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Byrds of a Feather; Showdown Roleplay
Topic Started: Dec 2 2010, 06:15 AM (46 Views)
Joof
sVo Champion
[ *  *  *  *  *  * ]
Nathan Paradine sat in the glamorous Goodfellas Bar, his head in his hands and several scattered glasses signifying how long he’d spent drinking himself senseless following Showdown. It was now nearly three in the morning and most patrons had already moved on, the bartender eying the sVo wrestler with weary eyes as he polished a glass with a white cloth.

“I think I’ll be cutting off your tab now sir,” he informed Paradine as he sat the clean glass down onto the bar. “You’re drinking like you have some kind of problem.”

“Perhaps I do.” Paradine raised his head, his eyes rimmed with red and bloodshot, dark stubble already forming on his face. He snatched up an empty cup and waved it around. “Give me one more drink then I’ll get out of here.”

“Do you want the same drink again?” the bartender inquired, pulling a bottle of vodka out into the open. Paradine nodded and the cup was refilled halfway. Paradine raised his eyebrow but didn’t say anything, instead fishing out his wallet and placing a note onto the counter.

“Thanks,” he muttered before taking a deep gulp, wincing slightly as the alcohol burned his throat. It was typical of him to search out the nearest drinking spot as soon as he needed to deal with his problems and to him, all he tasted was guilt and shame.

He stood up slightly unsteadily, regarding the bartender for a moment before finishing off his drink and turning to leave. He managed to walk across the foyer of the Goodfellas Casino before stepping into an elevator, promptly half-collapsing against the wall before hitting the button for his floor. He was vaguely aware of someone else stepping into the elevator as well, however he didn’t move from his position.

“Are you alright?” a woman asked, cautiously placing a hand on his shoulder. Paradine nodded and stood up straight, forcing a smile onto his face.

“I’m fine,” he replied. “Just a little bit too much to drink, that’s all. I’ll be alright in just a-“

Paradine was abruptly cut off in mid-sentence as a fist connected with the side of his face, rocking his senses and sending him tumbling door to the floor of the elevator. He exclaimed angrily and clutched his jaw however the woman suddenly grabbed his shoulders and pulled him back to his feet.

“You idiot! It’s me, Byrd!” she hissed, shaking him until his eyes refocused. “I should’ve known I’d find you wallowing in a bar, you stupid drunk. I ought to knock to out right now and leave you here for someone else to find, but fortunately we have work to do.”

“What do you mean, we have work to do?” the punch had sobered him up considerably and he could make out Byrd standing in front of his clutching the collar of his shirt, her dark red hair framing her face. She rolled her eyes in irritation, obviously resisting the urge to hit him again.

“What you did tonight was reckless. After all the work I put in finding out who the Masked Man was and you jeopardize it all in a single moment by thinking you have the power to try and fight the Company.” She sighed and tilted her head forward, resting on his chest. “Nathan, you’ve risked everything.”

The elevator halted and the door slid open. Byrd attempted to help Paradine out into the hallway however he shook her off shaking his head.
“I’m sure I can manage to walk to my suite by myself,” he grunted without looking over his shoulder. “And don’t think you can slip away, either. It’s high time you and I had a little discussion.”

Byrd nodded and followed him to his door, following him into the room. As Paradine wandered over to the sofa and sat down, she poured a glass of water and brought it over to him, sitting in an adjacent armchair.

“Drink it, it’ll do you better than all that alcohol you have sloshing around in your stomach. You’ve got a lovely bruise right above your eye, did you know?”

Paradine drank off the entire glass of water, sitting it down and wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “A souvenir from the Company earlier this evening, I suspect. Did you watch the show?”

“I’m afraid not. I’ve heard plenty about what you did at the end of the night, but nothing about a beat down.”

“Well, they weren’t too happy with the idea of Cody Williams winning. A few goons beat me up outside my locker room.” He shrugged his shoulders and sighed. “Can you understand exactly why I decided to make a stand now? I refuse to take their abuse any longer. It’s all easy to form some sort of team of wrestlers, but we need a real power player to make any kind of impact.”

“In case you’ve forgotten, we have a power player. Unless you’ve spoiled things with your little stunt tonight-“Byrd began, however Paradine cut across her loudly, his voice tinged with bitterness.

“In case you didn’t know, we had a little heart-to-heart last week. He practically told me he wouldn’t be getting involved, which is more than a little disappointing considering his history with the sVo. Hell, considering his past as a professional wrestler!” Paradine’s voice rose to a shout, however at a look from Byrd he paused and shook his head. “I’m sorry. It’s just... the whole situation infuriates me. And now, either I unmask him or I’m fired.”

“You certainly have managed to back yourself into a corner.” Byrd betrayed no sympathy, signalling her disappointment to Nathan. “I thought you might’ve managed to refrain for a week at least from doing something stupid. It seems I was wrong.”

“Where have you been, anyway?” Paradine asked coldly. “I haven’t heard from you from nearly two weeks. Have you got a new special project to work on now?”

“Don’t be like that Nathan,” Byrd sighed, curling up and hugging her knees beneath her chin. “I’ve just been busy. I’m sorry that I can’t devote every single waking moment of my life to dealing with your problems.”

“I don’t ask you to deal with my problems!” Paradine shouted, sitting up straight and glancing at Byrd. “You knew what you were getting into when you agreed to work for me. I warned you, and you knew the terms.”

“I know, and I don’t regret the decision I made.” Byrd looked to be on the verge of tears now and Paradine instantly felt a pang of guilt. “Can we talk about something else? Do you know about your match for next week yet?”

“Of course I do.” Paradine fished a slip of paper out of his pocket and unfolded it, reading it aloud. “Nathan Paradine and Cody Williams versus James Von Drake and Karma Jones. Wonderful, I get to team up with one old enemy against two new ones.”

“I thought you and Cody had patched up your differences?”

“We have, I suppose. I mean he’s a lot more willing to talk to me now and I guess we’re almost... sort of friends, but at the same time I suppose I need to learn to trust him, especially if I want to win this match.” He shrugged his shoulders again. “Who knows? If we win, this could lead to bigger and better things for both of us.”

“At least you’re looking at the bright side of it all,” Byrd said hopefully. “And I’m sure this whole situation with the Masked Man will work out somehow, these things always do.”

“I hope you’re right,” Paradine muttered darkly. “I have absolutely no idea whatsoever what I’m going to do. This is a nightmare.”

Paradine leaned back on the sofa and closed his eyes. Eventually he’d fall asleep and Byrd would quietly plant a kiss on his cheek before exiting the room, however for a long while they sat in silence contemplating what needed to be done.
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