels, airports and venues. The signs in the audience continued to multiply. And, as Glenn predicted, Dacey started to be booked for autograph sessions. She was prepared to sit alone while people flocked to other wrestlers' tables, but she was kept busy with a constant stream of people, and found she enjoyed the feedback. Her smile stayed in place as person after person told her how they liked Ginger, and her hand began to ache from scrawling her name over the publicity stills that she was signing.
After one session, Glenn found her perched on some stairs, lost in thought, absentmindedly twirling the gold ring she wore. She looked up and gave him a quick smile as he sat down beside her. He rested his elbows on his knees, in a similar pose to hers, and they sat companionably for a while. He had found it easier as time went by to be comfortable around her again.
"Penny for your thoughts, Dace," he said, nudging her with his shoulder.
She smiled at him. "Was just thinking about my grandmother. This is her ring," she indicated the claddagh that adorned the little finger on her right hand. "She gave it to me a few years ago, when Mam and I went back to Ireland for a visit. Grandda had given it to her when they first met, and she wanted me to have it. She always told me that if a thing was meant to happen, it would. When I called her to tell her that I had been offered a contract with the big show, she was so blase about it. She'd never seen me wrestle, for her it had nothing to do with talent or ability, just that it was meant to happen. Pure Irish fatalism. I was just thinking that she'd probably pop me one for worrying about how this will all turn out - and then she'd say it will turn out how it's meant to turn out, and not to waste time worrying about it." Dacey grinned. "And she's all of like five feet tall, but the thought of her popping me one always sets me straight!"
Glenn grinned back at her. "Have I ever told you how my mother terrorises me? And I've got a good foot and a half of height on her! Your grandmother's right in one respect Dacey - so long as you are putting the effort in, worrying about how this will turn out is a waste of time. Some storylines have legs well beyond what's expected, because they just touch a chord somewhere, and others don't get the reaction we think they should. We have no control over that. So just hang on and enjoy the ride. For what it's worth, Mark and I figure this is going to be monster."
* Nickelback - Figured you out
Lyrics by Chad Kroeger
I like your pants around your feet
I like the dirt that's on your knees
And I like the way you still say please
While you're looking up at me
You're like my favourite damn disease
And I love the places that we go
And I love the people that you know
And I love the way you can't say no
Too many long lines in your row
I love the powder on your nose
Ooooh
And now I know who you are
It wasn't that hard
Just to figure you out
Now and then you wonder why
And now I know who you are
It wasn't that hard
Just to figure you out
I like the freckles on your chest
And I like the way you like me best
And I like the way you're not impressed,
While you put me to the test
I like the wine stains on your dress
And I love the way you pass the check
And I love the good times that you wreck
And I love your lack of self respect
While you're passed out on the deck
I love my hands around your neck
And now I know who you are
It wasn't that hard
Just to figure you out
Now and then you wonder why
And now I know who you are
It wasn't that hard
Just to figure you out
Now and then you wonder why
Not before you never tried
Gone for good and this is it
I love your pants around your feet
And I love the dirt that's on your knees
And I like the way you still say please
While you're looking up at me
You're like my favourite damn disease
And I hate the places that we go
And I hate the people that you know
And I hate the way you can't say no
Too many long lines in a row
I hate the powder on your nose
And now I know who you are
It wasn't that hard
Just to figure you out
Now and then you wonder why
And now I know who you are
It wasn't that hard
Just to figure you out
Now and then you wonder why
Not before you never tried
Gone for good and this is it
^ Tamara Walker
- Didn't We Love
Lyrics by Tamara Walker,
Tommy Lee James and Jennifer Kimball
Quarter moon, always makes
me think of you
Are you thinkin' of me too, when you see it shine?
It's kind of sad, but I'm smiling, imagine that
Cause we're lucky to have had what we had - even for a time
Didn't we set the nights on fire?
Did ever a flame burn any higher?
Wasn't it so sweet? Wasn't it?
Didn't we love?
It's okay, sometimes I just get this way
I can't forget you anyway, I wouldn't even try
I'd rather fall than never to have flown at all
It was heaven after all, if only for a time
Didn't we set the nights on fire?
Did ever a flame burn any higher?
Wasn't it so sweet? Wasn't it?
Didn't we love?
Didn't we have it all back then?
Will I feel that way again?
Didn't we set the nights on fire?
Did ever a flame burn any higher?
Wasn't it so sweet? Wasn't it?
Didn't we love
Isn't it bittersweet, isn't it?
Didn't we love?